Wireless Router Guide

After links to comparative and individual product reviews, we also offer links to articles on Getting Started & How-To, wireless security, and networking utility and security software. For information on and tools for wireless hot spots, see our Mobile Security page.

Choices

Wireless routers with Internet connection sharing, networking and firewall features are an alternative to Wired routers or Networking Software. Wireless routers are actually wired routers with wireless access points built in so you can have wired and/or wireless at the same time. Another choice is a wireless router with a built-in DSL or cable modem. Finally, you can consider a hardware and software security combo box to connect and protect your home network, see our Broadband Gateways page for more information.

Security

Wireless routers are not as secure as hard wired. If you want wireless and security, read the security articles on this page and be prepared to spend some time setting up the security features of your wireless network. To make this easier, look at getting started and wireless utility software.

Testing

We recommend that you test the firewall features of a wireless router after installation and setup using an online service like Security Space.

Firmware

Router vendors offer updates for their firmware to add new features and to resolve problems found by their customers. After installing a new router, check for updates.

Prices

For current prices, see our custom Wireless Router Price List powered by Amazon.com or click on one of the products below:


Comparative Wireless Router Reviews

How to Buy a Wi-Fi Router, Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, May 26, 2009
Wireless Router Reviews, Consumer Search, updated May 2009, best rated is D-Link DIR-655, best value is Trendnet TEW-631BRP, and best basic is Linksys WRT54G2.
Apple, Belkin, Trendnet Make Most Reliable Routers, Jeff Bertolucci, PC World, January 6, 2009
Which is the best draft-n wireless router, Johnathan Bray, PC Authority, September 12, 2008 -- Draytek Vigor, D-Link, Linksys, Netgear & Belkin
Cheap Wireless Routers, Oliver Rist, PC Magazine, June 18, 2008 -- Linksys, Netgear, SMC & Trendnet
Dual-Band Routers, Oliver Rist, PC Magazine, June 3, 2008 -- Apple, D-Link, Linksys & Netgear
New 802.11n Routers: The Best Wi-Fi Yet, Becky Waring & Elliott Kirschling, PC World, April 29, 2008 -- Apple, Belkin, D-Link, Linksys, Netgear
Cheap Draft 802.11n Router Roundup, Tim Higgins, SmallNetBuilder, April 11, 2008 -- Belkin, D-Link, Linksys & Trendnet
Individual Wireless Router Reviews

Belkin N1 Vision

Belkin N1 Vision wireless modem router gets a 4-star rating, Techbyte, October 30, 2008
Belkin N1 GCN Lab Reviewer's Choice, Greg Crowe, March 31, 2008
Legacy-friendly Draft 11n: Belkin N1 Vision Reviewed, Tim Higgins, SmallNetBuilder, December 6, 2007
Belkin N+

Belkin N+ Wireless Router (F5D8235-4), Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, March 16, 2009 -- rated "fair"
Belkin N+ Wireless Router, John Delaney, Computer Shopper, January 2009 -- rated 7.3 (out of 10)
Belkin N+ Wireless Router, Dong Ngo, CNet, November 7, 2008 -- "Editor's Choice"
Belkin N+ review, Roger Gann, PC Advisor UK, October 23, 2008 -- rated 4 stars (out of 5)
D-Link DIR-628

D-Link RangeBooster N Dual Band Router (DIR-628), Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, March 19, 2009 -- rated "very good"
D-Link RangeBooster N Dual Band Router (DIR-628), Josh Norem, Computer Shopper, July 2008 -- "Editor's Choice" rated 9 (out of ten)
Dual-ban N on the Cheap: D-Link DIR-628 RangeBooster N Dual Band Router Reviewed, Tim Higgins, Small Net Builder, June 26, 2008
D-Link DIR-655

D-LInk KIR-655 A4 Quick Review, Tim Higgins, Small Net Builder, February 10, 2009 -- "Its good wireless performance, stable operation, gigabit switch, high routing throughput and automatic uplink QoS continue to make it the go-to draft 802.11n router."
D-Link DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router, ConsumerSearch.com, best wireless router overall, June 2008
D-Link RangeBooster N 650 DIR-655, Jim Martin, PC Authority Labs Winner, February 29, 2008
Note: The optional Secure Spot 2.0 security package available directly from D-Link adds parental controls, safe surfing/searching, remote management, anti-virus/antispyware protection with McAfee® technology, internet usage time scheduling and activity reporting, web-managed firewall, access control for Internet usage, application control (blocking and scheduling), spam control and identity protection.

D-Link DIR-825

D-Link DIR-825 Xtreme N Dual Band Gigabit Router, Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, March 30, 2009 -- "Editor's Choice"
Review D-Link DIR-825 Xtreme N Dual Band Gigabit Router, Troy Drier, Wi-FiPlanet, November 25, 2008 -- "perfect choice for video-enthusiast households"
D-Link DIR-825 Xtreme N Dual Band Gigabit Router: Second Time's the Charm? Tim Higgins, Small Net Builder, October 2, 2008 -- not recommended
D-Link Xtreme N Dual Band Gigabit Router DIR-825, Dong Ngo, CNet, October 27, 2008 -- rated "very good"
Linksys WRT 310 N

