| Linksys WRT110 RangePlus Wireless Router |
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| Written by Administrator |
| Friday, 06 June 2008 20:37 |
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We know of no other router that offers near N speed without being a Draft N router. It also provides more range than other 802.11g contenders do. Despite its lack of Gigabit Ethernet support and no USB ports, the RangePlus Wireless WRT110 is a smart choice for networks where you have mix of 802.11g and Draft N wireless clients. We also like it for its sleek, antenna-free design and low, sub-$80 price. Though prices of some Draft N routers are not much more than $80, we still want to recommend this router for its ease of use, good range, and interesting design. • Device type: Wireless router Design and ease of use The router's layout is simple and effective. On the back, there are four 10/100 LAN ports, a WAN port, the reset button, and the power plug. On top, toward the front, you'll find the LED indicators that show the status of the ports, the wireless connection, and the connection to the Internet as well as the power. In the middle of those LEDs is the button to initiate Wi-Fi Protected Setup. WPS is a feature that allows for quickly adding a WPS-enabled client to the wireless network without having to manually type in the encryption key. On the downside, the WT110 doesn't have a USB port. This means it doesn't support any USB-related features such as print serving, network storage, or Windows Connect Now, which lets you transfer the wireless encryption key using a thumbdrive. It also doesn't support Gigabit Ethernet, which is disappointing but not surprising considering its low price. Also, the sleek casing, while very nice looking, tends to retain dust and fingerprints. The router is easy to set up, whether you use the well-organized Web interface or the bundled Linksys EasyLink Advisor software. Features The WRT110 uses similar Web interface to previous models, but we noticed improved responsiveness and a few new features including an Application and Gaming tab that allows for setting up ports to support special applications and network services. The WRT110 also supports all available wireless encryption from WEP to WPA and WPA2, as well as Remote Authentication Dial In User Service. As with most other routers from Linksys, the WRT110 supports VPN pass-through and access restriction. It is also the first budget router from Linksys that offers Wi-Fi Protected Setup. Performance On our max throughput test, at 46.2Mbps, the WRT110 trailed behind recent Draft N routers we've tested by 40 percent to 46 percent. It was even a little slower than the pokey LevelOne WBR-6000 N-One. In mixed mode testing, however, where the router is forced to work with multiple wireless standards, the WRT110 saw only a slight dip in throughput to 41.3Mbps, which far exceeded the LevelOne N-One's score of 23.9Mbps and trailed only slightly behind Draft N routers from SMC and D-Link. At 68Mbps, the Edimax BR-6504N is still the mixed mode speed king, and came very close to the rest of the Draft N routers. It did even better in range test registering 14.5Mbps, which is impressively faster than the Edimax BR-6504N nMax. It's worth noting that the WRT110's performance--when compared with that of older 802.11g routers we've tested--is excellent and roughly twice as fast as the fastest ones, such as the Netgear WGR614. On average, 802.11g routers scored roughly 20Mbps and 8Mbps on our max throughput and mixed-mode tests, respectively. The WRT110 offers excellent range--on par with Draft N adapters. We were able to get its signal from more than 250 feet away. The range reduced with Wireless-G adapters, we never got a signal at more than 190 feet. Our testing environment is not range-optimized, so in real life the WRT110 may offer better range.
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Hits: 4375 Comments (9)
 
Sorry to throw cold water on the cheers for the WRT110, but I just installed one and found it had less than 85 foot range when operating to a 802.11g laptop. The range is MUCH less than the SRX400 had previously had. If range is your major consideration, this device may not be the one for you.
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August 16, 2008
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Well, it seems that antennas are important part of the router after all
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August 16, 2008
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I think it really depends on where you installed the unit. Cement walls causes big interference. External or internal antenna, the unit should be placed strategically.
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September 28, 2008
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and i don't think antennas are a big deal with these kind of equipment. It was designed and engineered to work with internal antenna. Most mobile phones today doesn't have an external antenna, right?
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September 28, 2008
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@red_manila
You're probably right about antennas. Although it is possible that with another firmware he could get much better signal. Cement walls do cause big interference, especially if it's filled with a lot of armor. 5 report abuse
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September 28, 2008
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As a recent purchaser of the WRT110 I'd like to warn anyone who hasn't yet purchased this router to steer clear. Many connection drops, poor firmware support by Linksys and less than advertised range makes this a disappointment.
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October 18, 2008
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Yup, Range at G speeds seems to be a real drawback. I have this in my office where I had a netgear router previously. The walls in my house are drywall. The PS3 in my bedroom (10 feet away (2 walls) gets 12-20% signal strength. Moving to the living room, my laptop gets one bar (this is just down the hallway about 18-20 ft..
The PS3 used to get 98% signal strength but the DHCP function on it failed so I went and got this router. For a router to have "RangePlus" in the name, I would expect similar performance to "lesser" routers.. Not the case at all. If you need range at less than "n" speeds, look elsewhere. I know I plan to take it back today in exchange for something else. 7 report abuse
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October 30, 2008
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I surely didn't expect to see such a lousy performance from Linksys "RangePlus" router
 Thx for your info.. 8 report abuse
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October 30, 2008
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Purchased this router as well and have had absolutely nothing but problems since day one. The connection intermittently drops, speeds slow for no reason (no change in physical location of the router or PC), signal strength is extremely poor, setup is clunky, and support is terrible. Back to best-buy she goes.
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November 11, 2008
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| Last Updated on Tuesday, 22 July 2008 07:11 |
The Linksys RangePlus Wireless WRT110 is not a Draft N router, but Linksys doesn't call it a Wireless-G router, either. The reason? It works with both specifications. It supports the 802.11g standard, but the company's RangePlus technology takes advantage of the throughput threshold of the draft 802.11n specification and offers improved speed when used with Draft N wireless clients. In testing, the WRT110 delivered near N throughput on our mixed-mode benchmark. 
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