Computer Networking Hardware Deals

Modern Design. Exceptional Speed. Versatile novelty.

Impossibly thin with a glossy black patterned finish, the ASUS dual band gigabit wireless N RT N56U router really cuts the edge of novelty with powerful features that deliver the new in networking potential. Equipped with exceptional hardware Network Address Translation (NAT), this one of a kind router delivers up to 1000Mbps throughput that’s up to five times faster than regular gigabit routers.1 The RT N56U is like having two routers in one. Dual band transmissions enable both 2.4GHz and 5GHz spectrums at the same time to get you faster, more secure connections. And with up to 300,000 sessions—20 times the total of convetional routers—you have enough headroom for extra clients and devices without purchasing an extra router.

The RT N56U also gives users with unbelievable versatility. Plugging in a USB All in One printer, enables easy sharing between printer and scanner functions for all networked PCs. Download Master BitTorrent client shifts download duties from the PC straight to the router attached storage via the two onboard USB ports. For more convenience, ASUS AiDisk transforms a connected USB device into an FTP server for remote transfers. The RT N56U was intended with ease of use in mind. With a CD free, plug and play setup, the RT N56U gets you up and running to let you effortlessly optimize bandwidth for gaming, video calls, downloading or whatever else you decide.

If you use it as a print server, BitTorrent hub, FTP storage, or ultra fast Wireless N router, the RT N56U adapts to your networking needs as a cross functional network device. Key Features 2.4GHz and 5GHz dual band transmissions Enable faster, more secure high speed connections (Learn more) True gigabit throughput Delivers up to five times faster speeds than regular routers1(Learn more) Up to 300,000 sessions to Internet clients For more stable, high speed connections EZ User Interface (EZ UI) with a simple 3 step setup Gets you up and running inside minutes (Learn more) EZ Quality of Service (EZQoS) Bandwidth Management gives You a simple way to optimize Internet speeds for gaming, browsing, file sharing, and VoIP/ media streaming (Learn more) Built in printer server For sharing All in One USB printers inside your home or office (Learn more) AiDiskIs your personal FTP server that you may access anywhere you have the Internet (Learn more) Download Master Lets you download from the Bit Torrent site to the connected USB storage device directly thru the router without having to leave your PC on (Learn more) Ai Radar Automatically detects the place of clients and pin points the signal to the client for efficient and economical transmissions (Learn more)

Learn More Faster Transfers. Wider Coverage.
View bigger Experience true gigabit networkspeeds that’s up to five times faster throughput than conenvtional routers.1 Enjoy accelerated transfers, liquid streaming, and snappy surfing. The RT N56U not only delivers up to 14 times faster Internet and up to six times wider range in comparison to last generation routers1 but it also has dual band support on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz transmission spectrums for faster, more secure connections. And where other routers fail to connect when placed far away, the RT N56U router gives you the wireless freedom to roam more and enjoy high speed networking almost anyplace in your home or office. Get bandwidth on demand with EZ Quality of Service (EZQoS). EZQoS dynamically sets Internet bandwidth priority for browsing, online games, Internet applications (such as BitTorrent), and voice/video streaming. The EZQoS is simplified for easy use—just click on the image you want to set and it changes instantly. Ai Radar automatically detects the place of clients and pin points the signal to the client for hard transmissions and improved signal coverage. Easy, fast Setup in a User Friendly Interface
View bigger The RT N56U features EZ UI, a simplified user interface for fast setup, access to Internet enhancing utilities, and a useful troubleshoot guide that users at all levels will appreciate.

Quick 3 Step Internet Setup
The moment you connect the RT N56U you’ll automatically be guided through an easy 3 step, manual free setup.

1. Input the router in your network and wall socket
2. Complete the installation wizard
3. Open your beloved browser and start surfing Your complete Network in One Picture

View bigger inside the EZ UI, you may be able to see your complete network all now with real time position updates for each connection. This simplified network map makes it simple to check for any issues with connections to other PCs or printers and manage your network settings.

Your Personal All in One Print Server


View bigger Print, scan, and share directly from connected USB printer, scanners, and storage devices via the USB port. With the wireless printer server function built into the RT N56U, you may be able to centralize your printing and scanning for your complete home or office network into one place.

