D-Link’s DIR-655 was one of the fastest
routers in this roundup, and it proved
best-in-breed in terms of range. But
speed and range aren’t the only reasons
to like this product. If you enjoy fi ne-
tuning your network’s performance, the
Xtreme N offers more control over more
settings than anything else we tested.
The DIR-655 includes a robust QoS
(Quality of Service) engine that you can
use to prioritize network traffi c, so appli-
cations such as online gaming, media
streaming, and VoIP are given prior-
ity over web browsing. D-Link’s WISH
(Wireless Intelligent Stream Handling)
technology delivers more traffi c-prioriti-
zation features, enabling you to confi gure
the router to give A/V streams originat-
ing from Windows Media Center higher
priority than traffi c that’s less sensitive to
delay—such as fi le transfers. You’ll need
to access the router’s fi rmware to confi g-
ure these and other settings.
Don’t enjoy twiddling with your gear?
D-Link bundles a 30-day-evaluation copy
of Pure Networks’s newb-friendly NetworkMagic software. It doesn’t give you any
additional confi guration or monitoring
options, but it does make tasks such as
printer sharing, security, and network-
activity monitoring a lot easier. If you
don’t buy the full version within 30 days,
the software will shut off access to its
advanced features, leaving
you with the free version
that you can get anywhere.
One of the fi rst things
we noticed when we
unpacked the D-Link was
the included package
of drywall anchors, for
use if you want to mount
the router to your wall.
Several of these rout-
ers have mounting holes
on the bottom for this
purpose, but only D-Link
provides its customers
with a means for actu-
ally doing it. Also, the CD
jacket includes a space
for you to write down the
network’s SSID (Service
Set Identifi er)—the name
and password. Sure, these
things are minor, but suchthoughtful touches show D-Link’s com-
mitment to customer satisfaction.
Like most consumer router manu-
facturers, D-Link encourages the use of
its browser-based installation wizard for
router setup. Experienced users can skip
this step without hesitation, but novices
will appreciate the wizard’s thoroughness.
This doesn’t mean D-Link leaves knowl-
edgeable users to their own devices—
there’s plenty of sound advice and tips in
the router’s onboard help fi le. Set the rout-
er to use WEP, for instance, and it warns
that your network will not run in 802.11n
mode because that standard does not
support WEP. This is to be expected, of
course, but TCP throughput with WEP
enabled was considerably slower on
the DIR-655 than it was with competing
routers. On the other hand, the DIR-655
delivered nearly three times faster scores
at maximum range without WEP enabled
than did the next contender. More impor-
tant, it also delivered much higher speeds
at range with WPA2 security enabled. (See
page 70 for benchmark details.)The DIR-655 delivers more QoS options than most
routers in its class.D-Link’s DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit router won’t win any beauty contests, but it’s got
good bone structure.9
D-LINK DIR-655 XTREME N
$135, http://www.dlink.com60 MAXIMUMPC NOVEMBER 2007
D-LINK DIR-655
XTREME N
GIGABIT ROUTER
We call this one The Long Ranger