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Comment on "I Heart AirPort Routers"
by Colin — Jan 15
I'm not sure I'd pay the premium for an Airport Extreme. The "it just works" factor is nice, but they're so expensive: Even with my education discount, they're $225 in Canada.

Am I correct in reading the tech specs that they have only one LAN port? I'd have to buy a switch in order to connect more than one wired computer. The dial-in connection is neat, definitely, though I'm not sure how many people would actually use it.

As far as easy-to-set up routers, I actually quite like SMC products. The express set-up option is web-based, and it asks about things like security. (It also supports what Apple calls WPA Personal, ie, WPA without a Radius server.) It also has a built-in 4 port 10/100 switch.

Originally, I had issues with mine; WPA security was flaky. After much back-and-forth with SMC support, it turns out their implementation was fine. The latest Airport update from Apple fixed the issue. Go figure, sometimes it doesn't "just work". :-)

Oh, and the router was $69.99 CDN, with a $60 mail-in rebate. $10 for 802.11g with WPA, 10/100 switch and the ability to turn off the routing features (I already have a Smoothwall router) definitely works for me!

Oh, and after my experiences with Belkin, I'd avoid them at all costs. The wireless keyboard/mouse combo I bought for my settop Wintel box had an effective range of 1.5m, and the car charger I bought for my 3G iPod caused it to stutter and eventually freeze once it was fully charged. :-/

Colin
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