For a current printer support list, click here. The super Versatile Download Master


View bigger The RT N56U router sets itself separately from common routers by offering BitTorrent and FTP server functionality.

BitTorrent
Share your movies, music, games, and other files. The included Download Master application utilizes the BitTorrent P2P protocol to download and seed Torrents to and from the connected USB storage device. What’s more, you may be able to shut off your PC after setting up a torrent file to continue the download, PC free. Download Master also allows you to customize how you decide to share with custom bandwidth allocation when seeding.

FTP
Create your personal FTP Server with ASUS AiDisk located inside the EZ UI, and upload or download files from the connected USB storage device to any Internet accessible PCs. Perfect when you forget papers at home or when sharing big files, FTP access fundings you the capability to carefully secure and access your treasured data through your router. This feature may also work without having to leave your PC on. What is in the Box RT N56U router Ethernet Cable Application CD Power Adapter (12V 1.25A) fast Starter Guide Setup Guide Warranty info Card
Plans LAN Ports: WAN: one x RJ45 for 10/100/1000 Base T; LAN: four x RJ45 for 10/100/1000 Base T; Support Ethernet and 802.3 with max bit rate 10/100/1000Mbps and auto cross over function (MDI X) Antenna: Two x interior PCB antenna for 2.4G application with peak get = 3.8dBi/ three x interior PCB antenna for 5G application with peak get = 5.1dBi USB: 2 x USB 2.0 ports Power Adapter: AC input: 100V 240V (5060Hz)/ DC output: 19V/ 1.58A or 12V / 2A Size: 6.77 x 5.71 x 2.36 –inches Weight: 0.7 lbs. Wired Performance: Wan to LAN; up to 910Mbps, LAN to LAN; 1Gbps Operating Frequency: 2.4GHz 5GHz Data Range: 802.11n: up to 300Mbps ; 802.11a/g: up to 54Mbps; 802.11b: up to 11Mbps Output Power: A/n mode: 1415dBm @ EVM, 28dB; g/n mode: 1819dBm @ EVM, 28dB; b mode: 2021dBm @ EVM

The maker commented on the review belowSee comments
180 of 183 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars I agree, faster than WNDR3700 and e4200 UPDATE, March 24, 2011
By AK (Kentucky) See all my reviews This review is from: ASUS Black Diamond Dual Band Wireless N 600 Router (RT N56U) (Personal Computers) we’re a heavy intenet using famiily. If we are not streaming Netflix or Roku, we have phones and computers all competing for bandwidth. I tried the new Linksys e4200, it was OK till too many people logged on wirelessly and started hogging bandwidth. The e4200 could really drop down in speed while it tried to deal with all of the wireless activity. I tried the WNDR3700 (v.98 firmware) The WNDR3700 has a fast processor and can handle many of wired and wireless users at the same time. But, the WNDR3700 seemed to “hang” about once an hour for reasons not recognized. When I say “hang”, it may take five seconds to load a web page instead of the typically instant load speed. It got a little annoying.

So, I picked up the ASUS RT N56U router after reading all the reviews and tests on smallnetbuilder dot com. I have to say that this router is ridiculously fast (at least twice as fast as the WNDR3700) and has better reception during my complete house. In a place that I used to max out at about 7MB/s with the WNDR3700. I can now sustain 31MB/s in the same place. I have pretty much five bars of wireless reception where I used to have two or three bars.

The ASUS RT N56U is pretty easy to set up and I like the physical look too. Throw in the fact that it’s smokin’ fast and has great coverage and I think I got a heck of a deal for $127.

Highly suggested.

By the way, I just noticed that another reviewer haved problems with iPhones not connecting. Our iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPad, and Android phones are logging on good, no issues.

UPDATE 3/28/11 So far, the RT N56U is performing perfectly and all DD WRT bridges are connecting at highest rate. I’m running firmware 1.0.1.2
I tried to update to the beta 7.0.1.21 also as the 1.0.1.3 firmware and all of a sudden many laptops had laggy connections. Instead of instant webpage loads, it could take literally five seconds to load??? I reverted back to 1.0.1.2 and all devices are running large open again.

