Looking for a wireless router

medpal

Resident Medic
Skilled
With blessings of BSNL i may get a broadband at home at last :clap:

Now with my laptop wifi functionality lying idle i am thinking of setting up wireless router at home, so that i can surf the net and my family members too can surf.

my requirements :
i need range to be good so that i can surf from my bedroom at first floor.

the models i have shortlisted are:
Linksys
WRT54G and WRT54GS
I dont know the difference between the two. how much effective is speed booster is it usefull to a person like me with simple home usage.

Netgear
DG834G / DG834 PNB / DG84GTD
there are a lot of confusing models there is there any i am missing out?

Buffalo
WHR54GS
i have read a lot about it on TE lately so i am thnking about it also. ONly question is local availability and support.

Now question is which is good for me, pricewise, stabilitywise, ease of usage, range of wireless field.

can anyone point me to pricing in India of the same?

TIA

PS : i am not willing to take BSNL default wifi one as the range is pathetic, my friend is using it and range is limited to one room only forget the floor difference.
 
Yup buffalo is good, some of the buffalo models are flashable to firmwares like tomato or dd-wrt. Or else get the linksys WRT54GL which completely rawks, im using 2 of them right now at home. I'v managed to create a Wireless Distribution system between my 2 routers after flashing them to the tomato firmware :D
 
Hey, whats the prices of these wireless routers in India.

My friend who is in US at the moment is thinking of buying one but he is confused about buying it from India or US.
 
go with the buffalo... it's cheaper than the WRT54GL, and definitely flashable to the major 3rd party firmware since it's using broadcom chipset
 
I use a Huawei wireless modem that BSNL provided. I use it with two comps as well as a lappy. The range is 40-80m indoors and 120-300m outdoors. Good performance within home.
You can buy from Linksys. But do stay away from lesser known brands. Service availability is an issue throughout India.
Afterall modems from BSNL are not that bad. If anything goes wrong you can call them. The modems work at default settings. Also you can choose one which may be suitable to you. (1 yr warrnty)
However in D-link modems you have to configure little settings from the modem setup page. If you are not very much friendly with all these, it is better to invest in modems from BSNL. You won't regret after all. Remember, sometimes it takes a lot of time and energy to configure them... and still some do not work.
Here in Kolkata, BSNL modems are in short supply. Many wants to get hold of one...but cannot procure. So, if you get a good one it is wise to take it...
 
medpal said:
Now question is which is good for me, pricewise, stabilitywise, ease of usage, range of wireless field.
One thing to keep in mind is that many ADSL routers like Linksys WRT54x do not come with integrated modem. Netgear DG834G does, though, as do the routers provided by BSNL itself.

You'll need an ADSL modem if you buy a wireless router without one.
 
thanks burnz and yamaraj for suggestions.

@Ratna : i already one basic single oprt Huawei ADSL router cum Modem with me. i am satisfied with it, but the reason is that the wireless version they provide here do not have good range.

In my friends flat he cant connect from bedroom if router is in drawing room and vice versa. the passage to bedroom is open and contains dining area.

So i am looking at better options.

keep the suggestions coming.
 
medpal said:
thanks raghu and rushabh.

will check tomato and linksys availability

Anytime! And be careful if you're buying the linksys, dont get the V5 routers, get the WRT54G'L' model, coz thats the one flashable to 3rd party firmwares. I got the WRT54GL for 3.5k from prime 2 weeks back.

And these are the list of routers supported by tomato :
* Linksys WRT54G v1-v4, WRT54GS v1-v4, WRT54GL v1.x, WRTSL54GS (no USB support)
* Buffalo WHR-G54S, WHR-HP-G54, WZR-G54, WBR2-G54
* Asus WL500G Premium (no USB support)

For more info on the tomato firmware go here :
Tomato FAQ | polarcloud.com

Screenshot for tomato in action :
http://www.polarcloud.com/img/ssbwm100.png

Video for tomato in action :
http://www.polarcloud.com/v/scbwm.htm

Hope this helps.
 
I've been using the Dlink DI-524 with my BSNL conection in Nasik....I'd recommend the Dlink DI-524 for sure....

Also the Linksys WRT54G has problems with multiple connections....causing it to crash...
 
Wraith said:
I've been using the Dlink DI-524 with my BSNL conection in Nasik....I'd recommend the Dlink DI-524 for sure....

