Home Networking Gear
Wired and wireless choices abound, and prices are falling. Selecting the right type of network (or a hybrid) is key.Yardena Arar
In general, a wireless home network offers more convenience than wired ones: You don't need to install cables, and notebook users can roam untethered. But wired networks are more secure and reliable, and using existing home wiring--either phone lines (HomePNA) or electrical wiring (HomePlug)--eliminates the expense and hassle of installing new cables. Combining elements of both types of networks is easy if you plan ahead.
Prices for networking gear based on the popular 11-megabits-per-second 802.11b (or Wi-Fi) wireless standard have plummeted in the past year, and Wi-Fi's 54-mbps sibling, 802.11a (Wi-Fi5), has arrived. On the wired side, the long-awaited HomePlug standard--which transfers data over existing electrical lines--has debuted, and 1-gigabit-per-second (1000-mbps) ethernet is starting to appear on desktops. As is usual with new technologies, initial prices for Wi-Fi5, HomePlug, and (especially) gigabit-ethernet products have been high. Expect price reductions as more vendors offer these products.
Also new: wireless access points (bridges that connect wireless networks to wired ones) that can communicate with both Wi-Fi5 and Wi-Fi adapters. Such products will appeal primarily to businesses that want to migrate to Wi-Fi5 without either stranding legacy 802.11b users or having to install two access points to serve the two camps. Even more recently, D-Link, U.S. Robotics, and other vendors have introduced so-called 802.11b-plus products based on a new Texas Instruments chip designed to improve network performance while maintaining compatibility with conventional Wi-Fi equipment. Our informal tests show that these products can boost speeds by up to 50 percent--but the increase is largely lost if even one conventional Wi-Fi adapter is on the network. We look at 802.11b-plus products in this month's "Double Wi-Fi Network Speeds?", and we review a network capable of supporting both 802.11a and 802.11b equipment in "Two Wireless Nets, One Box".
PC World Spotlight on Wi-Fi Routers (chart)
Key Features
Network type: The flexibility of a wireless network is especially tempting, and if you go with a network based on the popular 802.11b standard, you can use your portable in a growing number of public spaces that offer Wi-Fi Internet access. But the security algorithm built into both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi5 is vulnerable to attack, and range limitations can make using a pure wireless network impractical in spaces that are larger, occupy several floors, or contain lots of doors and walls.
Ethernet remains the fastest, cheapest, and most secure wired technology available; but installing the required Category 5 cabling can be costly and messy. Consequently, most home users are better off with HomePNA or HomePlug networks. HomePlug has greater appeal because homes and offices tend to have more power outlets than phone jacks. On the other hand, however, at this writing HomePlug adapters cost two to three times as much as HomePNA adapters.
Speed and range: If you plan to use your network primarily for sharing broadband Internet access, the speed limitations of your networking technology won't matter much: All of the popular standards significantly exceed the top speed (1 to 1.5 mbps) of residential DSL or cable service. If you plan on frequently moving large files between computers, though, you'll appreciate the difference between a fast network and a slow one.
Today's 10/100-mbps ethernet networks are the fastest in widespread use. The fastest wireless standard is Wi-Fi5, rated at 54 mbps, but components can cost up to twice as much as their Wi-Fi counterparts. Lagging considerably behind Wi-Fi5 are HomePlug (14 mbps), Wi-Fi (11 mbps) and HomePNA 2.0 (10 mbps). For any of these products, however, you should expect real-world throughput to be less than half the theoretical speeds. In addition, with wireless protocols, speed deteriorates rapidly as distance from the access point increases or as obstacles such as doors, walls, and ceilings intervene. Though many Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi5 vendors claim a range of up to 300 feet, don't count on achieving a range of more than about 100 to 125 feet in a typical office, and somewhat less in a home.
Security: Because intruders don't have to plug in to a physical port for direct access, as they do with a wired network, wireless networks are especially vulnerable to attack. Designers intended the encryption algorithm built into the 802.11x spec, called Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP), to function as effectively as the physical barrier in a wired network. But encryption experts have shown WEP to be weak on security (though improvements are coming in the form of the IEEE's 802.11i spec). You can improve your odds with network adapters that support 128-bit encryption (versus the 40-bit encryption of basic wireless cards). But if security is vital to you, we recommend using a virtual private network and/or firewall, whether your network is wired or not.
Hardware support: Not all types of network components are available for each network technology. For example, while several Wi-Fi residential gateways combine the access point and router required to share a single broadband Internet account, no comparable product has yet shipped for Wi-Fi5. You have to plug a Wi-Fi5 access point into a conventional ethernet router to gain Internet access. And because the first wave of Wi-Fi5 products are aimed primarily at companies that want to afford notebook users access to a wired network, the first Wi-Fi5 desktop adapters appeared only recently.
Similarly, at this writing, no vendor offers a HomePlug gateway or PC Card. And because the available adapters are bulky bricklike units that plug into an ethernet or USB port, the standard is poorly suited for use with notebooks.
Firewall features: If you use a router or gateway to connect your network to the Internet, it will likely include a built-in firewall to ward off intruders. But the configurability of these firewalls varies widely. Some make connecting directly to a designated PC on your network easy for authorized applications--useful for certain videoconferencing and message applications, not to mention online games. If you have a static IP address, some gateways will even help you set up a Web server. Others offer parental controls, allowing you to block access to sites by URL or even by specific keywords.
Room to grow: Your networking needs may well increase as new applications (connecting to home entertainment devices, for example) arrive. Look for gear that allows you to add devices or network types. If you decide to buy a wireless residential gateway, for example, choose one with multiple local-area network (LAN) ethernet ports, which will enable you to create a hybrid wired-and-wireless network. If you'd like to use a printer over your network without hooking it up to an always-on PC, get a gateway with a built-in print server (you connect the printer to a port on the gateway). Want wireless access for employees in a growing office? Consider Wi-Fi5, which supports many more simultaneous users than Wi-Fi.
Close-Up: No-New-Wires Networks at a Glance (chart)
Recommendations
Key factors in choosing a home network include the types and physical locations of your computers, your security needs, and the cost you can afford. Unless large file transfers are involved, most home users are best off with a Wi-Fi network or--if a pure wireless network is impractical--a Wi-Fi/HomePlug hybrid.
Because Wi-Fi shoppers have the most options, our chart of top router picks is devoted to Wi-Fi. If you're willing to spend a few extra dollars for top range and speed, consider a solid and consistent performer such as Agere's Orinoco line.
Decision Steps: Which Home Network Works for You? (chart)