+++ UPDATE 4/30/11 Still running perfectly since new with no reboots. Simply awesome.

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151 of 159 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of five stars most likely one of the best Wi Fi buyer routers ever made, April 4, 2011
By Grey “Grey” (Atlanta, GA) See all my reviews This review is from: ASUS Black Diamond Dual Band Wireless N 600 Router (RT N56U) (Personal Computers) I have been in the market for an 802.11n router, and after having done many broad research (as of April 1, 2011), I decided to go with Asus RT N56U.

I can attest to the Asus RT N56U being an excellent consumer grade router though it clearly falls short when it comes to more advanced enterprise level features (where Cisco shines), which 99.9 of all users will never need or know about. One of the excellent features of the Asus RT N56U router (not frequently mentioned) is the fact that you may switch it to the AP (Access Point) mode. When Asus RT N56U is switched to the AP mode, its WAN port becomes a switch port just like the other four LAN ports. You may be able to use the WAN port to connect Asus RT N56U to an external router, and not lose one LAN port for this. So, when switching the Asus RT N56U router to the AP mode, you keep all four LAN ports for the wired connectivity to other non Wi Fi devices at one Gbps each.

Asus RT N56U supports real time 2.4 GHz and five GHz radios and the joint throughput via the back plane close to Mbps (per the review by smallnetbuilder.Com). In my personal test comparing Asus RT N56U (in the AP mode) with the Cisco 1131 a/g Access Point, Asus gives almost the same range in the five GHz band that the Cisco 1131 gives in the 2.4 GHz band. Asus RT N56U 2.4GHz band range extends beyond the Cisco 1131′s range in the 2.4 GHz band. The Asus RT N56U 5GHz band range extends far beyond the Cisco 1131′s 5GHz band range.

As for the connection download speed, I was able to get nearly twice the download speed when connecting wirelessly via the Asus RT N56U (in the AP mode) vs connecting wirelessly via the Cisco 1131a/g AP. The numbers were as follows: 11.8 Mbps via Cisco 1131 vs 19.6 Mbps via Asus RT N56U. In both tests, I used the same Internet router (Cisco 871) and the same Time Warner internet connection. I never knew that my Time Warner internet connection supported 20 Mbps till I tried using Asus RT N56U. Now I know that my Cisco 1131 and not my Internet connection was the bottleneck to the Internet.

Asus RT N56U may also be used as a NAS by using one or two of its USB ports to connect an external USB drive. I tried USB flash sticks on both ports, and was able to move files to and from those USB drives. Also, you may be able to create local users on the Asus RT N56U and supply different levels of access (r/w, r, none) to different shares for different users. This is usually called user based access, but Asus calls this “user with account” access. Otherwise, you may be able to enable access to the complete drive for everyone if you don’t want to deal with user based access permissions; Asus calls this “user without account” access. I’m sure most home users will decide the latter access technique to avoid complexnesses that come with having to provision local users on the Asus RT N56U router. I confirmed both techniques of access to work when a share is mounted in Mac OS X also as in Apple iOS (iPad2). I have run into a problem accessing a 32GB flash drive that had about 16GB of space taken by different files and directories via the the “user with account” access technique from both Mac OS X and iOS, but had no such problem accessing a 1GB flash drive with nearly all space taken by different files and directories; neither did I have any problem using the “user with account” access technique when I tried a blank 16GB drive after moving some files to it , then creating some directories(see below on creating directories in the root of a USB drive). I believe that if I were to reformat the 32GB flash drive , then move all of the current files it has on it back to it, the “user with account” access technique could start working properly on it. As for the file system on the USB drive, so far I have only tried FAT32, which works good, but imposes a limitation on the size of each file to be a maximum of 4GB. If you have to go above this limitation, you’ll have to go with NTFS, HFS (for Mac), or ext3. I know for a fact that the Asus RT N56U is matched with ext3, but I’m not sure if it can work with NTFS or HFS. If you have found one of these three file systems to be matched with the Asus RT N56U, add a comment to this review. But, if they’re, the only file system that’s matched with Windows, Mac, and Linux is FAT32. If you’re planning on running the Asus RT N56U in a mixed environment and are planning to be able to read from and write to your USB drive directly from your computers also as across the network, your common denominator file system for the USB drive should be FAT32. If you’re only planning on working with your files over the network, any file system that the Asus RT N56U is matched with could work for you as long as you may be able to format your USB drive in that file system. As of this writing, the Asus RT N56U can not format a USB drive attached to it, so you could have to do the formatting on one of your computers or use the default file system that your USB flash drive is formatted in, which is most probably FAT32.

