The old cliché in the world of consumer of electronics is that buyers get what they pay for. This cliché holds up completely in the world of wireless routers. Belkin and Linksys are two of the biggest names in the router industry and they offer two very different customer experiences. In short, customers looking for a faster but more unstable internet connection should look into Belkin Routers like the N Series. Shoppers looking for a more reliable but expensive option should look into Linksys Routers like the WRT610n.
Belkin Wireless Routers Overview
Pros:
In almost every performance test administered by tech magazines like CNET and Gizmodo, Belkin Wireless Routers are the fastest routers available in the PC market. Furthermore, Belkin’s wireless range is the among the widest in the industry. Many consumers also choose Belkin for easy set-up process. Most of the Belkin wireless series can be set up in 15 minutes with a quick software installation. Last, Belkin routers are very reasonably priced. The N Series routers start around $70 for a home router.
Cons:
Belkin products are known to be made from very cheap materials, which means they break often. Unfortunately the company is focused too much on offering the lowest prices that it sacrifices quality. Consumer reports rates Belkin among the worst routers for reliability. The router’s speed doesn’t do consumer much good when it is constantly breaking.
Linksys Wireless Routers Overview:
Pros:
Linksys is arguably the most trusted name in routing. They pride themselves on building routers from high quality materials and reliable products. They are in many ways the inverse of Belkin routers that focus on speed and network efficiency. Linksys rates high amongst Consumer Reports on long-term reliability. Customers that hate dealing with customer support would be wise to choose Linksys.
Cons:
Linksys routers can be fairly expensive. Prices hover around $140 for a home router. Linksys routers are fairly slow compared to many other brands. The company admits this fact but maintains that reliability is more important than speed.
Different Default IP Addresses
Belkin Routers and Linksys routers utilize different default IP addresses. Linksys uses 192.168.1.1 while Belkin uses 192.168.2.1. These private IP addresses are used when customers are configuring their routers settings. For example if a Linksys user needed to change their settings on the router they would enter 192.168.1.1 into their browser URL bar. This gives them full access to administrative settings.
Before you make your final purchase it is always a good idea to read wireless router reviews and talk with friends who use the type of router that you are interested in. As a final precaution, it can be helpful to purchase your router from a place that allows easy returns, in case you find that your purchase doesn’t live up to the quality you were hoping.
