How to choose a router: everything you can and cannot save on. Choosing a Wi-Fi router - Rating of the best models for home

Useful tips

The third in the MegaFon line of LTE routers, born Huawei E5372. A successful, multi-band device with Wi-Fi support 5 GHz, dual MIMO antenna jacks, card support microSD memory and automatic repeater mode.

Other positive features include an informative 1.45-inch monochrome TFT display; control of functions is intuitive and clear. There was no need to install additional software; when connected via a USB cable, Windows 7 OS recognized the router as Ethernet connection. The implementation of the Internet WLAN function (repeater mode) is worthy of a separate discussion; everything works automatically without human intervention. The router can be used as a backup external battery.

Dot the i's

SIM card of standard size (mini SIM), without any micro or nano-frills. The router is locked to work on the MegaFon network, the price of the device is 1,900 rubles. in the operator's online store. The 1,780 mAh battery is rather weak, enough for 5 hours of active Web surfing or 3-4 hours of downloading programs and content. Supports microSD memory cards up to 32 GB, easy access to files on the card from the Web interface or Android application.

An important plus is support for almost all bands in the standards used: GSM 1800 / GSM 1900 / GSM 850 / GSM 900, UMTS 1900 / UMTS 2100 / UMTS 850 / UMTS 900, LTE 1800 / LTE 2100 / LTE 2600 / LTE 800 / LTE 900. There is no support for LTE TDD (only FDD), but this version of the standard is of interest only to some MTS subscribers in the capital.

Lyrics and positioning

I have written more than once that the hotspot mode in modern smartphones greatly reduced the mobile router market segment. Many people don’t see the point in buying something they already have for free. Consumers of such technology often suffer from gadget mania of varying severity; old smartphones gather dust in their closets and bedside tables. It’s too lazy to look for a buyer and sell it for ridiculous money, but such a smartphone can easily work as an access point. Accordingly, a mobile router should not only be more practical and work better, but also, ideally, have some unique functions and capabilities.

The traditional “attraction” is LTE support. Smartphones operating in fourth generation networks have not yet had time to “grow old” and form any significant fleet of devices for distributing LTE via Wi-Fi. In this sense, competitors to mobile routers have not yet matured. But it’s time to start thinking about those who managed to purchase a 4G router a year and a half ago. This audience is already “ripe” or “ripening” for an upgrade, provided that the new device turns out to be something more interesting and better. How “more interesting and better” did the authors of MR100-3 manage to do this? Let's figure it out.

About the main pros and cons

In addition to working in 4G, the MegaFon MR100-3 router is “packed” with full program. The most important ones are two TS9 antenna sockets (the same in the Huawei E392 modem) for connecting MIMO antennas, a slot for a microSD memory card (up to 32 GB), and among the new products - an automatically operating Internet WLAN mode. It feels like they tried to make the device as convenient and functional as possible.

The “stuffing” itself and additional features are of no interest to anyone if the router poorly fulfills its main responsibilities for uninterrupted supply to the owner mobile internet. There are few complaints about this device; everything works in full accordance with what is stated in the description. The “disease” that often occurs in routers: freezing when moving between networks of different standards, this model seems to have passed.

There are no complaints about the speed characteristics either; it works well for both reception and transmission. Wi-Fi in the 5 GHz band is a great benefit for those in places with a large number of operating transmitters, this is an important plus.

Unfortunately, we abandoned a capacious power source; the battery in the router is 1,780 mAh. Although the 1,430 mAh in the MR100-1 is not entirely ridiculous, it is still not enough. Why didn’t we go the same way as with the Huawei 821FT router, which was equipped with a 3,000 mAh battery? I don’t understand why they gave up such an important advantage without gaining much in size and weight. Is it really for the sake of reducing the cost of the product? With such a battery capacity, the external battery function made me laugh at first, but ok. You never know, the smartphone suddenly “died”, but you need to make an urgent call. Let it be, in case it is useful to someone.

So as not to return to the issue of the battery. I already wrote about the operating time, 5 hours of active Web surfing and 3-4 hours of work at full load. In episodic access mode (a scenario typical for a smartphone), you can safely count on a full day of work; with very rare and short calls, the router managed to work for almost two days. That is, they have dealt with the issue of optimizing energy consumption quite well. Charging time for a completely discharged battery is 1 hour 50 minutes from a charger with an output current of 2A. The charge indicator is not informative; it only shows the fact of charging. The display in operating mode is also not good; the indicator is very nonlinear. The first bar “goes off” only when the discharge is 30 percent, and the last bar means the remaining charge is about 10%. From external source The router does not work with the battery removed.

Equipment and design

Neat box, very compact. The advantage of standardization: the charger itself is no longer included in the kit; few people need it now. We saved on the price of components and the size of the box. However, they continue to install the connecting cable, which everyone also has. Although in this case it would be much more appropriate to put a short adapter tail to use the router as a backup battery.

