Router with USB storage on network ability

Hello folks,

I plan to buy a new router during holiday season. I have basic 15mbps down and 5 mbps up internet connection. My requirements are
- Ability to attach FAT32 or NTFS HDD to the USB port of the router so that music is available for streaming all over my home network.
- I live in a 750sq ft apartment with almost no dead spots, so the signal should cover at least all of the apartment and the patio.
if it really matters,
- It will be wired to Roku 2 XS and a VoIP adapter (OBi100).
- The wi-fi connected devices are 2 laptops (Win 7 64bit), 2 smartphones (Android) and 2 tablets (Andoid and iOS)

Googling gave me few results
- WD My Net N900 Central
- Linksys Smart Wi-Fi Router EA4500
- D-Link DIR-857 HD Media Router 3000
- Asus RT-N66U Dark Knight Double 450Mbps N Router
- Netgear WNDR3800
Looks like this is best of the crop.

Does anyone have other suggestion on cheaper price range? I won't mind installing Tomato or DD-WRT but I will be very happy if it can work out of the box. I am not interested in NAS drive due to cost issue and I don't really need it as my only goal will be to stream mp3s and no videos at all.

Thanks in advance.

P.S - There is another thread with similar question but the requirements for that poster is much higher than mine. My current router is Asus WL-520GU. Is anyone has a suggestion for 3rd party firmware to get USB port working for HDD, my job is really done

 

DD-WRT supports drive sharing and printer sharing on this router although it's a bit low end so it may not be comfortable to use.
It's a free solution so you can test it.

 

If you want something not too expensive, you could look at older models like the WNDR3700 and the Linksys E3000, they're not too expensive if you manage to find one and they still have good performance. Avoid wireless AC routers, the new standard being new doesn't really offer much over wireless N yet.

Something else you could check is whether your devices support 5GHz or not, if they don't, you can scratch dual band routers from the list.

 

Any idea how do I find that out?

 

Google, check which wireless adapters you have in your laptops and look for the specs. For your phones, same thing, google the model and 5GHz or find a spec sheet.

 

If you want the newest 802.11ac hardware then look at the Netgear R6300 router and A6200 USB WiFi Adapter.

For older N hardware the Netgear WNDR3800 is a bit better than the WNDR3700v2 that I loved.

The new R6300 performs like a WNDR4500 on the 2.4ghz band but really shines on the 5ghz band.

The Bigfoot Killer 1103 with the 3rd antenna IMO is the best internal wireless card for modern notebooks available today to pair with a 300Mbps or 450Mbps dual band router.

Don't forget to set your router to WPA2 AES if you're using Windows 7.

 

for a similar setup, including video streaming and no budget constraint (well lets say less than usd 300 for its own sake as i dont want space gear ) - what to chose then?

 

Get a good router and a not too expensive NAS.

 

any recommendation?

any recommendation?



Thanks for your help!

 

Downloads would know for the NAS, i can't remember what was the brand he suggested some time ago, but they got fairly good reviews and were affordable NASes.

For the router, it depends on what you want it to do, but i would suggest a good dual band router. Something like a WNDR3700v2.

 

Netgear WNDR3700v2 or WNDR3800 paired with a Killer 1102/1202 or Intel 6235

Netgear WNDR4500 paired with a Killer 1103 or Intel 6300....both wireless cards need a 3rd antenna attached or they will perform like the 2 antenna Killer 1102/1202 and Intel 6235.

 

As for the NAS I would buy a Zyxel NSA310 or NSA320 (the former is one bat the latter is two bay NAS) depending on the price.
NSA310 can be bought for $55 at times while NSA320 for $80. There's no problem buying either of those for respectively $85 and $110 but that's not a great deal anymore.

I have to warn you though- NSA310 uses a 40mm fan that will start to annoy you at some point. I'm going to get mine replaced with something better.

 

I don't want to sound like a , but money is not much of an issue for my setup (let's put a limit at 1000usd for Nas and router?) . I just want it to properly do what i need.
Also, what I didnt mention, and that's a killer on my current router, there are too many devices. My space is currently around 300sq, but soon will be only around 150sq. Nonetheless there will be 4 mobile, 4 laptop, 1 desktop, 2 tablet, 1 xbox, 1 ps3, so a total of 13+ device if friends are over.

I need a router that can handle that. Also, my new line is likely a 100mbps line which I would like to fully utilize

Thanks for all the input!

 

Everyone has different budgets, it's great that you have enough to afford top of the line equipment. With that kind of budget, you can go with a router like the Linksys E4200 v1, the Asus RT-N66U or the netgear WNDR4500. If there are any consumer routers that can handle a lot of connections, it's those. You could also get some more recent wireless AC models, but given that there isn't much of an advantage over a three stream wireless N router, you can go for a good N router and save some money. They won't run at more than 150$ most likely and that leaves you quite a bit for a NAS. Also, with a dual band router, you'll be able to put your 5GHz compatible devices on the 5GHz network and the rest on the 2.4GHz network. At home with my E4200v1, i was getting over 150Mbps actual throughput with a 2x2 wireless adapter. I have yet to do the test with 3x3, but it'll be higher for sure, so the network will definitely be able to accommodate your Internet with a good router/wireless adapter.

Which NAS to get depends on the amount of storage space you need. With that kind of budget, you can easily get a NAS that can handle 4 HDDs or more with RAID 1 for data redundancy. Maybe a Synology NAS? Full review of a rather expensive one here: http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2012/09/synology-ds-412-is-fast-fun-and-flexible/ (long review warning).

 

Yeah with more expensive NASes it boils down to Synology or QNAP.

For a 100mbps line you would need a 450mbps Wi-Fi connection (so three stream router on 5GHz is a must)

 

I heard lots of good things about the asus but not much about linksys, so maybe the asus is worth considering. The Nas looks great, thanks for that (i think i read that review a while back).

Weird question but anyway, I am planning a larger project of setting up my own cloud server running 24/7 as I would want this in the long run. Anyone knows whether there are any facilities that are, essentially, server-hotels? i.e. a place where I can store my server and that takes care of power-outs etc?

 

Asus is always very good on what hardware their routers are packing, especially in terms or RAM. Linksys and Netgear have the upper hand in the formware department. Even so, the RT-N66U is a very good router and if you have the choice between that and junk from D-Link or MediaLink, it's a no brainer.

As downloads said, you'll want 5GHz capabilities since you'll most likely have the band all to yourself.