Mixed b/g performance advice - Linksys WRT54GS / USR8054?

Archived from groups: alt.internet.wireless (More info?)

On Wed, 23 Jun 2004 13:19:32 -0400, "Kevin"
<kxxxxebxxxuxxchanxx@xxyahxxxxooxxxxxx.com> wrote:

>I was looking into the performance of different wireless routers in mixed
>mode, with mixed clients... from all the reviews I've read it seems like the
>"better" routers are the Linksys WRT54GS and the USR 8054.
>
>Anyone familiar with these routers and their throughput? Especially with
>non-proprietary client cards?

See:
http://www.tomsnetworking.com/Revi [...] RT54GS.php
for a review of the WRT54GS with emphasis on the Linksys "Afterburner"
technology. There are two pages on the topic (see contents) with lots
of interesting benchmark and test results.

>From the cnet reviews it seems like the Linksys gets 36Mbps in g-only and
>25.8 in b/g mode. And the USR is not too far behind with about 29 g-only
>and 17 mixed. The other faster routers (D-link, Netgear etc) seem to get
>killed in mixed mode.
>
>Thoughts/advice?

Yep. Do you use your laptop 10 ft away from the access point? That's
about as far as you can go and still get 30-36Mbits/sec performance.
http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/reviews [...] hp/1585191
Note the distance vs speed curve.

Also, in the presense of any 802.11 or 802.11b traffic, the 802.11g
radios really slow down into a compatible mode with airtime burning
1mbit/sec management and flow control frames. See Fig 13 at:
http://www.tomsnetworking.com/Revi [...] 4GS-10.php
for how this sorta works. Note the huge drop in performance while it
checks for any 802.11b radios.


--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@comix.santa-cruz.ca.us
150 Felker St #D 831-336-2558
Santa Cruz CA 95060 AE6KS