In addition to the router itself and the connecting cable, the box contained a detailed “User Guide” and a warranty card, that’s all. There are almost no complaints about the “Manual”: the pictures are normal, almost all the necessary operations are described, the language is clear. Maybe we should have paid more attention to the Web interface. There are, of course, omissions, and where would we be without them? For example, find out about the possibility wired connection I had to connect the router to the computer “by scientific poking.”

There is no design as such. Trough with rounded back cover and an almost flat front panel. The router doesn’t need any design flourishes, but why couldn’t the side edges be made flat? It can be convenient to place the router on a table, but the rounded edges leave you with no choice but to lay it down. More precisely, the main area of the face is flat, but with a slight slope. The tilt is exactly enough to make it impossible to put the router on its side. This is some kind of sabotage design.

The case material is cheap matte plastic, fingerprints are almost invisible on it and are very noticeable only on the glossy plastic of the display. However, for a router, the appearance does not matter much, as long as it does not irritate the owner.

Design

The usual layout of all elements, the slots for the SIM card and microSD memory card are covered by the battery. The back cover latches are not symmetrical, but there are no problems with guessing top/bottom. There is a protrusion on the inside of the lid, which correct position fits into the hole for prying off the battery, so you won’t be able to break the latches when trying to put the cover upside down. There are only four latches themselves, but the lid fits securely onto the body and fits without play, everything is in order here.

There is a slot for a lanyard in the upper right corner; the lanyard itself is not included. It would hardly occur to you to wear such a decoration around your neck, but it will be useful for hanging a router in conditions of unstable reception. An extra couple of meters above ground level can radically improve the performance of the device somewhere in nature, and such an opportunity would not hurt in the house. At the top is the “Menu” button for controlling modes; it also brings the device out of “hibernation,” into which the router falls when there are no consumers connected to it.

On the bottom edge there is a standard microUSB socket for connecting to a charger or USB port of a computer. In Windows 7, there was no need to install additional management programs; when connected via USB, the router was recognized as a standard wired connection.

Standard TS9 antenna jacks for MIMO antenna. Those who used such an antenna with Huawei modem E392 will not have to buy new adapters, this is a “note to the owner”. And, according to reviews, the router works very well with an external antenna. As a useful reminder: although the TS9 sockets are not the flimsiest out there, they still require extremely careful handling. And they are certainly not designed for daily connection and disconnection; in such operating conditions they usually do not survive for more than a couple of weeks.

The power button is on the front panel. It also works as the “OK” button when switching operating modes of the router.

Reset button is responsible for returning to factory settings, is hidden under the back cover and is not noticeable. Given the wealth additional settings And different modes work, the saving button will certainly be useful to many.

Display

Monochrome TFT 1.45 inches, we are already familiar with this display from the Huawei 821FT model (aka Huawei E5776). Very informative in normal mode indications, but in the Huawei E5372 model they took the expected next step and used the capabilities of the display to control operating modes.

In the standard display mode the display shows:

Connection type: 4G (LTE), 3G, 2G or WLAN Internet
Mobile network name or WLAN networks
Network signal strength and roaming status
Internet connection information
Information about the presence of unread SMS and their number
Battery level
Activity indicator Wi-Fi networks
Counter connected by Wi-Fi users
Wi-Fi mode (2.4 GHz or 5 GHz)
Volume of traffic consumed through the cellular network
Traffic packet volume (user-defined)

The default Wi-Fi mode is 2.4 GHz, there is no indication. When switching to 5GHz mode, an additional 5G icon appears on the display.

Finding out the volume of consumed traffic for a SIM card inserted into the router can be an extraordinary quest when several devices are connected to the router. It's possible in the Web interface, but I'm lazy. And don’t forget to reset this counter to zero on the right day. Numbers directly on the display are more convenient, especially due to the ability to set the date (day) in the interface from which the monthly traffic consumption begins.

The name of the operator MegaFon Russia did not fit in its entirety, and the display pleases us with a continuous creeping line. They could, of course, shorten Russia to Rus, it would work just right. I already wrote about the nonlinearity of the battery charge level indication, signal level indication cellular network doesn't work the best either in the best possible way. It’s nice, of course, to look at the indicator and rejoice at the phenomenal sensitivity of the router, but surprises are possible. For example, with one or two divisions of the indicator, the data may easily no longer be transmitted. Based on my experience of communicating with the network in familiar places on different devices, I can confidently assume that the display is overly optimistic. Not critical, but keep it in mind.

Characteristics

As I already wrote at the beginning of the review, it’s almost pleasing full set ranges in all standards. It will work in roaming and with a reserve for the future; it is unlikely that you will need to change the device for this reason. LTE TDD is not particularly interesting to us, and MegaFon does not work in this standard. But in LTE, FDD in the 800 MHz range can be very useful.

