Stable router for file sharing and LAN gaming with less power consumption

Hello Sirs,

I am looking for a new router mostly for sharing files at home. There would be about 2 computers and 2 android devices separated by walls,max distance 6 meters. I don't need any special fancy features except a USB which can take a 2TB HDD to be shared across.It would be useful to have a low power mode or low power consumption as the router would be running 24/7.Looks or shape is not a concern,

I have found Belkin 750 as a good one. Are there any better alternatives in the price range?

Thanks

 

Maybe consider a D-Link: Amazon.com: D-Link Wireless N 600 Mbps Home Cloud App-Enabled Dual-Band Gigabit Router (DIR-826L): Computers & Accessories

I wouldn't worry a whole lot about power consumption because you're looking at most running 5-10W with little to no activity, and 12-15W when taxed. It will use probably less than $1 per month.

I actually used the D-Link N300 or DIR-655 for years trouble free (updated to an Asus RT-AC66U in the last year). Amazon.com: D-Link Wireless N 600 Mbps Home Cloud App-Enabled Dual-Band Gigabit Router (DIR-826L): Computers & Accessories

 

Thanks for the info. I will get one.

 

Please don't

D-Link has arguably the worst firmware support ever. They also completely swap hardware between revision of supposedly the same router.

Perfect example - DIR-655 that HTWingNut owned is one of the worst routers ever made (in spite of rather good hardware used to make it). D-Link couldn't fix issues with features that were promised on the box so they simply removed them with a firmware update - one that can't be rolled back.
Thread with complaints about it was heavily moderated on D-Link's own forums (lots of posts deleted) and it's still humongous.

Another example. D-Link DIR-825. There's no such thing really. It's a chassis with either Ubicom IP5170U CPU or Atheros AR7161 or maybe Atheros AR9344 or even Realtek RTL8197D. And it has either 16MB RAM, 64MB RAM or maybe 128MB RAM- all depending on hardware revision.

That said they all look exactly the same.

Please buy a router from a manufacturer that does make an effort - Netgear, Linksys or even TP-Link (who is surprisingly good in terms of support even if you don't consider the low price-tag attached)

 

Sir thanks for the valuable info,though I am a bit more confused now

As in your guide should I get then a TP-LINK TL-WR1043ND as you say in the guide or TL-WDR4300 which has 2 USB and is about 10Eur more here in France?

 

TP-Link TL-WDR3500 is a good choice, better than TP-Link TL-WR1043ND v2.

It's also supported by OpenWRT so there's somewhere to go in case TP-Link firmware is not enough for you.

 

TP-link WR1043ND is one of the more stable consumer routers. There are 2 versions: The old v1.x and the new v2.x with 64mb(up from 32mb) of ram. I don't know how well the WR1043ND does on USB read and writes, but it's probably low. The stock firmware is pretty stable for a consumer router, I averaged about 90 days on the v1. With DDWRT it's a lot more stable, about 6 month. I don't know how good the v2 are, only owned 3 v1.

The WDR3500 is also pretty good, using it as second router at home with DD WRT. Haven't had problems but the range is pretty poor, which doesn't sound like it's an issue for you.

 

I have a Netgear 37AV(WNDR3700v2) in the closet as my backup that I hope I never need to use

The Netgear WNDR3700v2 served me well.

Here's a listing to the much newer V4 in like new condition for $30
Amazon.com: NETGEAR Wireless Router - N600 Dual Band Gigabit (WNDR3700): Electronics

 

Huh, weird. I used that router for years with zero issues and have a lot of connections in my home network, server with multiple port forwarding. Never an issue. I used it from about 2007 until 2012. I don't know about their newer routers though.

I bought a TP-Link for a short time and it constantly would lose internet connection or would drop wi-fi connections and have slow downs. Their support was lackluster and basically did nothing more than recite from an FAQ card. So I guess experiences vary. The replacement router from them had the same issues. Then I ponied up for an Asus router just last year, and only because it was one of the better ones when AC was coming out. Quite feature rich, and it just worked. Other than the AC wireless issues, but that's more of an Intel card problem than the router, and has more or less been fixed.

 

@ HTWingNut


Was the TP-Link that gave you trouble an Archer C7 by any chance?

 

I don't remember what it was. I only heard good things about them, and that it was faster N wireless, 5GHz, blah blah. I was sorely disappointed. I'm happy with my Asus now so far.

 

It's not "tweakable" like other routers, but Apple has been the absolute king of stability for me. The only time I've ever needed to reboot it is when Comcast gets stupid and futzes with my Internet connection, and even then that's not always necessary. I have a 5th-generation Airport Extreme Base Station, the last one before 802.11ac compatibility became standard. I paid $80 for it second-hand on eBay, and it's been rock solid. No connection issues with my MacBook Pro, my Wife's Toshiba, and our household's three iPhones.

 

I'd be grateful if you could establish what exactly router it was and share it with me. As a moderator of this section and one of very few regular contributors to it I often make router recommendations and I appreciate feedback as well as all sorts of user experiences that affect mu future recommendations.

 

I'll see what I can find. But iirc it was an impulse buy from a local store (Best Buy, Staples, Costco, or Wal-Mart or something odd like that, on sale) and don't have any easy record of the purchase. I'd say 90% of my electronics purchases are online or from a local MicroCenter with an email receipt, but not in this case. Of course that was also at a time when I was out of work, had two very young kids, and was partially, or almost completely, out of my mind.