[naveenroy]

Guys (and gals), need your help and guidance with the following...

First things first - my existing setup. Airtel broadband with Beetel modem connected directly via the Ethernet port to my desktop PC.

Desired setup - need to connect my work laptop, Android smartphone (via WiFi) and my Sony Blu-ray player BDP-S370/B to the internet.

1. Need to know a good WiFi router that I can use for work (which will involve connecting over a VPN, access client servers etc with my work laptop).
2. Can I connect to this WiFi router with my WiFi enabled smartphone with no other changes on the settings for the router?
3. I am aware that I will need a WiFi dongle for the USB port of the BluRay player. Sony (as usual) recommends only a Sony dongle but can I use any other dongles - will any WiFi stick work?

But my biggest concern is locating a good WiFi router that can handle the bandwidth between the Airtel modem and the laptop. What version of 802.11 will I need as a minimum. What are the disadvantages of an older version other than the speed limitations?

Appreciate your help and looking forward to get my home networked!!

[sathya_j2084]

Hi,

I bought a bew Linksys E1000 router and successfully connected through Beetek 220Bx modem.

However E1000 gets heated up too fast and im not comfortable to leave it in power ON for a long time,whereas the 220Bx modem remains solid and is working fine for over 3 years.

Pls suggest

thanks

[Thad E Ginathom]

Why do these devices get so hot? And they don't even have internal power supply units!

Actually, my D-Link router only gets warm, but our Airtel Beetel modem gets pretty hot, as did our BSNL MT800.

I had a big old rack-mounted switch, years ago, that melted its own rubber feet!

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

Why do these devices get so hot? And they don't even have internal power supply units!

Any electronic equipment generates heat while it is operational. It is a law of nature (property of transistors, which are building blocks of ICs)

In home routers, even though the power supply is external, the ICs in the box still get heated up when working (or even idling) for a long time. (ICs can get so hot that one can burn their fingers if touched)

Home routers do not have any forced air cooling, hence all this heat doesn't get dissipated properly, making the device hot. Also, in the name of miniaturisation and cost-cutting, heat sinks for ICs are avoided/reduced. These are not the ideal conditions for the operation of ICs.

But some routers generate more heat as compared to the others. This is because of a combination of poor electrical design, poor thermal design, poor mechanical design, ambient temperature and poor installation.

As end users, we can't do much about the design aspect. But we can do our part by installing the device in a well ventilated area (not in a corner) and ensuring that the air vents of the device are not blocked. If the air vents of the device are located on the bottom, you may consider doing a DIY for increasing its GC.

Rohan

[vina]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

So basically, you have a router connected to a standard modem via an ethernet port.
Just for information. Who dials PPPoE, the DSL modem, or have you set the router to dial pppoe.

In 99% of cases, the DSL modem dials the pppoe, and the router is just a "bridge".

If you cannot access "www.google.com" but can access IP address, we will debug on the DNS route, of you cannot access both but can access 192.168.1.1 then we will see.

BTW, whats the DSL modem gateway
If your router is 192.168.1.1 I think the DSL modem will be 192.168.0.1 or similar.

So just see if you can access 192.168.0.1 from your laptop. I suspect if you cannot access IP addresses, you won't be able to access the DSL modem gateway too.

thanks to you, I decided tio debug the problem today.

I replicated it - my win 7 system started saying "no connection to internet" so I tried to access my router - I could do that.

Next I tried to access the DSL modem - that was not accessible. So basically the connection between modem and router was toast.

Next I connected my laptop via ethernet (without turning off/on anything) and to my surprise saw the same problem. Apparently on all my earlier attempts I ended up turning off the wireless port on my laptop and then turning off/on both the router and the modem.

Tried changing various settings on the router, tried rebooting the router remotely - nothing worked. So I yanked the ethernet cable between the router and the modem and connected directly to the modem - the problem was with the modem !

