Cheap ADSL Holds Up 802.11n Router Design

sholto writes "Ever wondered why you can't find the perfect 802.11n router? You know, the one with dual band, great range, USB print server and storage? Australian ISPs used to give away modem routers to consumers with expensive ADSL plans, but competition has forced them to drop the plans' prices so low they can't subsidize the boxes any more. D-Link Australia says R&D into N routers is now becalmed in a Catch-22."

Comments

DO NOT WANT: print server, storage, P2P daemon,etc

[seanadams.com]

The perfect 802.11n router for me is the one that just acts as a reliable AP and doesn't overheat, crash, drop connections, or have special compatibility problems. How about making it WORK before you add more "value"?

DDWRT helps but the hardware on the market is just garbage. And it's NOT because it's made of commodity components, but because it's poorly engineered. Best example of this is the horrific power/thermal management on newer Linksys products. Ethernet _switch_ traffic alone is enough to make the whole system overheat and crash no matter what firmware you're running. A competent engineer could have made it work right for the same BOM. I used to make wireless devices and our biggest category of support problems was crappy wireless routers either spontaneously rebooting, or needing to be rebooted. I just can't believe we are still at the same state of reliability as the 802.11b days - actually it seems worse now.

PS I don't mean to pick on Linksys, it's just that they're the ones I'm most familiar with. Overall the fails seemed to be in proportion to market share although every one had its particular problems.

Re:DO NOT WANT: print server, storage, P2P daemon,

[Chuck Chunder]

Why in the world would you want an ADSL2+ modem (or any modem or media adapter other than ethernet or USB) built in to your router?

Because it's a home, not a datacenter.

Re:AirPort Extreme

[thegarbz]

You're the second to recommend an Apple product.

You're the second to accuse anyone of not liking it to be an automatic Apple hater.

You're the second to whom I will now reply Apple doesn't sell a product with a built in ADSL2 modem, which incidentally makes your lovely product recommendation completely off topic.

I will completely agree with you on your last point though. I too for a while ran a Linux machine as a NAT gateway, router, firewall, file server, wireless router, etc, but over the years features have gotten too much for it. I long for the days of my ancient old Linksys ADSL modem router with builtin wireless, PSTN to VoIP bridge, and USB print server. Now I have 4 boxes doing that job.

Re:DO NOT WANT: print server, storage, P2P daemon,

[Khyber]

Yea, sure, so when one component fails, you're stuck without ANY connectivity of any sort while you wait for the replacement for the entire kit.

Or you could get REALLY short cables, stack the units properly for airflow, and if something fails, you're less likely to have to wait upon a service technician to deliver something to you, as you can likely run to a store and pick up the replacement within hours instead of days.

Plus, blinking lights, man! Blinking lights!