What if a router could make sure streaming movies and online games always get the bulk of your bandwidth, even if everyone else in your house is downloading a zillion porn movies? That’s exactly what hard drive kingpin Western Digital claims to have done with its first router, the My Net N900 HD.
What Is It
A router that can customize and prioritize bandwidth use toward the things you need first.
Who’s It For
Anyone with more than one device connected to a home network.
Design
It’s huge! 156 x 30 x 237 mm. But it’s a router. You’re not carrying it around. Plus, the antenna is internal, so you can slide it into tighter spots than most routers.
Using It
Setup is simple. The on-board processor uses FasTrack software to automatically detect types of traffic and direct them. Use a simple menu to set up pre-defined services like Hulu, WoW, and Skype.
The Best Part
FasTrack actually works! Normally, downloads crowd out streaming movies or games. Diablo 3 can lag with a latency rate of over 1,000ms if played during a simultaneous download. But after loading the router up with a few file downloads, from totally reputable sources, it played at a respectable latency (100-200ms), and even dipped below 100 from time to time. Impressive.
Tragic Flaw
The $180 price is more than most people want to pay for a router.
Test Notes
The N900 doesn’t have the new WiFi standard, 802.11ac. So, if you’re looking for a long-term router, you might want to shy away for now. But the 450Mbps Wireless-N data rate on 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz provides plenty of throughput.
It has two USB 2.0 ports that can act as network-attached storage (NAS). Apps to access your media via mobile devices.
Wireless performance on the 2.4Ghz band stayed relatively steady at 50+ feet through walls. 5Ghz didn’t fare as well, but that’s to be expected.
Should You Buy It?
Yes. The NAS features are a little lacking, and the lack of 802.11ac might hurt in a few years, but for now, FasTrack is the first exciting thing to happen to routers in a while.
Western Digital My Net N900 HD
• Networking: 802.11n (2.4+5 GHz Dualband)
• Ethernet Ports: 8
• Security: WPA, WPA2, WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup), WPA2-Enterprise
• IPv6 compatible: Yes
• Giz Rank: 4.0 stars
