D-Link DIR-628 IEEE 802.3/3u, IEEE 802.11a/b/g, IEEE802.11n Draft RangeBooster N Selectable Dual Band Router - Retail

Great piece of hardware

Reviewed By: only1miller on 1/30/2010

Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: I'm not sure why others are reporting weak signal range - I've installed two of these recently (and many more of the predecessor DIR-625) and have been regularly impressed by its performance.
The most recent install was in a very difficult environment including brick walls, steel stud framing, and kitchen appliance/electronic interference and the unit performed like a champ.

Cons: Small nit-pick: some of the more exotic features of the router (QOS, media streaming, protected mode, etc.) are turned on by default. This is fine if your hardware supports such technology but I've had to disable the "fun stuff" on both recent installations to allow for compatibility with older laptops and equipment. Once I disabled the extra features (some of which are out of spec with 802.x) all connectivity/drop problems went away.

Other Thoughts: In the cases where folks got lackluster performance, I wonder if other variables besides the router were to blame. As mentioned in the CONS, some of the more exotic features of the router can play havoc with non-compliant hardware. Also, the instructions don't give enough information on antennae orientation, which, along with your equipment location and router orientation can mean the difference between great and fair performance. And again, some laptops (and definitely USB dongles... those things are awful) just don't have very good reception no matter what you do.
Wireless is still a long way off from plug-n-play simplicity and it's easy to make a mistake and blame the equipment. I've been more often dissapointed by other brands than I have D-Link- for my money they are a good bet.

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Reviewed By: floridamortgagecoach on 1/25/2010

Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: Inexpensive, very versatile. I like the 2.4/5.8 Ghz feature although it would be nice if it switched on the fly. Fairly easy user interface. Reliable so far.

Cons: The usb port works just fine but ONLY for one computer at a time. If it wasn't for this I would have given 5 eggs.

Other Thoughts: I have a home office for my mortgage business. You would think that if I connect a hard drive via usb to the router it is so that all computers in the network can access it simultaneously. At least the system sends a message from the computer wanting to use it, to the computer using it asking it to release. With that functionality I might as well connect the drive directly into my computer via usb.

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Works okay

Reviewed By: UtilityMaximizer on 1/11/2010

Tech Level: average - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: Works okay; easy to configure.

Cons: Signal could be stronger; the signal to my upstairs PC is only fair, and it's just twenty five feet away through a wood floor (and I've got a pretty decent antenna on the PC's network card, too).

Other Thoughts: Putting it in N only mode helps noticeably; mixed G and N is only "fair", while N only is "good". Unfortunately N only mode leaves my downstairs computer disconnected.

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