D-Link, Netgear, TP-Link Routers Redefine WiFi Competition

by Nathan Eddy

Comprised of three models, the AC5300, AC3200 and AC3100 Ultra, D-Link’s newest WiFi routers boast wireless speeds of up to 5.3G bps, while their stylish design features a broad base with angular points and high-powered antennas. The routers are equipped with an array of features, including wireless 11ac beamforming to enhance signal strength and throughput and Smart Connect, which automatically assigns clients to the wireless band providing the best bandwidth.

The D-Link series also includes the AC1900 Ultra Performance WiFi USB Adapter (DWA-192), designed to bring 802.11ac performance to notebooks and desktop PCs and featuring a WPS Push Button for easy connection to a wireless network. A new graphical user interface (GUI) rounds out the spherical package.

The C2600 employs a multiuser input and output architecture, allowing it to establish a point-to-point connection with up to three devices at once. Four high gain external antennas and amplifiers boost range coverage, and USB 3.0 ports help with faster transfers to connected storage devices.

The Tri-Band C3200 router operates at a combined speed of up to 3.2G bps, with two 5GHz bands that reach up to 1,300M bps each and one 2.4GHz band that reaches up to 600M bps. Other features include Smart Connect technology that automatically connects devices to the most appropriate band and six high-powered amplifiers.

The router, model number R7000, now supports the company’s ReadyCloud technology for easier remote access to USB storage and features an enhanced Netgear genie for remote network management. It also includes a new install wizard to make it easier for users to deploy Nighthawk in conjunction with an existing ISP gateway for faster speeds and better wireless coverage. The capabilities can be added through a free firmware update available this month on the company’s Support Website.

At the beach or on the road, instantly get 1 gigabyte of high-speed Internet connection with this device, a 4G LTE mobile hotspot boasting a powerful battery that lasts up to 10 hours. It lets users securely connect up to 10 devices and provides them with an LCD display to keep them informed of data usage and network connectivity. Access is powered by zoomMediaPlus and leverages Sprint’s nationwide high-speed network.

With speeds of up to 1,900M bps and a 1GHz dual-core processor, the EX7000 allows users to boost the range of their WiFi network to every corner of the home for maximum wireless performance. The extenders work with any router and leverage the Netgear’s FastLane technology, which uses two WiFi bands simultaneously to establish one wireless connection ideal for HD video streaming and gaming.

With availability planned for this spring, the WRT1200AC is a 2×2 wireless dual-band router featuring a dual-core processor, wireless speeds of up to 1.3G bps, eSATA/USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 ports, four Gigabit Ethernet ports and one Gigabit WAN port. Other features included WiFi power amplifiers, beamforming technology and two removable antennas.

The four-pack of high-gain antennas enhances the signal strength and range of a wireless network and optimizes mobile device connectivity. With a dual-band, omnidirectional design, the WRT high-gain antennas provide 360-degree wireless coverage for both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, and users simply detach the router’s factory antennas and attach the WRT Antennas using the R-SMA connectors.

This dual-band WiFi router features two concurrent wireless networks, a 1,733M-bps WiFi AC network and a high-performance 800M-bps WiFi N network. For added protection, the router’s WiFi bands are pre-encrypted with their own unique eight-character password, eliminating the common hack of accessing a router using a default password (such as “admin”). In addition, users can create guest networks that only allow Internet access.