MaximumPC 2006 09

reviewsTESTED. REVIEWED. VERDICTIZED

 MA XIMUMPC SEPTEMBER 2006

N

o sooner had the IEEE’s 802.11n

Task Group given its stamp of

approval to a new, higher-speed

wireless networking standard—known as

802.11n Draft 1.0—than chipset manu-

facturers began introducing new parts

designed to that proposal, and promising

the parts would be compatible with what-

ever the final 802.11n standard ends up

being. We review two new wireless routers

based on such parts this month, and we’ll

look at two more next month.

There’s just one problem: When the

members of the larger IEEE 802.11 Working

Group got their chance to vote on the

proposed standard, they sent their col-

leagues back to the drawing board—just as

these “Draft N” products were hitting store

shelves. So does that mean you should

avoid these products? Let’s find out.

—MICHAEL BROWN

BELKIN N1 WIRELESS

ROUTER

Belkin picked Atheros’ XSPAN chipset for

the N1, which we tested with the company’s

matching N1 Wireless

Notebook card. Although

the N1’s formfactor is very

similar to Belkin’s earlier

“Pre-N” MIMO router,

the resemblance ends

as soon as you power it

up: Six blue diagnostic

LEDs light up in sequence

to help you through the

installation process.

The lacquer-black enclo-

sure is attractive, but we

can’t decide if the LEDs make the device look

too newbie-friendly, or just plain gaudy. Either

way, the diagnostic LEDs show you exactly

where the problems with your connection

lie—making this router a nice fit for wireless-

networking neophytes.

Belkin advertises a staggering 300Mb/s

transmission rate for the N1, with this dis-

claimer: “300Mb/s is a physical data rate.

Actual data throughput will be lower.” We

achieved an impressive unencrypted TCP

throughput of 129.7Mb/s with our note-

book PC in the same room as the router

(see Environment 1 in the benchmark

chart), but speeds dropped quickly as we

introduced distance and interior walls. In

Environment 2 (25 feet from the access

point, with four gypsum walls in between),

TCP throughput dropped to 72.7Mb/s.

And in Environment 3 (75 feet from the

access point on an outdoor patio), TCP

throughput dropped to 62.3MB/s. If you

absolutely can’t wait another year for

the interoperability that the real 802.11n

standard will bring—and you can’t get

enough of blue LEDs—Belkin’s N1 is a

good choice.

BUFFALO NFINITI DRAFT-N

WIRELESS ROUTER

A big yellow button on the Nfiniti’s box

screams “Exceed Wireless Limits!” But

in our experience, the only limit Buffalo

managed to exceed is the one governing

hype. This router, powered by Broadcom’s

Intensi-Fi 802.11n-draft chipset, was not

only shockingly slow, it also delivered

extremely poor range.

Buffalo’s AOSS (AirStation One-Touch

Secure System) is supposed to make

setup as easy as pushing a button on the

router and one in the matching notebook

adapter’s driver software, but the mating

ritual failed to consummate each of the

five times we attempted it. Configuring the

system manually was nearly as frustrating,

thanks to third-rate documentation.

But the Nfiniti’s biggest deficien-

cies are throughput and range: Even

at close proximity to the access point

—within five feet—data transfers to the

Nfiniti Wireless-N adapter in our note-

book occurred at a measly 27.1Mb/s.

Throughput dropped to a dismal 8.0Mb/s

when we moved outdoors—and then our

connection failed altogether. Pathetic.

Third-Gen Pre-N!

A case of premature certification

If Buffalo’s AirStation Nfiniti router is any indication of

the state of 802.11n, we’re fortunate the IEEE mem-

bership gave the proposed standard the thumbs-down.

Beginners will appreciate how easy Belkin

made its N1 wireless router to configure,

but more-experienced users might be put

off by the abundance of blue LEDs.

$150, http://www.belkin.com

BELKIN N1

IMPLANTS

Super-easy setup and

troubleshooting; very good

range and speed.

DENTURES^8

Puts on an unwelcome light show;

might be incompatible with real

802.11n gear.

$150, http://www.buffalotech.com

BUFFALO NFINITI DRAFT-N

FILLINGS

AOSS works with the

Nintendo DS!

CROWNS 

Slower than molasses in a

Vermont winter; awful range.

BELKIN N1 BUFFALO DRAFT-N

Best scores are bolded. TCP throughput measured using Ixia’s QCheck

network benchmark utility.

BENCHMARKS

TCP THROUGHPUT

IN ENVIRONMENT 1 (MB/S) 129.7 27.1

TCP THROUGHPUT

IN ENVIRONMENT 2 (MB/S) 72.7 26.8

TCP THROUGHPUT

IN ENVIRONMENT 3 (MB/S) 62.3 WNR