Jeri Usbay

I was awakened on a Sunday morning to a text message from my cable provider, apologizing for an outage and assuring me it would be remedied as soon as possible.  All was restored about 5 hours later, but alas my wireless router did not survive.

There was about an hour of panic over my lack of Internet access, until I remembered I could connect my laptop directly to the cable modem and forego the wireless router (duh).   At least now I could research routers online and have an idea of what I should buy before shopping that day.  Ordering online and waiting a day or two for delivery was not an option for this wireless household. So I researched and headed out, leaving the evening open for the hours of setup.

Setup of the last wireless router, I am guessing about 8 years ago, was not fun.  So, after arriving home with my new purchase I was planning on a long evening of possible frustration over the promoted  “easy setup”. But it really was easy.  It was just a matter of plugging the router into a power source and connecting it to my cable modem. The wireless devices in the household easily found the new network connection. Tada!  But that was not the only surprise…my wireless life has changed.

Now that I have my new router, I realize that I really needed a new one.  When I watch television on my iPad in the kitchen, it no longer pauses, and the best part is that I don’t lose the program when using the microwave.  I can also move my iPad to a corner counter in my kitchen (where I usually assemble a salad ) without any program disruptions. No pausing anymore when playing YouTube on the iPad either. I had wrongly assumed that any issues I had with streaming resided with my provider.  I never questioned the capability of my wireless router, since my Internet was always fast and trouble free. (The microwave interference and disruptions when re-positioning my iPad should have been a clue that my wireless router was the culprit.)

I was shocked when I  counted 10 devices in my home capable of using our new router:  3 laptops, 2 smart phones, 1 iPod, 1 Kindle, 2 iPads, and a smart TV.  Of course they are not all used at the same time, and we are not big gamers.  Yet my new wireless router has greatly improved the quality of my wireless life.  Streaming TV on my  iPad  is much better, and with dual band I now have the luxury of choosing from 2 bands (either 2.4 or 5 GHz) when connecting a device to my home network which avoids devices competing with one another.

This article will help you understand all the latest wireless router options, and help you decide what router options are a best fit to your needs.  Perhaps you can also benefit from an upgrade as I did.