Networking Devices Questions & Answers

Low/mid range router vs high end router. What is the difference?

Follow Question Posted by FoShizzle on Dec 02, 2011

Hello, does anyone know what a $150-200 wireless router will give me more than a $50 unit. Considering they both have gigabit switch and Wi-Fi N. What justifies the higher price tag?

The $50 unit is tp-link and the $200 one d-link. In this case I'm asking in general not for a specific device.

Share it: Post Comment Like 0

« Back to all discussions

Display mode:

not rated

1 Chubaka on Dec 02, 2011

Level 4 One difference, I think, is how much load it can take. 1-3 users can use a router for $50 without a problem, but if the users are 10 (for example) it will "die".

Comments (0)

not rated

2 Dexter on Dec 02, 2011

Level 5 $180 gives you Netgear WNDR4500.

Netgear WNDR4500 gives you "At close range, the WNDR4500 achieved TCP throughput of 151Mb/s on its 2.4GHz radio, and a staggering 251Mb/s on its 5GHz radio."

One of the differences. Quite major one. And advanced features like bandwidth control are less likely to be found on budget devices.

Comments (0)

not rated

3 Cyrax on Dec 05, 2011

Level 3 QoS is available even on cheaper routers nowadays, but pretty much chubaka is spot on. The higher end routers will give better stability and will be able to handle a much higher network load than your ordinary cheap router. In my case a TP-link cant handle my internet bandwidth and load, so the wi-fi dies every now and then.

Comments (0)

not rated

4 Immortal on Dec 05, 2011

Level 9 The difference is mainly in built quality airflow and performance(basically everything)...I`ve managed to fry a 50$ TP-link with 15 people on switches in the summer...The chips were literally burnt ;) Then i learned to buy quality network gear for high loads...If you won`t build a big network buy whatever you like (just note the wireless speeds and research if the wireless is stable)

Comments (0)

not rated

5 Renk81 on Dec 05, 2011

Level 3 Features are a big contributer. Security, build quality, over all speed (wired and unwired), UI, and functionality. Look close at the available specs and features on both. I've seen cheap routers try to slide in by negating things like VPN, WPA2 and 1000Base-T support

Comments (0)

not rated

6 Renk81 on Dec 05, 2011

Level 3 Largely the name tough too.

Comments (0)

not rated

7 Nitro on Dec 06, 2011

Level 3 The one major difference is the load they can support and the stability of the system.

The wireless range is a big contributor to the price as well.

Comments (0)

not rated

8 jonathan1250 on Dec 07, 2011

Level 3 I'd go for a premium device just for the sake of bandwidth control. It is extremely useful if you have more than 1 PC at home.

Although, some middle class devices are pretty good performers if you hook them up with a custom firmware. I'm pretty sure you will find one in the middle price point (around $100) that is supported by dd-wrt.

http://www.dd-wrt.com/site/support/router-database

Comments (0)