Friday, May 31, 2013

Buffalo AirStation N600 Dual-Band Wireless Router Review

Legit Mods and Ends Reviews

Buffalo_AirStation_2Today, we take a look at the Buffalo AirStation WZR-600DHP which is a dual-band N600 Gigabit wireless router that is designed to be a complete solution for the home or small office.  You can find it priced for just under $80 at most retailers.  Like most “dual-band” routers, the Buffalo WZR-600DHP operates over the 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz bands which makes it ideal for connecting multiple wireless clients and devices at speeds of up to 300 Mbps on a single band and 600 Mbps over both bands.

We’ve looked at N600 routers before with some mixed feelings.  While they are relatively inexpensive, their performances have been very good. We were especially impressed with the recently reviewed Netgear WNDR3700v4 N600 which is feature rich and had speeds faster than some N750 routers. Other routers on the market seem to have less-than-stellar performances with user interfaces confusing and lacking.

Buffalo_AirStation_Box

One very interesting thing about the Buffalo AirStation WZR-600DHP is that its firmware is based on the open source DD-WRT. This customizable interface features advanced options for network gurus as well as first-timers who are looking to connect their PC’s to their game console. The DD-WRT firmware is designed to give greater stability and increased performance for better overall functionality to the user. 

The router also features two external antennas, gigabit Ethernet, and network sharing via USB.  As of this publication, you can grab a Buffalo WZR 600HP from Amazon for $77.74.  For those who are looking to upgrade or expand, the price point really isn’t too bad.  Let’s take a closure look at the AirStation’s specifications.

Featured Specifications:

Gigabit EthernetHighPower TechnologyDD-WRTLong RangeAOSS/WPS SupportEasy Setup WizardVPN Access

Wireless LAN Interface

Standard Compliance     IEEE 802.11n, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11bFrequency Range             Concurrent dual-band 2.4 GHz / 5 GHz supportAccess Mode     Infrastructure modeAntenna (Tx x Rx)            2 x 2Wireless Security             WPA2 (AES, TKIP), WPA-PSK (AES, TKIP), 128/64-bit WEP

Wired LAN Interface

Speed and Flow Control                10/100/1000 Mbps, Auto Sensing, Auto MDIXNumber of LAN Ports     4 x RJ-45Number of WAN Ports 1 x RJ-45WAN Port Security          VPN Pass Through, SPI, Dynamic Packet Filtering

USB Interface

Standard Compliance     USB 2.0Connector Type                A typeNumber of Ports              1

Other

Dimensions (W x H x D in.)           6.2 x 6.5 x 1.4Weight (lbs)       0.73Power Supply    External, AC 100-240V input, 12V DC outputPower Consumption (Watts)      Max 13.2 WClient OS Support            Windows® 7 (32-bit/64-bit), Windows Vista® (32-bit/64-bit),Windows® XP, Windows® 2000, Mac OS® X 10.4 - 10.7

When you look at the specifications, the Buffalo AirStation N600 seems pretty packed with features.  We are hoping that this sub-$100 Dual-Band N600 router gives us some competitive wireless speeds and a full-featured GUI. 

Let’s go ahead and set up the WZR-600DHP and test the performance.




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