The 5 GHz Wi-Fi range brings immense joy to those who happen to live and/or work in rooms heavily littered with other networks. True, there are two disadvantages:

The router does not distribute the Internet via Wi-Fi in two bands at the same time, either the “generally accepted” 2.4 GHz, or the currently free 5 GHz. Which, unfortunately, is not supported by all devices.
The router does not suffer from any particular range even at 2.4 GHz, but in the 5 GHz range it is much worse. You can safely not count on signal penetration through monolithic walls, and to ensure reliable coverage of a medium-sized apartment, you will have to think about the optimal placement of the router.

The number of devices simultaneously connected to the router is up to 10 in Internet connection mode via a cellular network and up to 9 in Internet WLAN mode. The router is not able to create simultaneously closed and open Wi-Fi networks; of the handheld devices present on our market, the MegaFon MR100-2 and the same Yota router are trained to do this.

The automatic repeater mode is very interesting; I have never come across such an implementation option before. When this mode is enabled, the router connects to one of the Wi-Fi networks “registered” in it and works as a repeater; when it leaves the Wi-Fi coverage area, it independently switches to accessing the Internet via a cellular network. Conversely, when it enters a Wi-Fi zone, it switches to repeater mode. Similar to how it works Android smartphone with Wi-Fi turned on, but there are two differences:

The router is not trained to search open networks Wi-Fi and connects only to those that are registered in it.
In the management interface, assigned Wi-Fi networks can be assigned priorities.

How popular is the feature? Looks very attractive on tariffs that include unlimited Internet through closed operator Wi-Fi networks, a good way to save valuable cellular traffic. Can be convenient for group events. Not all devices can automatically switch between networks; it’s a good idea to assign this responsibility to one router.

Or, for example, my entire area is tightly “covered” by a Wi-Fi network /articles/2013/c2-free.shtml with subscription fee 100 rubles/month for unlimited internet on each device. In general, if you don’t personally need it, then no one forces you to use it, but there are practical scenarios. The main thing is that all this works automatically. There is nothing revolutionary in the repeater mode itself, but the need to delve into the Web interface of settings every time to turn it on/off is a serious barrier and the function was used by some enthusiasts.

Another fairly typical case of simple forgetfulness: a person came home or to work, forgot to turn off the router in his bag and continues to eat “native” traffic from the cellular network. And here the router itself will take care of the savings. Finally, let us take into account the fact that in the mode Wi-Fi repeater the router consumes significantly less battery power than on a 4G or even 3G network.

Control

Here we have three options:

Directly from the router, using a three-level menu on the screen and two buttons “Menu” and “OK”. Convenient, but only basic mode switches are available.
Through a special page. http://192.168.8.1 All controls and settings are available; this is the main tool for interacting with the router.
Through special application for OS Android. Very convenient and intuitive, most functions and settings are available. Most, but not all.

In any case, it’s better to start with the Web interface and set your password first. The default password admin is fraught with trouble. Huawei understands this very well and will remind you every time you enter the interface that this is the right decision.

There are a lot of settings, and it is impossible to sort them all out in one review. Unlike some pocket routers, here we have almost full set and you can configure everything. If you need it.

The web interface allows you to send and view received SMS messages; this is normal functionality. But it’s much more convenient to do all this from an Android application.

One of the controversial settings, as it turned out. It seemed to me that the ability to set a certain standard (besides the Auto mode) was an advantage. But I’ve already seen a couple of times the indignant complaints of those who lack the 3G/2G mode with 4G disabled. Probably the ideal looks like a drop-down menu with all possible combinations. And yes, some enthusiasts would not refuse a menu with the ability to select a specific frequency. On the other hand, enthusiasts will find a way out, but it’s better not to give too many tools to ordinary users. After all, they can make things worse not only for themselves, but also for their neighbors at the base station.

This is what the control menu of the router itself looks like. It’s intuitive and convenient, and even familiar with minimal experience in using a camera. In any case, it's better than remembering the functions of different buttons.

Why is the speed lower than what is stated on the box with the router and in the specifications?

But why? Why does the box with the router say N150, N300, N450, or even N600 and higher, but my Internet speed is so low? Support workers of online stores, router manufacturers, or innocent consultants in stores very often suffer from approximately this question :)

Now I’ll explain, and we’ll close the topic with these numbers, which are indicated on the box, or in the specifications for the router. Also, many people see the “Speed” item in the connection properties on a computer or mobile device, and do not understand why the data is so different.

Each router has a certain Wi-Fi network speed index. This is one of the main indicators and criteria when choosing a router. If we consider routers that operate only in the 2.4 GHz range, then the speed there is from 150 Mbit/s, and apparently up to 600 Mbit/s (4 antennas). If we consider dual-band routers that support 5 GHz frequency, then the speed will be higher.