Also the Linksys WRT54G has problems with multiple connections....causing it to crash...

Well that maybe the case with the WRT54G V5 routers, coz they suck frankly speaking, the cheaper D-Link or Netgear would be a better buy. But iv been running my WRT54GL almost for 2 years non-stop from now, with zilch downtime :eek:hyeah:
 
Now comes a twist in tale :

as per the Linksys reseller here in Surat, WRT series is not compatible with BSNL here and i may require an additional adsl modem for that. Is It true?

I mean he told that these routers have not built in modem with them, so i need one modem to connect to BSNL and then this router to make my home network.

If it is so i am little disheartened because i do not want to clutter with more instruments.

Instead he suggested me with this one Linksys WAG200G

How is this? i am googling for the reviews.

PS edit : and he is adamont on not giving me WRT54GL says its linux router and will not work here, i cant decifer how it is? IIRC linux firmware has nothing to do with OS of the PC it connects to, am i right?

and Buffalo is not available here, still inquiring though, few of the venders raised their eyebrows as they heard the name for the first time :p
thanks for the suggestions.
 
WRT series has nothing do with the BSNL modem. After all there modem don't do any unique thing other 802 specs.

You CAN use WRT54GL in india, your dealer is keeping you in dark in order to get his product sold. Think of it this way: Your router is taking to and back with adsl router (modem is the wrong word here) through Ethernet, so where does the question arise of being in a region(India)?

Get a buffalo! I am also getting on HP-G54, mine Netgear 614 sucks big time! esp. when using torrents and across local network file transfer.

medpal said:
Now comes a twist in tale :

as per the Linksys reseller here in Surat, WRT series is not compatible with BSNL here and i may require an additional adsl modem for that. Is It true?

I mean he told that these routers have not built in modem with them, so i need one modem to connect to BSNL and then this router to make my home network.

If it is so i am little disheartened because i do not want to clutter with more instruments.

Instead he suggested me with this one Linksys WAG200G

How is this? i am googling for the reviews.

PS edit : and he is adamont on not giving me WRT54GL says its linux router and will not work here, i cant decifer how it is? IIRC linux firmware has nothing to do with OS of the PC it connects to, am i right?

and Buffalo is not available here, still inquiring though, few of the venders raised their eyebrows as they heard the name for the first time :p
thanks for the suggestions.
 
medpal said:
Now comes a twist in tale :

as per the Linksys reseller here in Surat, WRT series is not compatible with BSNL here and i may require an additional adsl modem for that. Is It true?

I mean he told that these routers have not built in modem with them, so i need one modem to connect to BSNL and then this router to make my home network.
This is exactly what I explained in my post. WRTx are indeed compatible, but they lack inbuilt ADSL modem, which you'll have to buy separately. Otherwise, go for Netgear DG834G. It's a WiFi ADSL router+modem device.
 
Buffalo also has an ADSL modem + Wifi router. It sells for Rs3.8k or so (dont remember exactly, but somewhere around that). And like Yamaraj said you might have to buy the ADSL modem separately. It might actually be cheaper, since the Buffalo router is Rs2100 and the ADSL modem given by BSNL is for Rs1200.

Im sure there will be many ppl who will help getting the Buffalo shipped to your place.

Raghu.
 
Raghunandan said:
Buffalo also has an ADSL modem + Wifi router. It sells for Rs3.8k or so (dont remember exactly, but somewhere around that). And like Yamaraj said you might have to buy the ADSL modem separately. It might actually be cheaper, since the Buffalo router is Rs2100 and the ADSL modem given by BSNL is for Rs1200.

Im sure there will be many ppl who will help getting the Buffalo shipped to your place.

Raghu.

headup raghu for your suggestions. :hap2:
can you please guide me to a link with model no. of buffalo adsl modem + router you are talking about? TIA.

thanks all for your clearing remarks.

so basically now i need a device which can do both connect to bsnl as an adsl modem and be a router to set up my wireless network.

one i have shortlisted is Linksys WAG200G. (it is not being marketed in US markets so allmost all reviews are from UK / AUS which are really promising). I have been quoted 4k plus taxes here.

The other one as Raghu has said Buffalo one which should be in the same range.
 
guys,

wat abt the draft N wireless series from netgear..

its a tad expensive, but is it worth moving to draft N now? will it offer better range and speeds..?

wat abt the RANGEMAX series from NETGEAR..hows the range and speed on those..?

thanks
 
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