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In search of ... router recommendations

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barney:
Folk,

Just got back home after way too much time on the road.  One of the problems I encountered in transit was inability to access my home system via VPN - or any other method, for that matter.

When I got back, I reset the router - unplug, wait fifteen seconds, replug - and all seems well.  But this is getting to be a regular event - the router, I mean, not the road trip  :).  It's happening four (4)-five (5) times a month, seemingly on an upward curve  :'(.

'Twould seem advantageous to replace the router, a LinkSys (Cisco) WRT-400n dual-band unit with both bands always active.  Since the router is less than a year old, I'm not too confident of my router-picking abilities.

So I'm soliciting opinions on the various pieces of hardware on the market.  I'd like to maintain the 2.4/5 G capability, if possible.  Don't wanna spend too big a bundle, but price won't be the primary deciding factor.  I'm on a cable modem, and I suspect there is dirty cable input from things that have shown on the TVs.  I also may have dirty AC, but that'll soon be alleviated with another UPS.  Oh, yeah, at least four (4) RJ45 connections, and wireless a must.

Any thoughts ... or experiences?

Ath:
Did you update the firmware of the router to the latest available from Cisco/LinkSys? The management pages in the router should provide access to updates.

barney:
Yeah, guess that should have been mentioned.  Despite my aversion to firmware updates in general, routers be one (1) bit of hardware that I keep up to date.  It has payed off in the past, i.e., resolved issues that were, at the least, somewhat distracting  ;).

Stoic Joker:
I've yet to see an N router with consistently good reviews ... So I tend to avoid them. Which is why the USB N dongle that came with my new TV is sitting on the shelf in favor of hardwiring the TV (which I did). If you want to have leave the house and count on it stable access, get separate devices. The added benefit is that you can disconnect the WiFi while you're away.

As far as a good cheap VPN router. The Netgear FVS318 has worked great for me on several small office (low buck) deployments. Happily taking the load of 3-5 people remoting in on a regular basis without needing fiddled with. They also have a new FVS318G Gigabit model.

barney:
He-he-he.  Mine's working just fine - the TV wireless, I mean.  For some reason, my router issues have yet to affect the TV reception, at least according to Baby Daughter.  She's been enjoying it quite a bit - seems fond of Netflix  ;D.  And I have yet to complete the setup/configuration.  By now, you could probably give me pointers.  I hit the road shortly after acquiring the LG, extremely frustrating  >:(.

The Gigabit model would be the one (1) I'd want.  Don't have much experience with NetGear, mostly LinkSys, D-Link, and one (1) other whose designation I do not at the moment recall.  Do you know off the top of your head whether the NetGear is amenable to the DD-WRT or Tomato firmware?  As long as I'm gonna play, might as well go all the way  :P.  One of the things that has frustrated with the LinkSys is anything resembling bandwidth measurement or control.

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