It appears that though you may be able to manually mount USB devices connected to the Asus RT N56U in Mac OS X (via Cmd+K in Finder), you can not mount those drives by double clicking the RT N56U entry that pops up in Finder under Shared. I used the app called “Files Connect” on my iPad2 to enable Finder like (or Windows Explorer like) file browsing capability. I was able to mount the USB drives by tapping on the Asus RT N56U entry that Files Connect auto discovers. I’m not sure if Windows Network Neighborhood can auto mount the USB drives connected to Asus RT N56U because the manual says that you may want to enter the network path manually. If this is in fact the only way to mount an Asus RT N56U share in Windows, you may be able to generally map a drive to the network path for the Asus RT N56U in Windows.

Please note that you can not create or delete any directory in the root directory of a USB drive connected to a USB port on the Asus RT N56U while accessing the USB drive over the network. This is because the Asus RT N56U considers the directories in the root of a USB drive to be network shares, and hence, it disallows the addition and elimination of a share via the network. You’ll have to input the USB drive directly in to a USB port on your computer (Mac, PC, or Linux) to create a directory in the root of the USB drive. Once you have done you may be able to input the USB drive back in to the Asus RT N56U’s port and assign the access permissions to this directory/share. You may be able to, but, create and delete sub directories of an present share while the USB drive is plugged in to a port of the Asus RT N56U, and the share is mounted via the network in Windows, Mac, or Linux. All sub directories of an present share inherit the access permissions particular on the share via the Asus RT N56U’s web GUI. The fact that you can not identify a more granular access permissions to the sub directories of a share is certainly a limitation for the enterprise, but should be no problem for a home or a small business user.

When you put a blank USB flash drive in one of Asus RT N56U’s two USB ports, the Asus RT N56U automatically creates a share (named “share”) in the root of the drive and creates three sub directories in that share (music, pictures, video). This is done to prepare the flash drive for the UPnP server that may be enabled in this router. I tested the UPnP server, using Xbox 360 as the streaming client, and can confirm that the UPnP server works just good in the Asus RT N56U router. If, on the other hand, you put a non blank USB flash drive in to a port on Asus RT N56U, no extra shares are produced, and the access to all directories/shares in the root of the USB drive is made available as read/write. You may be able to, but, change the access permissions on a share to share base and assign different kinds of access (r/w, r, or none) for different local users particular in the Asus RT N56U.

Asus RT N56U may be a print server, but this feature is of no use to me because for this feature to work, a Windows established program supplied by Asus is needed. Because I use usually Macs and Apple iOS devices, I can not use the print server feature of this router.

Last but not least, Asus RT N56U can use one of its two USB ports to connect to a 3G or 3.5G cellular USB modem and share that connection among the Wi Fi (and most likely wired) LAN clients. I haven’t tested this feature, so I can not comment on its usability and stability.

Overall, I do not think you may be able to find a better consumer grade 802.11n Gigabit Ethernet router as of this writing. Judging by the frequency of firmware releases for the Asus RT N56U router, the bugs left over in the firmware will soon be worked out, and hopefully, Asus will add extra features to this router, like direct IP based (or Bonjour based) print server so that Mac users can use the print server feature of this router. As well, it appears that the “dd wrt” team is working on porting their firmware on this router, so at some point, you may have an option of replacing the stock firmware with “dd wrt”.

