Reviews
Linksys WRT54GS
Proof that not all 802.11g products are created equal
O
utrageous claims are commonplace in the wireless networking arena.
First there were “double speed” 802.11b devices that, in fact, improved
performance just slightly, and only in limited circumstances. More
recently, we reviewed a D-Link router that purportedly doubled 802.11g per-
formance by bonding two channels together. That router, while superfast,
wreaked havoc on neighboring Wi-Fi networks. The latest router from Linksys,
the WRT54GS, boasts a 20 percent performance boost using any kind of
802.11g cards while still playing nice with your neighbors’ LAN.
Does it deliver the goods? Indeed! The WRT54GS is unequivocally faster
than plain-vanilla 802.11g hardware. We tested the new router in all three of its
modes—802.11b-compatibility mode, mixed 802.11g/b mode, and 802.11g-only
mode. As with all 802.11g products, as soon as an 802.11b device is connected
to the access point, the entire network drops to the latter’s puny 11Mb/s mode.
But, assuming you connect only 802.11g devices to your network, Linksys’
patented SpeedBooster technology grants a substantial performance increase
over a typical 802.11g network. For example, the D-Link AirPlus Extreme G that
we reviewed in January man-
aged a measly 1.27MB/s in
standard mode, while knocking
out 2.7MB/s in its proprietary
channel-bonded mode. By con-
trast, the WRT54GS managed
to transfer a 461MB file from a
wired PC to a wireless PC in a
little less than 170 seconds—a
transfer rate of about 2.7MB/s—in normal 802.11g mode.
How does Linksys do it? On a typical 802.11g connection, your computer
uses almost half the available bandwidth for error correction and other house-
keeping tasks. With the WRT54GS, Linksys greatly reduced the overhead of
these management packets, which in turn increases the Wi-Fi performance,
even when using non-Linksys 802.11g devices.
We’re surprised that this
new functionality is avail-
able only by purchasing new
hardware, as opposed to being
firmware upgradeable for exist-
ing WRT54G-based routers.
Still, anyone who frequently
transfers large files across a
wireless LAN will enjoy this
router’s performance.
—WILL SMITHBENCHMARKS
All tests are run in the 802.11g exclusive mode. To test, we
measured the length of time it takes to copy a 461MB file
from a wired machine to a wireless machine, and then how
long it takes to copy the same file from the wireless machine
back to the wired machine.Wired to wireless 170 seconds
Wireless to wired 199 secondswreaked havoc on neighboring Wi-Fi networks. The latest router from Linksys,Corinex Powerline Router
No network at all is better than running Ethernet
through your power linesO
nce upon a time, a Maximum PC editor sat in a trade-show confer-
ence room listening to two very enthusiastic representatives tout
HomePlug power line networking as the Next Big Thing. The year
was 1999. Five years later, we’ve finally received an actual product using
the HomePlug spec—the Corinex Powerline Router—and boy-howdy has
it not been worth the wait.
The big problem with the HomePlug spec is bandwidth. With a maxi-
mum rating of 14Mb/s, HomePlug is only marginally faster than old 802.11b
Wi-Fi networks. Put another way, the Linksys Wi-Fi router reviewed above
transferred data at a rate about 60 times faster than the Corinex. Ouch.
The Corinex Router is more difficult to set up and configure than wire-
less too. For each PC you want to connect to your power line network, you
need a special adapter and a normal Ethernet card. You plug the Ethernet
card into the power line adapter with a normal Ethernet cable, and then
you plug the power line adapter directly into a power outlet.
The problems don’t stop there. If your home has multiple circuit break-
er boxes, there’s a fair chance
your power line network won’t
cover your entire home. If
you want any guarantee of
compatibility, you’re confined
to outlets that are hooked into
a single breaker box. We did
experience instances when
a signal would jump breakerboxes, but there was no discernible rhyme or reason to make it a feature
you can count on.
HomePlug’s final failing
is its price. The Powerline
Router’s street price is $120,
and each adapter costs $90
plus the cost of an Ethernet
card. Wireless routers, on the
other hand, start at around
$60, with wireless cards cost-
ing about $70, and they per-
form eminently faster.
—WILL SMITHThis product didn’t do us physical harm, but it could
have. Electricity kills.THE FAR SIDEGENOCIDE
Slow and difficult to configure. Did we mention
it’s worse than wireless in every way?
$120, http://www.corinex.comMAXIMUMPC VERDICT 2
Lightning-fast 802.11g performance, without
borking your neighbors’ network.WOOKIESBOOKIES
No reason to upgrade from your existing 802.11b or
802.11g if you use Wi-Fi solely to share broadband.
$100, http://www.linksys.comMAXIMUMPC VERDICT 9
The new SpeedBooster
version of the Linksys WRT54G delivers significantly better
performance than other wireless routers.Networking using this Corinex HomePlug router
is only marginally faster than a 14.4 modem.90 MAXIMUMPC JUNE 2004
BENCHMARKS
To test the Corinex Powerline Router we measured the
length of time it took to transfer a 209MB video file from a
machine connected via standard Ethernet to a machine on
the power line network and back again.Upstream Would not run
Downstream 80 minutes