So, all these numbers, up to 150Mbps, up to 300Mbps, are the maximum theoretically possible speed of a wireless network that can be achieved this router in ideal conditions and only in theory. In some article I already wrote that these numbers have nothing to do with actual speed, since it depends on many factors.

For example: an 802.11n router that can deliver speeds of up to 300 Mbps (there are most of them on the market now) in theory, in reality it can squeeze out a maximum of 100 Mbit/s. But this is also practically impossible. I'm not even talking about budget models with the N150 index. There is a maximum of 50 Mbit/s.

It turns out that if you have a tariff of 100 Mbit/s, and you bought a router with a speed of up to 150 Mbit/s, then the maximum you can get via Wi-Fi is 50 Mbit/s.

Don't forget that Internet speed primarily depends on your provider. From the tariff. So before you complain about slow connection via router, connect to the Internet (cable from provider) directly to the computer and . Then you will have data to guide you.

The speed also depends on the device itself that you connect to the Wi-Fi router. From the strength of the wireless network signal, from interference, and to some extent from the wireless network settings.

What causes the speed through a Wi-Fi router to drop?

Now about the most important thing. Why is the speed directly the same as stated by the provider, the cable from the router is the same, or slightly lower, but the speed drops over Wi-Fi. Sometimes even very much.

Here, as it were, everything is clear without complicated proceedings. A cable is a cable. According to it, our Internet “flies” to devices strictly along the designated route, and is not scattered throughout the room, apartment, etc., as is the case with Wi-Fi.

Let's take a closer look and consider the main factors due to which speed sags wireless connection.

I'll tell you a little secret. A router is like a small computer. It contains the main board, processor, RAM, permanent memory, wireless module. As with a computer, the performance of a router depends on the amount of memory, processor performance and the quality of these elements. The more memory than more powerful processor and the wireless module faster router can process data. And the speed of the Internet and the stability of work even under load directly depend on this. It often happens that the speed seems to be good, but as soon as a load appears on the router, it immediately sags. All this is due to weak and not very high-quality hardware, which is most often installed in budget models.
If our computer runs on Windows, then the router also works on its own operating system. In other words, firmware. And a lot also depends on the firmware. If the software part is done poorly, then even powerful hardware will not save you. And if the firmware has many errors, is crude and unfinished, then the connection speed may also suffer because of this. Always update the firmware on your router. This does not always have a positive effect, but it happens that the router starts working better and faster. You need to update the firmware!
Each provider uses a specific type of Internet connection. If you set up a router yourself, then most likely you understand what I mean. So, Dynamic IP (DHCP) and Static IP are the simplest and lightest protocols. With them, the router will reduce the speed least of all. If the connection is PPPoE, then this is more complicated, the router will waste its resources to connect via this protocol and the speed will drop. And in the case of PPPTP, the speed will drop even more.

So it’s better to choose a provider that provides addresses automatically, or requires you to enter them manually, but without authorization using a username and password.
Wi-Fi client. Simply put, the device that you connect to the router. For example, when measuring speed from a laptop (via Wi-Fi), it may be 15 Mbit/s, and from a phone – 70 Mbit/s. Or vice versa. Why is that? It's very simple, the speed is limited by the slowest device on the network. And if the router gives even 100 Mbit/s, and the module in a laptop or other device has a limit of 24 Mbit/s (this is the maximum real speed for 802.11g), then this is the speed we will get. An outdated Wi-Fi module, lack of support for new standards and technologies, outdated software (drivers) - all this directly affects the speed of your Internet connection. And the router, as you understand, has nothing to do with it.
Other external factors. For example, than worse level signal on your device, the slower the connection may be. Each Wi-Fi network works in certain range and on a specific channel. And when there are many of these networks around, they begin to intersect and interfere with each other. I would add here more interference from different household appliances, obstacles in the form of metal in the walls, etc.
Router settings. From the factory, by default, the router is configured to ensure maximum compatibility with different devices. Including old ones that you may not have. For example, the network operating mode is set to auto mode (b/g/n). And the channel width is 20/40 MHz. But, if you don’t have older devices that only support g wireless network mode, then it makes sense to switch the router to n (only n) mode, and the channel width to 40 MHz.

Perhaps the speed of the Wi-Fi network will increase significantly. All these settings can be changed in the router’s web interface, in the section with wireless network settings. I wrote about this in an article.

We figured out the reasons, it seems like nothing was missed.

What router is needed to get maximum speed over a Wi-Fi network?

To get maximum speed over Wi-Fi, we need a modern, powerful (and therefore not the cheapest) router New device (laptop, PC with Wi-Fi adapter, phone, tablet, TV) With modern Wi-Fi module. And preferably a provider with a Static IP or Dynamic IP connection protocol.