Next I tried Windows's "troubleshoot network problems" thingy with the modem directly connected to the Win 7 laptop, and it worked.

this happened in the morning. Since then I have been trying to replicate the earlier problems - withou success


Thanks Tanveer, thanks to you I got the enthu (and the confidence) to do something about this really annoying problem.

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by vina

Tried changing various settings on the router, tried rebooting the router remotely - nothing worked. So I yanked the ethernet cable between the router and the modem and connected directly to the modem - the problem was with the modem !

Next I tried Windows's "troubleshoot network problems" thingy with the modem directly connected to the Win 7 laptop, and it worked.

I am confused here. You say that the laptop was able to connect directly to the modem when the router was taken out of the network.

In such a case, I would suspect the router, not the modem.

Rohan

[Hatari]

Just bought a Belkin N150 router.

The installation was very well thought out by the company.
The exe setup file for the laptop did EVERYTHING, all I needed to do is enter my ISP username & password!

Excellent coverage/range.

[Kimified]

I have had a Netgear WGR614 v5 Router from past 4 years. Worked without problems, But drops connections and constant resets are required. Looking for a new router now.

Dual Band / Good range and with USB port preferred. Budget of 2 to 3k. Please suggest.

[Raja]

I am looking for two routers:

1. Main router with inbuilt Bit Torrent client. One recommendation is the Asus N13U (Rev B). Are there any others?
Must be b/g/n. Prefer N (2.4GHz and 5GHz). Don't need built in adsl modem.

2. A repeater to connect to the main router (see above).

Suggestions on where to buy in Pune? Knowledgeable dealers one can recommend?

[manavdotcom]

Wired vs Wireless, what is the drop in Torrent download speed.A Quick google tells me it's about 40 %. Anybody downloading torrent on Wifi ? What's the max speed you are getting.

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by manavdotcom

Wired vs Wireless, what is the drop in Torrent download speed.A Quick google tells me it's about 40 %. Anybody downloading torrent on Wifi ? What's the max speed you are getting.

I get the same speed in wired or wireless.

Max speed is determined by the speed of your internet connection.

I fail to understand how wifi would affect torrent speed.

Rohan

[manavdotcom]

Wi-fi broadband speed is '40% slower' than a fixed connection | Mail Online

There would be definitely some overheads of Wifi isn't it ? The difference may not be visible on Usual surfing, but can you confirm for torrents please.

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by manavdotcom

Wi-fi broadband speed is '40% slower' than a fixed connection | Mail Online

There would be definitely some overheads of Wifi isn't it ? The difference may not be visible on Usual surfing, but can you confirm for torrents please.

This website is not really a technical website. This seems like a general news website where some ignorant journalist has posted a misinformed article. If you read the comments below the article, you'll notice many people mentioning the same.

My advice, don't believe everything that's written on the internet. Refer to reputed websites for reliable information.

Coming back to the topic, I have not noticed any reduction of torrent speed while on wifi connection as compared to wired. Wifi speeds are much higher than the speed of your internet connection, hence wifi will never be the bottleneck in determining torrent speed.

Rohan

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

This website is not really a technical website. This seems like a general news website where some ignorant journalist has posted a misinformed article. If you read the comments below the article, you'll notice many people mentioning the same.

My advice, don't believe everything that's written on the internet. Refer to reputed websites for reliable information.

Coming back to the topic, I have not noticed any reduction of torrent speed while on wifi connection as compared to wired. Wifi speeds are much higher than the speed of your internet connection, hence wifi will never be the bottleneck in determining torrent speed.

Rohan

+1 to that.

The only difference between a WIFI network and a Wired network is (generally) seen when you try watching/copying movies or other heavy stuff from other PCs on the lan. In that case, generally I found the wired network to be a tad faster; again dependent on number of people accessing that system or using the lan (read: playing games and/or watching movies)

Again even in such a scenario, the download speed is not affected.

[manavdotcom]

One more. I need to place the wirelss next to TV. is there any interference between them ? to the TV or to the router.