What is the Best Wireless Home Router? Reviewing the D-Link DIR-655
D-Linking
Frequently, my family asks me about the latest and greatest in wireless routers and which ones to buy – simply because they want the better technology to use in their house. As far as I can recall, we’ve been using D-Link routers, and I particularly enjoy their reliability. I’ve been told to switch over to Linksys more times than I care to remember, but why bother when the best router currently available is made by D-Link?
MSRP: Roughly $100 (depends on where you buy it from)
The 655 is a great router, and now that it supports the Draft-N standard, you’re just sweetening the deal. I personally am sporting a DIR-825 on my home network, but only because $100 for a router was a little too steep a price point for me when the 825 took care of all my needs (we got a great deal on the 825 online – currently, it’s more expensive than the 655).
The 655 essentially combines the best of price and quality of production to give you that extra kick when using the N network. Of course, the problem there is that all your computers currently support the 802.11 b/g standard, which means shelling out more money for that precious N-USB adapter or the PCI card/Express Card. Upgrading to the N standard will mean considerably faster speeds and better reliability with the connection.
The DIR-655 is backward compatible with 802.11 b/g, has built in firewalls, wireless security (WEP, WPA & WPA2) and Gigabit wired connectivity.
The point that really seals the deal with the 655 is those three antennas on its back. Each one greatly expands the range of the router, which means that even in a two-story house, if the router is properly positioned, it will end up covering the entire house.
D-Link will try to sell you with the “QoS” technology and the quality of VoIP calls and online gaming, but the reality is that most of those features rely much more heavily on your Internet speed and your modem than they do on your router.
Fundamentally, you get what you pay for, and shelling out the $100 for this router is a great idea because of not only the coverage you’ll be getting, but also the idea that someday soon, Draft-N will become the standard in laptops and not just a costly afterthought.