If we are talking about modern, wireless network equipment, then it goes without saying that there must be support for the 5 GHz band and the . This support should be both in the router and in the device itself that we connect to the Wi-Fi network. That is, the router must be dual-band. You can read more in the article.

Not only that, according to the 802.11ac standard, the Wi-Fi network speed is much higher (maximum, theoretically possible up to 6.77 Gbit/s) in comparison with the most popular now 802.11n, also in the 5 GHz range (and 802.11ac only works in this range) there is practically no interference.

note on the speed of the WAN and LAN ports of the router. In choosing a router that will reduce the speed as little as possible, we forget that the speed is also limited by the WAN port to which we connect the Internet. And if our tariff rate is 200 Mbit/s, and we installed a router whose WAN and LAN ports can operate at a speed of 10/100 Mbit/s, then it is clear that we will not get more than 100 Mbit/s via cable , nor via Wi-Fi.

If you have fast Internet, more than 100 Mbps, then you need a router with only gigabit ports. This is always indicated in the specifications. Even routers in the mid-price range do not always have gigabit (1000 Mbps) ports installed. Be careful.

Routers supporting the 802.11ac standard are now quite available. There are so many models on the market. The only negative is that Wi-Fi coverage networks in the 5 GHz band are slightly smaller than in the 2.4 GHz band. This is true, I have already convinced myself of this. Not critical, but the signal is weaker.

Someimportant points:

Dual-band routers distribute two Wi-Fi networks. At 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz. So those devices that do not support the new standard will connect in the 2.4 GHz range. If necessary, you can disable an unnecessary network.
If you want to squeeze out maximum speed through a Wi-FI router, then do not buy budget models. The more expensive the router, the better iron installed in it. And this means more productivity and speed.
Don't forget about restrictions on WAN and LAN ports.
To achieve maximum speed, update your router firmware and experiment with Wi-Fi settings. Operating mode, channel, channel width.
Don't forget that speed Wi-Fi connections also directly depends on the quality, productivity and Wi-Fi characteristics module of the device on which we measure the speed. You can take measurements on different devices, and you will see that the speed will most likely be different.

You can find more tips on choosing a router in the article.

conclusions

Any router will reduce the speed of the Wi-Fi network. The only question is how much. But how much the speed will drop depends primarily on the power of the router, support for new standards, and Wi-Fi settings receiver in the device, from the provider (connection type and speed according to tariff), interference, signal level, etc.

If you are just choosing a router, then I definitely advise you to buy a dual-band one. With support for the new 802.11ac standard. And preferably with gigabit ports. Most likely, your new mobile devices already support 802.11ac. If everything works well, then for PCs and even laptops you can buy USB adapters that support the ac standard. I would also advise not to skimp on the router. It is better to take a good, modern and powerful model, which will be relevant for many more years, than changing the router in a year, and all this year spitting on low speed.

It is clear that everything here is individual, and a lot depends on the tasks that the router must cope with. But in this article we are talking about choosing a router that can provide maximum performance and minimal speed losses.

You can leave questions in the comments and share your thoughts on this matter. Also write what router you have, what the tariff is, and what the Wi-Fi speed is. Maybe you were somehow able to speed up your Wi-Fi and want to share some useful advice.

Just one request, don’t ask me which specific model to buy. The choice is yours. I wrote above how to choose.

A router is a very complex device with many technical characteristics. We will focus on those that play an important role for the buyer.

WAN port type and connection protocols

The WAN (or Internet) connector is used to connect an Internet cable to the router. This is the first detail you should pay attention to when purchasing a device. The compatibility of the selected model with the provider depends on it.

A typical router has a WAN port in one of two formats:

DSL(ADSL, VDSL and other subtypes) - for connecting to the Internet via a telephone line.
Ethernet- to connect through a special provider channel.

There are also universal routers that support several formats, including DSL and Ethernet. But they are much less common.

First, find out what technical requirements your Internet service provider has for your router. Visit the provider's official website or call support.

In addition to the WAN port format, technical requirements may include connection protocols with which the router must be compatible.

If, instead of DSL and Ethernet, the provider uses specific connection technologies, which rarely happens, then it is better to trust the choice of equipment to specialists.

Number and type of LAN ports

Computers, consoles, TVs and other stationary equipment that require stable wired access to the Internet are connected to the router’s LAN ports. This connection always guarantees maximum speed, which does not depend on distance or interference.

And the more such connectors in the router, the more devices You can connect to it via a wire. Routers are usually equipped with four LAN ports. But if this is not enough for you, choose a model with additional connectors.

The maximum speed of data exchange between the router and other devices connected to it via a wire depends on the type of LAN ports.

There are two such types:

Fast Ethernet provides speeds up to 100 Mbit/s.
Gigabit Ethernet- up to 1 Gbit/s.