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102 of 109 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars Better than Cisco E4200 and Netgear WNDR3700, February 25, 2011
By smart buyer “smart shopper” (usa) See all my reviews This review is from: ASUS Black Diamond Dual Band Wireless N 600 Router (RT N56U) (Personal Computers) I newly bought two other routers before buying this one to replace an older 2.4ghz router. The 1st router I bought was the newly released Cisco Linksys E4200. I ended up returning it because I barely had a signal downstairs and slow output. My last router typically had around 70 80 signal downstairs but the E4200 could quickly lose signal the farther I moved away from the router. I bought as a substitute the greatly rated Netgear WNDR3700. This router had much better signal but it could not work with my external hard drive. Per review of online comments and Netgear’s own web site, the 3700 has issues being matched with many external hard drives. Netgear posted on their web site about a dozen matched hard drives that work with the 3700. I had the choice to either keep the 3700 and fork out another $50 $100 on a new external hard drive that could work or buy another router with alike features. I ran across the Asus at my local electronic store. I never heard of this model before since it’s a new release. Before I decided to buy it, I went home and read the restricted reviews I could find on it. Both expert and buyer reviews were positive. I ended up buying the Asus. I was totally blown away by the features and performance of this router. I have over 90 signal downstairs. My laptop is maintaining 230 270mbps connection when I’m downstairs (about 30 feet away from router which is upstairs) which was impossible with both the E4200 and 3700. The user interface gives important total more custom alternatives than both the Netgear and Cisco. My external HDD (Seagate) was instantly recognized by the router. I also found the wired connection runs smoother and faster than the 3700. The 3700 had a delay at times loading pages. In general this is I believe the best performing router that I have ever owned. Now the WNDR3700 is regarded as the best but it was out for a while now. The Cisco E4200 claims to be the best but I disagree with this caused by real hands on experience with it. There’s a good total of owner complaints already being posted about the E4200 which is alike to issues that I also encountered. The only bad thing I found with this unit is that it doesn’t let wall mount choice. For the price, performance and features, this is an excellent value and steal.

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The perfect wireless solution for home, school, and business, the Apple AirPort Extreme Base Station blankets your space with a blazing fast, secure wireless network opening up a world of possibilities for home entertainment, backups, printing, and more. This fifth generation variant of the AirPort Extreme operates in the 2.4 GHz and five GHz bands at the same time to ensure top performance for all your devices, and it gives a Guest Networking choice for easy Internet sharing. It also enables you to share your complete wireless network with up to 50 users simultaneously also as turn a USB hard drive into a shared drive that is available wirelessly on your network and now over the Internet.  

86 of 92 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars High performance WiFi (yes), my own cloud (cool), and easy setup (nice), July 26, 2011
By Cary Champlin (Seattle) See all my reviews () This review is from: Airport Extreme 802.11N (5TH GEN) (Personal Computers) though setup is fast, it’s the high performance 802.11n dual RF bands and the creation of my own cloud storage (HD on USB port) that makes the AirPort Extreme a best in class choice!

Setup:
After reading the other reviews, I knew this goed to be fast and easy. I started a pot of coffee thinking I could enjoy a cup while plugging in the AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBS) and configuring it. Here are the steps:

1. Attached an ethernet cable from the AEBS to my ISP connection. Plugged in the AC adapter and power cord. AEBS powered up. Position light flashed green for a second, glowed amber for some number of seconds, then flashed amber till the AEBS has been configured from a computer.

2. From my MacBook Pro (wireless access works good for this step), the airport utility app had launched and waited for me (otherwise, go to Applications\Utilities\AirPort Utility.App). Followed information that included typing in a router name and two passwords. The default AEBS configuration selects channels and RF bands automatically to optimize speed.

3. Plugged a spare hard drive (in my case: Mac OS expanded (Journaled) formatted one TB HD) into AC outlet and the USB port. Once the HD had started, it showed up as a MBP network drive device on ‘Finder’. I then produced a folder, moved a file, and read it back.

At this point, the coffee machine beeped to let me know my coffee was prepared. I was done before the coffee was prepared about three minutes from opening the box to being operational! Gotta luv it.

