Which router shall I get?

I've read around a little bit but I would like to know your suggestions.

My situation isn't too complicated but I still want to make sure since I've taken the responsibility to find a laptop for my 2 other roommates who will be moving into an apartment soon.

My Xbox has wireless N but the other laptops on the network do not, still, I would like to get a wireless n router for the future and for my Xbox but I need a router that can mix broadcast in g and the others.

Distance is not an issue as it is a 3 bedroom apartment with around 1500 square feet, and the router will probably be in my room anyways.

The only problem would be my desire to spend less than 100 dollars.

Internet connection from provider will probably be 5mb.

Input would be greatly appreciated!

 

Maybe the Linksys WRT400N?
Unless you can find a used Netgear 3700 or Linksys WRT610N, I doubt you'll find those new.
No experience with the DIR-825 but I think it's over $100 as well

 

Just about any N router will handle your needs, especially considering the limited distance. However, considering the limited bandwidth, you'd see absolutely no benefit in file transfers except perhaps between n devices within your network. Real world g speeds can hit around 25-30 mbps (somewhat dependent on the router), so if you already have a g router, I'd stick with it and spend the savings on a higher speed connection.

 

Thanks for the responses.

I've seen a feature on a few routers that personally attracts me and that is the USB network drive ability. Also, I am willing to spend circa $150 now. I was thinking about the Apple Airport Extreme since I may be getting a mac soon and hopefully some more wireless n-able devices. I want one for the future and this seems to be one of the most solid routers on the market.

Another option for me was the (as mentioned above) Netgear 3700--new of course since they're 147 bucks on amazon.

And I don't have a router yet as I'm going from a college dorm to an apartment so this will be my first router purchase.

 

Definitely the Netgear WNDR3700- the best home router available.
Apple is not really good- it's just Apple- it looks cool and people like it for that reason.

 

I think that is half-true, since apple usually relies on this to get people, although my uncle got it for my grandma and it seems pretty solid when i've used it there, but I'm sure the 3700 is also.

Do you think I should stick with a dual band as I will gradually have a mixed network of g and n devices until possibly a few years down the road I will have all n?

 

You don’t specifically need dual band but it is an option- this way you can run "g" devices on 2.4GHz and "n" on 5GHz.
Also keep in mind that 2.4GHz band gets overcrowded while 5GHz is relatively free so having both available is an advantage.

As for Apple Airport Extreme- by "half true" you mean it's good because it works while what I mean is: it barely supports 126 simultaneous connections (bad for P2P, VoIP, online gaming), has no SPI firewall, no port triggering, no simultaneous dual band (either 2.4GHz or 5GHz), no QoS and no WMM, also in terms of routing performance it manages about 120mbps while WNDR3700 gets up to at least 400mbps.

This is based on this review but I cannot guarantee that hardware or firmware hasn't been changed since. Anyway it's not a king of the hill and it's not gonna be unless they buy a design from Netgear or Linksys and put their badge on it. Making a good network hardware is not that easy. Apart from that Airport Extreme is extremely pricey for what it offers.

 

That review is from 2007, they've updated their router a handful of times since then, newest being fall of 2009 I believe.

Reading on cnet it seems like it lacks full usage from windows users and doesn't allow the customization that the 3700 does.

 

Yeah I know that the review is quite dated but smallnetbuilder is the best resource for home networking so I'd rather see their thorough review and try to update it myself than start with some unprofessional website.
So you are right- AirPort Extreme is now simultaneous dual band- and that didn't work either.
Anyway back to the point- I'd recommend WNDR3700- great hardware and resulting performance, good factory firmware and support for 3rd party firmware.
I won't get into details because we've discussed this quite a few times so you can easily find posts about WNDR3700 including mine that are more thorough than what I’ve posted in this thread.

EDIT: I almost forgot- you may simply not need such an expensive router and powerful hardware. My personal favorite as a good mid-class router is TP-Link TL-WR1043ND -Atheros 400MHz CPU, 32MB RAM, 8MB flash, gigabit ports, 3 detachable antennas, USB port, good firmware support and this router is supported by DD-WRT. It's a lot cheaper too- some $80.

 

Alright thanks for the replies, I'll search around.

 

Netgear N300 would be perfect. No need for dual band.