If your provider offers Internet access at speeds greater than 100 Mbps, choose a router model with Gigabit Ethernet ports. This way you will use your channel to its fullest.

Wi-Fi standards

The maximum possible speed of data exchange between the router and the fleet of devices connected to it depends on the Wi-Fi standard wirelessly. Two standards are relevant:

802.11n- a widespread version that is supported by the vast majority of gadgets. Possible speed is up to 600 Mbit/s.
802.11ac- an increasingly popular standard that provides the most high speed- up to 6.77 Gbit/s.

But don’t let the characteristics confuse you: the values indicated are only theoretically possible within the technology. Real speed figures are much lower.

The speed indicated by the manufacturer is also most often unattainable in practice. This is only a possible value without taking into account distance and interference.

Thanks to backward compatibility, you can connect any gadgets to a router with the 802.11ac standard via Wi-Fi. Even if they only support 802.11n and older versions. But to unlock the full potential of 802.11ac, both your router and all other devices on your wireless network must support this standard.

It’s not at all necessary to chase newness and buy a router that supports 802.11ac. If you use the Internet only for web surfing and office tasks, you can save money and get by with a model with the 802.11n standard.

Number of Wi-Fi bands

Some routers can operate simultaneously in different frequency bands. In this mode, the router is able to support not one, but several independent Wi-Fi networks.

Many popular models are able to distribute data transmission between two ranges. Thus, they create two networks at 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz respectively.

Frequency 2.4 GHz ideal for connecting smartphones and office equipment.
Frequency 5 GHz provides more stable and fast connection, and therefore better suited for multimedia devices working with videos and other heavy content. So, if you don’t want to connect a TV or set-top box via wires, you can use Wi-Fi at a frequency of 5 GHz.

These networks can operate in parallel without limiting each other. But again, their total speed will not exceed the limit set by the Internet provider.

In addition, not all gadgets support a 5 GHz network.

Number and type of antennas

In addition to the Wi-Fi standard and frequency, the speed of the wireless network depends on the number of antennas in the router. The more there are, the faster exchange data between connected devices and the router.

The maximum Wi-Fi speed in the 802.11n standard for a model with one antenna is 150 Mbps. With two - 300 Mbit/s, with three - 450 Mbit/s. That is, with each antenna the maximum possible speed increases by 150 Mbit/s. And in the 802.11ac standard - at 433 Mbit/s.

Let us remember that we are talking about theoretically possible speeds under ideal conditions. In reality, these figures are much lower. In addition, do not forget that the final speed of Internet access via Wi-Fi cannot exceed the provider’s limit.

Antennas can be built-in or external. As practice shows, in a typical city apartment, the type of antennas is not so important. Contrary to popular myth, the difference is barely noticeable.

But for large premises Still, you should choose a router with external antennas so as not to have . Moreover, if external antennas removable, if necessary they can be replaced with more powerful ones.

Availability of USB port

By choosing a router with one or a pair of USB connectors, you can connect to it additional devices. For example, a USB drive will provide remote access to shared file storage via any device on the Wi-Fi network. And a wireless USB modem will become your backup way to access the Internet if cable internet will stop working.

Brief selection instructions

Let's go through it again key points articles. This checklist will help you choose a good router.

Find out the provider's requirements for the router: type of WAN connector and connection protocols. Only then choose a model.
If the Internet speed is above 100 Mbit/s, buy a device with Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports (1 Gbit/s). If the speed is lower, Fast Ethernet connectors (100 Mbit/s) will suffice.
If access to the Internet is needed only for browsing websites and working with documents, you can limit yourself to a router with one antenna and support wireless standard 802.11n.
But if you look streaming video If you play online games, use a lot of wireless devices, often download large files and are not used to denying yourself, then choose dual band router with multiple antennas and 802.11ac support.
If you wish, you can buy a model with a USB port to connect a storage device or wireless modem to it.

Both routers are built on the MediaTek MT7620N system-on-chip, which includes a MIPS processor clocked at 580 MHz. Volume random access memory quite decent for a router of this class - 64 MB. The Wi-Fi modem supports b, g and n modes in the 2.4 GHz band. The MIMO configuration is 2x2, that is, both available antennas are used for both reception and transmission. Bandwidth wireless channel communication with a channel width of 40 MHz is 300 Mbit/s.

Software part Keenetic routers- this is the NMDS 2 system, which we already talked about in the previous material on ZyXEL products. Of course, the main advantage of this software is effective work with VPN. US use VPN providers much less common than in Russia. Therefore, often even top routers, aimed primarily at the American market, cause difficulties when connecting to some Russian providers, or cannot provide proper throughput through the tunnel. Since the Keenetic model range was initially positioned by the manufacturer as oriented towards the Russian market, VPN support here is implemented much better than that of its competitors.

