The biggest question that I always have about routers isn't just in regard to the latest technology, but how stable the devices are. Although, when you're tinkering on the bleeding edge, you almost always give up some stability, but I was curious how good Buffalo routers are in regard to it? I'm currently using a WNDR-3700, and except for some issues with devices having WiFi failing to operate while remaining connected, it works fine.
This depends. To be honest I have yet encounter a SINGLE Consumer Router that is fast and stable. There may be some which could be fast enough, but none of them are Stable in my views. ( And that depends on personally standard ). I have used many, TP-Link, TrendNet, Buffalo, NetGear (UI = Yuck ), Linksys, ASUS, D-Link, EnGenius Zyxel etc
I dont expect the router to crash for at least 3 - 6 months of operation. That is the bare minimum. I dont expect the UI to be non accessible, which requires a restart to correct the issue.
Even with DD-WRT the story is the same. And my guess most of these stability are Software problems which is a continuous cost to support.
The ONLY good router i ever used is from Draytek. I suppose that is not a consumer grade product and it is expensive. But i haven't used any other enterprise grade product so i have no experience with others. I got it from a friend 2nd Hand for a cheap price. But it was the best router i ever used. A great Router is suppose to be invisible, you should not even know it exist and it should just sit there and work for months and years.
The only fast and stable router I've ever had is the TP-Link N300 3T3R, which is the one I am currently using. I flashed DD-WRT on it and slapped on some high-gain antennas and it has been great. I've been using it for about 4 months now and haven't had to reset it once. Speeds are consistently good, too. I have my gaming rig, personal "server," iPhone, PS3, and MacBook Air connected to it and I've never had a problem with any of them. The only qualm I have with it is that it would've been nice to have a USB 3 port instead of just a USB 2, but for $50 I'm not complaining.
This has always boggled my mind. For now, it only drives the cost up, and more often than not, to a point where most people would not buy it. An ssd is great if it's a system drive or maybe as a scratch drive, but due to their price and performance quirks and indeed durability, are, in my opinion, not meant for these kinds of devices. Whilst durability now is not a problem, as price will go down by a function of better (smaller) lithography, the durability will suffer, and whether it will become an issue or not, is not known at this point in time.
I AM STILL WAITING ON VIABLE GPU DOCKING STATIONS AND AN X SERIES THINKPAD WITH THUNDERBOLT.
I believe the use case everyone envisions for SSD thunderbolt or USB 3.0 devices is as you put it, either a media source drive or scratch drive. I've been working with some 1080p60 and 4K video from the GoPro and even though the source is maybe 30-40 Mbps working with it in any appreciable fashion basically necessitates an SSD. I'm not a videographer but that's the kind of magical use case I think OEMs dream about for these things.
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Aikouka - Saturday, January 12, 2013 - link
The biggest question that I always have about routers isn't just in regard to the latest technology, but how stable the devices are. Although, when you're tinkering on the bleeding edge, you almost always give up some stability, but I was curious how good Buffalo routers are in regard to it? I'm currently using a WNDR-3700, and except for some issues with devices having WiFi failing to operate while remaining connected, it works fine.iwod - Sunday, January 13, 2013 - link
This depends. To be honest I have yet encounter a SINGLE Consumer Router that is fast and stable. There may be some which could be fast enough, but none of them are Stable in my views. ( And that depends on personally standard ).I have used many, TP-Link, TrendNet, Buffalo, NetGear (UI = Yuck ), Linksys, ASUS, D-Link, EnGenius Zyxel etc
I dont expect the router to crash for at least 3 - 6 months of operation. That is the bare minimum. I dont expect the UI to be non accessible, which requires a restart to correct the issue.
Even with DD-WRT the story is the same. And my guess most of these stability are Software problems which is a continuous cost to support.
The ONLY good router i ever used is from Draytek. I suppose that is not a consumer grade product and it is expensive. But i haven't used any other enterprise grade product so i have no experience with others. I got it from a friend 2nd Hand for a cheap price. But it was the best router i ever used. A great Router is suppose to be invisible, you should not even know it exist and it should just sit there and work for months and years.
andrewmickael - Monday, June 24, 2013 - link
The only fast and stable router I've ever had is the TP-Link N300 3T3R, which is the one I am currently using. I flashed DD-WRT on it and slapped on some high-gain antennas and it has been great. I've been using it for about 4 months now and haven't had to reset it once. Speeds are consistently good, too. I have my gaming rig, personal "server," iPhone, PS3, and MacBook Air connected to it and I've never had a problem with any of them. The only qualm I have with it is that it would've been nice to have a USB 3 port instead of just a USB 2, but for $50 I'm not complaining.nevertell - Saturday, January 12, 2013 - link
This has always boggled my mind. For now, it only drives the cost up, and more often than not, to a point where most people would not buy it. An ssd is great if it's a system drive or maybe as a scratch drive, but due to their price and performance quirks and indeed durability, are, in my opinion, not meant for these kinds of devices. Whilst durability now is not a problem, as price will go down by a function of better (smaller) lithography, the durability will suffer, and whether it will become an issue or not, is not known at this point in time.I AM STILL WAITING ON VIABLE GPU DOCKING STATIONS AND AN X SERIES THINKPAD WITH THUNDERBOLT.
Brian Klug - Saturday, January 12, 2013 - link
I believe the use case everyone envisions for SSD thunderbolt or USB 3.0 devices is as you put it, either a media source drive or scratch drive. I've been working with some 1080p60 and 4K video from the GoPro and even though the source is maybe 30-40 Mbps working with it in any appreciable fashion basically necessitates an SSD. I'm not a videographer but that's the kind of magical use case I think OEMs dream about for these things.-Brian