Best/fastest modem/router for Ipad and general computer use?

[PCUK]

We are way down the phone line and broadband speed is not much better than dial-up. It got even worse when I installed a wireless modem/router and found I get slightly more speed plugging everything into the ethernet sockets. Now using the Ipad as the only unit on the WiFi I think I need to improve matters with a better modem/router. (I'm not even sure if the current Netgear one is working properly as it should!)
So any suggestions as to the very best and fasted modem/router for my situation would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Peter

 

[deckyon]

If your broadband connection is bad, no modem or router will increase the overall speed anyway. Talk to your provider.

For wifi routers and access points, Wireless N is going to be the fastest and is supported by the iPad. N will be as fast as 100mb ethernet. All PCs should have an N card (or be plugged into the ethernet port) if you want to take advantage of the speed, but, in your case, your connection to the broadband will be the bottleneck. Even so, the fastest (average) broadband will be 20mb anyway, with a few communities over 50mb. Of course, I am speaking of the US.

In short, the best home router/modem will not make you connect any faster if the issue is with the provider and the lines outside your house.

Wireless N is the fastest wireless band at this time. Linksys (Cisco) makes some nice routers at the N level.

 

[PCUK]

Thanks for that. I realise the problem is mainly with my location but since going for the wireless router, speeds seem to have dropped even when plugged into the ethernet sockets rather than using the WiFi.
Maybe I should take the router back and have it tested to see whether it is causing the problem.
Cheers,
Peter

 

[MarkK]

I also have the disadvantage of living in a place with lame internet-access.
The best we have in our area is 16MBit DSL. You really notice with big downloads.
Depending on the server, speeds may vary, but I never achieved mor than 1.4MB/second.
Downloading the XCode Development environment with 2.something GB took nearly an hour.
At my brother's place with 50MBit this loads so much faster...

Anyway, I don't notice a difference between WLAN and Ethernet. The bottleneck does seem to be the internet-connection itself.

 

[Bluesjam]

I just bought the Apple Airport Extreme. I don't know alot about WiFi but I think the Airport is a good choice.

 

[pallentx]

If your router is functioning properly, it shouldnt slow anything down. I would experiment with different channels. You may have some wireless interference in your house that is causing issues.

 

[PhotoJim]

Where you locate your access point is important, too. Higher up and more central in your home tends to work better. Mine is on top of a shelf in my computer room on the main (and top) floor of my home. I get good coverage around my hard and throughout my home and basement. Having the router near the floor or in a basement will result in attenuated coverage.

You can sometimes install better antennas on these devices, if changing locations of the router would be difficult.

 

[Wakawaka]

I always laugh when people say this is the fastest..you want this!

Put it this way. If a web page has a total of 15mb of data to load for the whole page, and your router is a G @ 54 Mbps how do you benefit?? Your router can handle up to, 54 megs per second..so why waste money on the new N when your Internet provider can only dish out X amount of mpbs?

One reason for N and others is wifi range. But speeds, not so much.

For example, I don't need N because: comcast only dishes out 18 Mbps download speeds. My G can handle up to 54 Mbps. The wii takes in only wifi and my ps3 is wired into the router. Again, comcast only pumps out 18 Mbps.. iPhones, blackberry, directv, they all use Internet and only as much that is given. My G is big enough range for my home.

A reason for an N router: you have two computers that sync a lot. They are wired together. You may benefit from the 100mbps if you transfer lots of files. But again, if your IPS only dishes out 18 Mbps for Internet you will never use that 100mb factor for streaming/downloading off the web. N does provide a little big greater wifi coverage however.

 

[deckyon]

@Wakawaka: You are assuming "they" are not streaming from within "their" own network, which is something more and more people are doing. I have 3 terabytes of audio and video on my media server, all being streamed inside my network at N speeds. Therefore, my internet speed is irrelevant when it comes to this.

Expandability is the key. One thing I always try to follow, and the advice I give to anyone who asks. Buy the best you can afford at the time - it will last longer and you will be less disappointed when the replacement comes out.

 

[Wakawaka]

@Wakawaka: You are assuming "they" are not streaming from within "their" own network, which is something more and more people are doing. I have 3 terabytes of audio and video on my media server, all being streamed inside my network at N speeds. Therefore, my internet speed is irrelevant when it comes to this.

Expandability is the key. One thing I always try to follow, and the advice I give to anyone who asks. Buy the best you can afford at the time - it will last longer and you will be less disappointed when the replacement comes out.

If you read my whole post you'd see I did include why a 100mb setup would be worthwhile..

I didn't get into fiberoptic or server applications because average home user will never need or buy.

 

[Prasius]

My parents recently changed ISP's and were sent a new ISP branded router - I set it up with that initially, then transferred the settings to their 'old' wireless router.

The old router was almost 1mbps faster than the 'new' branded router, and the ping was faster. So while I accept that a 54mbps router should be the same as any other - in practice I don't think that's the case. I believe the quality of the router can have an impact on the overall quality of your connection.

PCUK - what wifi router are you currently using?

 

[deckyon]

If you read my whole post you'd see I did include why a 100mb setup would be worthwhile..

I didn't get into fiberoptic or server applications because average home user will never need or buy.

Only if you want to run the cable all over the house. And if so, then that would take the iPad out of the mix cause, well, no ethernet port. 802.11n is roughly 160 mbps, so unless someone is running gigabit, there is really nothing to match N even in the wired world. The whole point of Wireless is to dump the Wires.

Media center applications are not out of the range of an average home user.

 

[Hasty]

Bought a cheap TP-Link router (wireless N ADSL2+) 6 months ago to replace my old netgear and it's been rock solid with much better range. Only powered it down once when away on holiday otherwise it's on 24/7. Cost c.£47.

 

[Wakawaka]

If you read my whole post you'd see I did include why a 100mb setup would be worthwhile..

I didn't get into fiberoptic or server applications because average home user will never need or buy.

Only if you want to run the cable all over the house. And if so, then that would take the iPad out of the mix cause, well, no ethernet port. 802.11n is roughly 160 mbps, so unless someone is running gigabit, there is really nothing to match N even in the wired world. The whole point of Wireless is to dump the Wires.

Media center applications are not out of the range of an average home user.

And again it all depends on user setup and needs.
I personally don't stream in my home other than what I pull from the Internet. This may not be the case for my neighbor next to me.

Also to answer a question, I use a netgear G router. I've had 3 in the last decade and all work great. My wifi is about 1mbps under what my wired connection gets.

 

[PCUK]

My router is a Netgear DGN 1000.
Changing the channel doesn't sound too difficult if that may make a difference.
Cheers,
Peter