All basic functionality home router is present here, although some points during a quick acquaintance with the device may puzzle a user accustomed to routers of other brands. For example, such a common function as a demilitarized zone, which allows you to forward all ports at once to one of local addresses, is not explicitly available here and is implemented by creating an appropriate rule for NAT. In addition to basic functionality, this software provides access to the SkyDNS and Yandex.DNS services, which filter sites by content, as well as the DyDNS service, which allows you to use Domain name, even if you have a dynamic IP address.

Korean brand network equipment Totolink is little known on the Russian market, but some of its products are sold here. In particular, a few years ago we looked at . The Totolink N100RE model belongs to the entry-level and has already gone through several versions: the first version was released in 2015, and today we will get acquainted with the third generation.

The model has three wired ports at 100 Mbit/s and a wireless access point with one antenna at 150 Mbit/s in the 2.4 GHz band. Today these parameters can hardly even be called entry level, but an economical option. On the other hand, if the task is to provide access to the Internet within one small apartment for several smartphones, such a router may well be sufficient. In our opinion, the stability and capabilities of embedded software are of much greater importance today. Still, in terms of formal hardware characteristics, it is easy to compare different models, but understanding their firmware is much more difficult. True, it should be noted that ordinary users are rarely interested in any specific capabilities - the basic version of the functions “get Internet via cable and distribute via Wi-Fi” is most often enough for them.

Delivery package, appearance and hardware configuration

The router comes in a small cardboard box with registration on English language. It traditionally contains photographs, use cases, specifications and other information.

The package includes a 9 V 0.5 A power supply, patch cord and brief instructions installation instructions in leaflet format. There is nothing unusual here. We only praise the compact power supply, which will not block adjacent sockets in the extension cord.

The company has a localized website, but there is no information on the model in question. The only useful thing to note is the web interface emulator in English.

The router has a compact case made of white matte plastic. The design can be called interesting for this segment. By at least, it’s clear that they worked on it. Overall dimensions excluding antenna and cable connections are 91x80x25 mm. The legs are made of plastic; they raise the device slightly so that the ventilation grilles at the bottom are not blocked. This model does not have wall mounting options.

On the top panel there is a small recess in which five dim orange indicator LEDs are hidden (two for wired ports, Internet, Wi-Fi, status), as well as WPS and reset buttons. The latter is hidden and requires some thin object to press.

The indicators and buttons have signatures, and in the center of the top panel we see the manufacturer's logo. A non-removable antenna is also located here, which is quite unusual. It has two degrees of freedom, and the length of its moving part is about 15 centimeters.

On the rear panel there is an input for the power supply and three network ports- one WAN and two LAN. Everything is signed, and the ports additionally differ in color.

Overall I liked the design and construction. Despite the budget segment, the router makes a pleasant impression with its unusual body shape and antenna location.

The router is based on the Realtek RTL8196E SoC, has 32 MB of RAM and 4 MB of flash memory for storing firmware. It also contains a switch for wired ports. The radio unit here is external - Realtek RTL8188ER. There are no radiators on the chips, but this is not required. On printed circuit board There is a console port, but there is no direct access to the operating system through it.

Testing was carried out with firmware version 3.2.4, released this summer.

Settings and features

First of all, we note that the router firmware has both English and Russian interfaces, as well as translation into Ukrainian language. True, we didn’t manage to get into Russian right away. Considering the level of the device, there is nothing complicated in the settings, but still, for a model designed for the mass segment, it would be nice to provide a simple option to switch to Russian or automatic selection based on browser settings.

There is no special setup wizard for the first connection in the router. After entering your username and password you are taken to a simplified version with basic settings: Internet connection type, wireless network name and password, connection to an IPTV set-top box.

In fact, if you have DHCP, then the Internet will work out of the box. Another thing is that by default there is no password on the wireless network, which is not very good today, and in any case you will need to set it. If these parameters are not enough, go to full version settings.

The menu design is standard: a tree of items is on the left side of the window, the rest is on the right. The “Status” page displays information about active wired ports, WAN connection and access point parameters, as well as firmware version, processor and RAM load.

The device not only supports router mode - it can also act as a wireless bridge and wireless network extender.

The “Basic Settings” group of pages is responsible for selecting parameters for connecting to the provider and for managing clients local network. The router supports IPoE, PPPoE, PPTP and L2TP options. There is support for access to the operator’s local network in configurations with VPN. Through a separate mode, work with wireless operators (WISP) is implemented. It provides for changing the MAC address of the WAN port, changing the web interface port, and allowing access to settings from the Internet. We also note the presence of IPTV support.

In addition to working with multicast broadcasts, IPTV set-top boxes can connect using VLAN technology.