Basic Performance Testing:
Not about to let the coffee go to waste, I proceeded with many performance testing. I conducted many basic data throughput tests by transferring files from the MBP through the AEBS to the HD. This test arrangement kept my ISP download and upload data rates out of the equation. For the wired tests, the MBP has been connected to one of the three AEBS Gigabit ports.

Test one (a control test configuration between MBP and HD via USB on MBP):
Write to HD: 33.8 MBytes/sec
Read from HD: 34.3 MBytes/sec

Test two (wired data transfer)
From MBP to AEBS via Gigabit port, then from AEBS to HD via USB): 13.6 MBytes/sec
From HD to AEBS via USB, then from AEBS to MBP via Gigabit port): 18.3 MBytes/sec

Test three (wireless data move five GHz RF band)
From MBP to AEBS, then from AEBS to HD via USB): 7.8 MBytes/sec
From HD to AEBS via USB, then from AEBS to MBP): 12.6 MBytes/sec

Test four (range test, five GHz RF band between MBP and AEBS with a max capacity of 300 Mbits/sec):
three ft, devices in close proximity: 300 Mbits/sec
50 ft, indoors, no ext walls in path: 243 Mbits/sec
70 ft, outdoors, one ext wall in path: 144 Mbits/sec
80 ft, outdoors, one ext wall in path: 104 Mbits/sec

Default settings seem to offer high bit rate connections. Using ‘manual setup’ in Airport Utility.App, I tested some number of variations on the configuration without improving the rate/range for the 802.11n wireless offered by the default setting of the APBS. Reading data from the HD back through the AEBS to the MBP was generally faster than writing data to the HD. As well as ethernet into the data move path (Test two in comparison to Test 1) reduced data rates in half. As well as WiFi into the data move path (Test three in comparison to Test 2) reduced data rates to 2/3. Range test performance was good for distances inside 50 feet.

My own storage cloud:
Originally, I envisioned just using the HD (USB port on AEBS) as a network drive for a SVN (i.E., software variant control) repository in support of software development on my MBP. But, I realized that this drive is a common storage place for all my devices (MBP, iPad, iPhone, iTouch) that’s available wirelessly on my local WiFi. And with a VPN connection, from anywhere with WiFi access to the internet. Simply stated, I have my own cloud! We are not talking about a skimpy not many GB either, but a full TB of dedicated exclusive mine only cloud. Now, that is cool.

Why purchase the fifth generation AEBS:
High performance 802.11n wireless performance
Easy and fast setup
USB port for attaching a hard drive or printer
Capability to create my own AEBS WiFi storage cloud for all my devices
Guest access to ISP without access to other devices or attached USB device
Sleek clean stylish look

I am so totally happy with this buy.

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73 of 78 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars Best Router I used, July 6, 2011
By J. A. Reyes “JaRa76″ (NY, NY) See all my reviews
(REAL NAME) This review is from: Airport Extreme 802.11N (5TH GEN) (Personal Computers) Just to be clear on this, I did attempt the Cisco E4200, which, according with people who knows about wireless networking, is the best wireless router out there but the range wasn’t as good as the Airport Extreme. I have a town house and the router needs to be in the basement, the E4200 signal did reach the second floor, but with more than two devices connected to the router, the signal dropped so much that was unusable. With the Airport Extreme, no problems at all, the signal is fast enough with two or more devices connected. An extra perk is that with the E4200 you may be able to use the USB port just for storage but not for a printer, but with the Airport Extreme, you may be able to connect an USB Hub and have a printer an a external Hard Drive connected simultaneously. This router is a keeper.

My setup: two iPads, two iPhones, one PC, three Macs.

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26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars Simple & Painless, July 2, 2011
By Mister Murse See all my reviews () This review is from: Airport Extreme 802.11N (5TH GEN) (Personal Computers) I switched to this router from my old modem/wireless router in one and am happy. Installation of this router was simple and painless, with the Mac doing all the work, literally. Plugged it in and OS X recognized it and setup went without a hitch. I have also paired this with an external hard drive, and now I can use Time Machine to wirelessly create backups, which is perfect for any MacBook/MacBook Pro/MacBook Air holders who do not want to continuously plug in a hard drive to let backups; just set it up and Time Machine takes care of the rest! happy buyer.

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