Regarding Router Capping Speed?

Kaiokhen

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Mar 28, 2013
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10,510
Hello.

I currently have a Linksys E4200 router. All my computer are wireless. Here it comes the problem. I got this internet plan which suppose to be download up to 100 Mbps. However, i am only getting 50Mbps . So i decided to give a call to the service provider.

They told me to directly connect to the modem to the computer. So i say to my self duh of course it would be blazing fast with one connection and specially directly connecting it.

He came up with a conclusion saying that the router that i have which is Linksys E4200 may be capping the speed or defective. The E4200 suports up to 300 - 450 Mbps. I told him that and he ask how old is the router, i say roughtly maybe 2 years or 3 at most.

He found the solution, the router is defective.. So i ask him which router would you recommend to get pass 50Mbps since i have a plan that reaches 100Mbps. He say he doesnt know. As he said i needed a new router, i ask him. What if i get a router that caps my internet speed at 50Mbps also? He respond. That shouldnt happen....

My question here is, does router get defective over time? Does that mean every 2 or 3 years i have to buy a new router..? If the router does become defective overtime or if i may have a one that is dying slowly. Which router would you recommend to reach my top wireless speed of 100Mbps?

I have 3 wireless laptop and 2 wireless devices. However, when they are not on i am still not getting over 50 Mbps. My old plan was 50Mbps but he insist and say that my plan is 100Mbps which they upgrade it 2 weeks ago and i did speedtest which caps me 50Mbps.
 
Solution
There's two separate points that need to be addressed here,

First, internet plans are always marketed as "up to XXX Mbps", not "exactly XXX Mbps". There's a lot of line quality and congestion issues which prevent links from reaching their marketed speeds. You may not be able to obtain the full speed for a variety of terrestrial reasons. This is not definitely the case, but unless you're willing to pay for an expensive direct connection, it's something that you'll have to live with.

Second, routers have to do almost no work when they switch packets on the LAN link, but when they route packets from the LAN link to the WAN link and vice versa there's quite a bit of work involved. Cheap routers use cheap microprocessors and DSPs that...
There's two separate points that need to be addressed here,

First, internet plans are always marketed as "up to XXX Mbps", not "exactly XXX Mbps". There's a lot of line quality and congestion issues which prevent links from reaching their marketed speeds. You may not be able to obtain the full speed for a variety of terrestrial reasons. This is not definitely the case, but unless you're willing to pay for an expensive direct connection, it's something that you'll have to live with.

Second, routers have to do almost no work when they switch packets on the LAN link, but when they route packets from the LAN link to the WAN link and vice versa there's quite a bit of work involved. Cheap routers use cheap microprocessors and DSPs that skimp on WAN routing power because 50MBps throughput WAN <-> LAN is probably more than what most people would have seen 4-5 years ago when that thing was developed. If your internet speed shot up to its full expected speed when you connected it directly to your PC and let your NIC and TCP stack do all of the work, then your router is just a piece of junk. It's not broken or defective, it's just not capable of handling what's being thrown at it.

If you want a good router that will last many years then I suggest avoiding Linksys and Belkin entirely. Get a high end router from D-Link, or even a business router from Netgear or Cisco.

Good examples are:

D-Link DGL-5500

Cisco RV-042

Netgear R6200/R6300
 
Solution

Kaiokhen

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Mar 28, 2013
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10,510


Yea when i directly connect it with ethernet cable to the modem i get a speed up to almost constant of 100Mbps. So in this case if i get a good router i should be able to reach to the desired speed at least beyond 50Mbps?

 


That's correct. It's just a weak router.

EDIT: disregard RV-042, it should be RV-042G which is the newer gigabit model.
 

Kaiokhen

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Mar 28, 2013
17
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10,510


Which one would you recommend? RV-042G is not a wireless router though, i need a wireless router that since i dont want to use ethernet cables wrap around the walls
 


I used a DGL-4100 for many years and loved it to death. It's from 2006 or earlier but would still give most modern routers a run for their money. The DGL-5500 is a brand new beast with 802.11AC Draft-2 support. It's a Qualcomm chip so it should be firmware upgradable to 802.11AC final when released if there are any significant changes. It's a bit pricey at $200 but it's a kickass router.
 

Kaiokhen

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Mar 28, 2013
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10,510


I really dont care about the price, i just want a router that can really give a throughput for at least 100Mbps. Some people suggested WNDR3700
 


The WNDR3700 (AKA N600) is certainly an option. It's an 802.11N router that's several steps down from the R6200/R6300 802.11AC routers that I mentioned above. All of them have gigabit ports on the LAN and WAN.

This Page has a comparison table at the bottom comparing them. I don't know if the $100 spread between the N600 and R6300 is worth it to you though.

As a side note, before you go out and buy a new router, make sure that your E4200 is running the latest firmware. You can get the latest revision here

http://support.linksys.com/en-ca/support/routers/E4200/download
 

Kaiokhen

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Mar 28, 2013
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10,510


Already updated it a while ago and there hasnt been a new update since then. I might just buy the D-Link one, i just home i get the speed that i want and doesnt bottleneck me
 


Great, best of luck then.