As for the home local network, everything is familiar here: the router acts as DHCP server and automatically assigns IP addresses to clients. The settings indicate own address router, a pool of addresses for clients, it is possible to implement static MAC/IP assignments. On separate page You can see the list of current clients of the router.

Like many other routers, it supports dynamic routing and it is possible to add your own routes. However, these functions are rarely used in the budget segment.

Implementing IPv6 (including DHCP and RADVD) may be useful for the future. True, they have been talking about it for a very long time, but its distribution still cannot be called widespread. So issues of performance and compatibility will still have to be dealt with.

Basic settings for a wireless access point include selecting a network name and security mode (including WPA2 with password and via RADIUS server). In addition, you can limit the number of connected clients, as well as their speed.

Additionally, there are several fine settings for the wireless network, in particular the choice of region, channel number and width, output power, etc. In addition, the firmware provides WDS technologies and WPS, as well as working with a black or white client access list. Setting a schedule for the wireless module will also be useful for home users: you can select up to ten intervals indicating the day of the week and time (accurate to the minute).

As an advanced feature, we note the function of creating guest wireless networks of up to four inclusive. Each can have its own name and protection mode. In addition, you can limit guest access to the Internet only, blocking work with your home local network. It will also be useful to limit the speed for guest connections.

The router has a QoS bandwidth management function. In it you can configure restrictions for clients based on their IP or MAC addresses. However, you need to understand that this service is very demanding on computing resources, and using QoS on platforms with weak processors is not very comfortable. In this case, simply enabling the service, even without setting up rules, reduces the routing speed in IPoE mode by about half.

In chapter " Firewall» it is possible to configure an access filter based on MAC addresses (completely block Internet access for local network devices or create a white list with allowed access), program IP rules (block access for a specific client to specified ports of services on the Internet), URL filter (block hosts by name). True, there is a limit of 10 rules in each case, and the filter by URL does not always work correctly.

In addition, this section configures access from the Internet to services on local network computers: port translation rules (up to ten) and DMZ. This router also has UPnP support. In addition, SIP ALG is declared.

In group " Maintenance» you can find the usual set of firmware update items, save/restore/reset settings, time settings, changing the login and password for accessing the router, system log (there is support for sending to the syslog server).

This also included DDNS settings (three services: DynDNS, TZO, NOIP), protection functions against DoS attacks, traffic statistics on interfaces (in packets), a reboot schedule, running ping and trace route for connection diagnostics.

To routers budget segment Usually there are no special requirements for advanced functionality, so we have no significant comments on the Totolink N100RE firmware. Among the advantages, we note the presence of support for guest wireless networks, scheduling for Wi-Fi and functions for working with IPTV. The downside is that the wireless network is open with default settings.

Testing

In this material, this section will be quite modest in terms of the number of graphs: after all, this time we have an inexpensive device, and there are few options for its use. In addition, recall that the wired ports here are rated at 100 Mbit/s, and the wireless access point has one antenna and a connection speed of 150 Mbit/s.

Let's start, as usual, with routing.

Considering the hardware characteristics of the router, we can say that it performed well. In most scenarios, the data transfer and reception speed is approximately 90 Mbps. Moreover, all options, except PPTP, show good results in duplex.

Additionally, we tested the operation of the Dual Access function with this model - simultaneous download information from the Internet and from the provider’s local network.

There are also no comments on this scenario.

For the first test of the wireless access point, we used our regular Asus PCE-AC68 adapter. Of course, its combination with a budget router looks at least strange, but it will allow us to compare devices under the same conditions. Specifically, in this test, the client and router were located in the same room at a distance of about four meters.

Remembering the characteristics of the router, the speeds shown wireless communication at the level of 80-90 Mbit/s can also be considered good.

More interesting in this case will be the issue of working with mobile devices and coverage area. We are testing it together with the Zopo ZP920+ smartphone, equipped with a dual-band module with one antenna. Three options were used for the test relative position: four meters line of sight, four meters through one wall and eight meters through two walls.

Here the router has nothing special to boast about. If the first and second points are generally still not bad, then in the third the speed decreases significantly. On the other hand, the shown few megabytes per second may be quite enough. True, one must understand that inexpensive smartphones antennas and wireless modules may be “weak”, which will negatively affect the results over long distances.

In general, the router showed the performance expected for its configuration. As for wireless communications, you shouldn’t demand a long range from a budget model, but it’s certainly worth taking this characteristic into account when choosing.

Conclusion

The Totolink N100RE wireless router can be considered a typical representative of the budget segment home equipment. It has 100 Mbps wired ports and a 150 Mbps access point on the 2.4 GHz band. The device received interesting design housing with the antenna located on the top panel. The built-in software has all the popular functions in this segment. In terms of performance, the device can be used on tariff plans up to 100 Mbit/s inclusive. Wireless point access shows good results for its characteristics in terms of speed of operation on short distances, but its coverage area is relatively small.