Netgear WNR 3500

This router is the main ingredient of the fastest wireless performance I have ever seen. A few weeks ago I wrote about getting 70 Mbps with the Trendnet TEW-624UB and this router.
What I wanted to know however, was how well this router does with other wireless adapters, and how fast. So I assembled the following assortment of wireless products and put the WNR 3500 through its paces:

1. Trendnet TEW-624UB Rev A (USB)
2. Linksys WUSB100 (USB)
3. Netgear WN511T (PC-CARD)
4. Linksys Wireless-G PCI (plain vanilla wireless G)
5. Trendnet TEW-624UB Rev B (USB)
6. Linksys WUSB600N (USB)

Let me make this quick and painless: There are 3 modes you can configure the WNR 3500 to: 300 Mbps, 144 Mbps, and 54 Mbps. If you want to get the claimed 300 Mbps you have to set it for that mode. If you do that, the ONLY adapter I could get this router to work consistently with is the Trendnet TEW.

Thats right, the only 2 adapters of the 6 I listed that work AT ALL in 300 Mbps mode are the Trendnet adapters.

The same was true in 144 Mbps mode. Only the trendnet adapters worked reliably enough to do any performance testing.

In plain old 54 Mbps mode, this product worked well with all of the test adapters. So there it is.

My theory: Too many varieties of Draft Standard N products are floating around.

The pathetic part is that even the Netgear WN511T, which is the recommended USB adapter on the back of the Netgear WNR 3500 box didnt work in 300 Mbps mode. Now it could be interference, but I would remove the other adapters, and plug in the Trendnet adapter, and every time it would work perfectly. So if it is some interference problem, the Trendnet is able to deal with it, and the other products can’t. So either way this is ugly for Netgear.

The one key thing to note, is that the WNR 3500 is 2.4 Ghz only. And that dovetails into another theory: 2.4 Ghz is ruined. It’s just too crowded with wireless phones, microwaves, baby monitors, your neighbors wireless routers, etc. 2.4 Ghz is a mess. In some places your lucky to get 54 Mbps working, and 54 Mbps only requires 1 channel. 300 Mbps requires 5 channels. So good luck with that.

I think if you want your own safe and uncrowded place for wireless networking, your going to have to get Dual-Band wireless N products. So even if this router is great, and the other non-Trendnet adapters are just shoddy, you really want a product that can go fast AND slow. Dual Band routers promise to do that, you can configure a 54 Mbps compatible 2.4 Ghz band (and only take up 1 channel), and then configure the 5 Ghz to be 300 Mbps. At least until all your neighbors upgrade to 5 Ghz.

Good luck and happy networking.

Trendnet TEW-632BRP

Today I noticed that Fry’s is selling the Trendnet TEW-624UB adapter for only $19 (Price is good until December 23rd) .  Last month I paid $59.  This cheaper model has the same exact UPC as the $59 version, but the hardware revision listed on the back is B1.1 instead of A1.0.  The new packaging doesn’t list its 802.11N as draft anymore. So this $19 adapter is the newest model version.

If you read the packaging carefully, you’ll notice it has 2 internal antennas, where the previous version had three.  I’m hopeful that performance or range isn’t reduced,  but I will be testing it shortly.

Closeup of Trendnet TEW-624UB Revision A Box Back

Closeup of Trendnet TEW-624 UB Revision B back box

So I had to try and find a new adapter to see if I could get reliable results.  So I found a new adapter to test with:  the  affordable Trendnet TEW-624UB.   The fastest I had previously seen the Trendnet TEW-624 go was 30 Mbps  (with the Netgear RangeMax Dual Band WNDR 3300).  The Trendnet USB connected right away to the WNR 3500. The first test I ran was Transmit, and it went really fast: 64 Mbps!  I didnt trust the results so I ran it again and got another 64 Mbps result. On the third transmit test run I got 71 Mbps! So thats the new record.

I also did receive testing, and got record breaking results: a solid 42 Mbps!  So there it is.  Congratulations to the new champs:   The Netgear WNR3500 RangeMax Wireless N Router and The Trendnet TEW-624UB USB adapter.

Oh..I don’t like the WNDA 3100 anymore because during transmit testing it dropped its connection, twice. After the second connection drop, I decided to flunk the product, its either gone bad or just flaky. Either way its not reliable.

Most of the 802.11N products you see will claim 270-300Mbps. In your home you will get nowhere near that speed (I have yet to see it) and the Netgear WNDA 3100 can barely get 15Mbps. Oh when I talk about speed I ignore the the number the software shows you on the connection status. Those numbers are false, if you get 25% of that number when copying a file your doing well.

So I am really impressed with the Trendnet Wireless-N USB Adapter. It can do 30Mbps consistently. (it also lies like the others and says 300Mbps on the connection status)

It copies files twice as fast as the NETGEAR 3100, and it can connect to my AP from laces the Netgear 3100 can’t.  This was surprising  because I am using a NETGEAR RangeMax Dual Band AP for my testing. Most people would expect the all NETGEAR solution to be the best performing.

Also the TEW-624UB is $59, the NETGEAR WNDA 3100 is $79.  GOOD WORK TRENDNET!

The only con is the drivers aren’t signed so you’ll get the warnings when you install or plug it into a different USB port.

Trendnet TEW-624UB
Netgear WNDA3100