Linksys by Cisco WRT310N with Home Network Defender Reviewed, Doug Reid, Small Net Builder, March 3, 2009 -- good router, content filter not so much
Linksys WRT310N Wireless-N Gigabit Router, Dong Ngo, CNet, May 29, 2008 -- rated "very good"
Linksys WIRELESS-N Gigabit Router Wrt310n Review, Becky Waring, PC World, April 30, 2008
Linksys Wireless-N Gigabit Router (WRT310N), Oliver Rist, PC Magazine, January 8, 2008 -- rated "good"
Linksys WRT 320 N

Linksys Dual-Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router WRT320N, Dong Ngo, CNet, March 31, 2009 -- rated "very good"
Linksys by Cisco Dual Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router WRT320N, Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, March 26, 2009 -- rated "very good"
Linksys WRT 400 N

Linksys WRT400N Simultaneous Dual-Band, Dong Ngo, CNet, March 26, 2009 -- rated "very good"
The One To Beat: Linksys WRT 400N Simultaneous Dual-Band Wireless-N Router Reviewed, Tim Higgins, Small Net Builder, March 24, 2009 -- "worthy of your consideration"
Linksys WRT 610 N

Linksys WRT610N Simultaneous Dual-N Band Wireless Router, Dong Ngo, CNet, July 17, 2008 -- rated "very good"
Linksys WRT610N Simultaneous Dual-N Band Wireless Router, John Brandon, Laptop Magazine, July 3, 2008 -- "Editor's Choice"
Linksys Simultaneous Dual-N Band Wireless Router (WRT610N), Josh Norem, Computer Shopper, July 2008 -- rated 7.9 (out of 10)
Netgear WNDR3700

Gentlemen, Start Your Buying: NETGEAR WNDR3700 RangeMax Dual Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router Reviewed, Tim Higgins, Small Net Builder, September 15, 2009

SMC SMCWGBR14-N

PC Magazine review, Oliver Rist, May 21, 2008 -- rated "good"
CNet review, Dong Ngo, March 13, 2008 -- "Editor's Choice"
Getting Started & How-To

Learn How To Buy A Wireless Router, Aaron Weiss, Practically Networked, August 13, 2009
How To Configure Your Router for Gaming, Jason Cross, extremetech, June 17, 2009
Better Together: Wi-Fi and Powerline Networking, Becky Waring, PC World, May 25, 2009
7 Wireless Router Problems And How To Solve Them, Bill O'Brien, InformationWeek, April 11, 2009
Home Networking in 5 Easy Steps, Oliver Rist and Eric Griffith, PC Magazine, March 16, 2009
Wi-Fi Superguide: How to Build the Ultimate Wireless Network, Zack Stern, PC World, March 11, 2009
5 Tips and Tricks for Home Networks, David LaGesse, USNews, September 16, 2008
The Specs That Matter [and the Specs That Don't], Darren Gladstone, PC World, August 25, 2008 -- Networking Equipment
Build a Future-Proof Home Network, Eric Griffith and Oliver Rist, PC Magazine, July 22, 2008
How to Buy Home Networking Products, Yardena Arar, PC World, July 9 2008
12 Downloads to Make Your Wi-Fi Life Easier and Fun, Preston Gralla, PC World, May 19, 2008
Home Networking 101, Oliver Rist, PC Magazine, May 6, 2008
How to Improve Your Home Wi-Fi Network, Eric Griffith, PC Magazine, May 2, 2008
Wireless Router Security

The Best Security for Wireless Networks, Michael Horowitz, eSecurityPlanet, September 8, 2009
How to secure your home network (including Macs), Glenn Fleishman, MacWorld, May 8, 2009
How to: Prevent, Detect, and Recover from Router Worms, Eric Geier, Wi-Fi Planet, April 10, 2009
Nasty New Worm Targets Home Routers, Cable Modems, Ian Paul, PC World, March 25, 2009
Wireless Security: A Partial Glossary of Wireless Security Terms, Larry Seltzer, eWeek, December 2, 2008
Wireless Networking Hacked! Should You Worry? Roger Grimes, Infoworld, PC World, November 14, 2008
Once Thought Safe, WPA Wi-Fi Encryption Is Cracked, Robert McMillan, IDG News Service, PC World, November 6, 2008
Malware Silently Alters Wireless Router Settings, Brian Krebs, Security Fix, Washington Post, June 11, 2008
WPA Security Tips, Aaron Weiss, eSecurityPlanet, April 11, 2008
RSA Conference: Web Page Can Take Over Your Router, Robert McMillan, IDG News Service, PC World, April 7, 2008
Networking Utility and Security Software

Downloads for Managing Your Network, Preston Gralla, PC World, September 15, 2009
HomeNet Manager, SingleClick Systems
JumpStart for Wireless, Atheros Communications
McAfee Wireless Security 2006, (formerly WSC Guard from the Wireless Security Corporation)
McAfee Wireless Home Network Security 2006, Tony Bradley, netsecurity.about.com
NetTrooper, Sereniti
Practically Networked review, Joseph Moran, March 14, 2007
Network Magic, Cisco
Cisco Network Magic Pro 5.5, Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, June 5, 2009 -- editor's choice
Cisco's Network Magic gets a face-lift, Dong Ngo, CNet, May 12, 2009
Network Magic Pro 5.0, Mario Morejon, PC Magazine, October 17, 2008
Review: Networks Network Magic Pro 4.8, Eric Geier, Wi-Fi Planet, September 10, 2008
Packet Protector is a Linux distribution for wireless routers, built on top of OpenWrt. The goal of the project is to transform a router into a unified threat management device.
Resource Sites

Practically Networked
SmallNetBuilder
Wi-Fi Planet

Source: http://www.firewallguide.com/wireless.htm