This review covers both the Belkin F5D9231-4 and TP-Link TL-WR740N models from the user perspective. We will also look at the D-Link DIR-827 as a model that gives both excellent security and signal strength.
The router model that is currently serving the five systems on this network is the TP-Link. This was chosen because of the excellent security features available. The need for security often outweighs the usefulness of an extensive signal range. The first security feature, encryption, is available in all wireless routers – WEP/WPA (PSK)/WPA2 (PSK). It is never recommended to run your home wireless router without selecting one of these basic security settings. WPA-PSK was selected in combination with a password utilizing upper- and lower-case along with numbers and symbols. This discourages the honest people (non-hackers) from squatting on your signal. This router also has basic security settings on the router (firewall/VPN) and advanced security in the form of flood attack filtering. The security provided by the Access Control features is a setting that I would consider to be the strongest and most useful security feature because the router can be set to only allow specific MAC addresses to obtain wireless access.
Another router that is being reviewed based on personal experience is the Belkin F5D9231-4. Of the routers used in my household this provides a great signal strength although it seems to be lacking in the area of enhanced security. It has the basic wireless encryption (WEP/WPA/WPA2) mentioned above. It also includes firewall and MAC address filtering, although it is not as simple or powerful in setting specific MAC addresses allowed to have wireless access. The positives of this router over the TP-Link are the ease of setup and an ability to apply internal forwarding and give access to web pages inside your network.
If you have a need for signal strength, speed, and excellent security features you may want to check out the DLink DIR-827. This commands a slightly higher price than the other two models reviewed, but it was recently shown at the Computer Electronics Show 2012. It resides in the Amplifi family, which means it uses dual-band (2.4 Ghz and 5 Ghz) technology to provide enhanced signal strength and coverage. It offers the ease of setup desired by many home users. This model also provides enhanced security features with 128-bit encryption and it is ready for the future of networking with an IPv6 certification.