Is it important to have a router with 802.11n?

aac02 · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 25 Jun 2008 Posts: 18

As from my other posts, I am having problems with with my KR2 + UM150 modem being able to play a certain online game.

Although I am very happy with the router itself so far, a good portion of my online fun time is no longer available with this set-up, and I have yet to hear of anyone who was able to resolve the problem.

Alltel (my only available ISP provider) is selling a router that the 3G store does not sell/support, but may be my only alternative. It however does not support 802.11n. Just curious if this is something that is or will be important.

I am not very technical, so I will post the specs on the "other" router, and if anyone has any feedback, I would appreciate it. I hate to have to even consider going this route, but I don't think I have any alternatives.

SPECS:

802.11 technology Specifications
Access: 1*PC card Type II Slot USB port
Standards: IEEE 802.11b/g IEEE 802.3 IEEE 802.3u
Wireless Standard: IEEE 802.11b\g Turbo
Data Rate: 54, 48, 36, 24, 18, 12, 9, and 6 Mbps per channel, Auto Fall-Back
Frequency: 2.4 –2.462 GHz, CCK / OFDM modulation
Range Coverage: Tx/Rx power 18dbm/Per Cell
indoors approx. 35-100 feet;
outdoors up to 100-300 feet
# of Channels: 1-11 for N. America (FCC);1-11 for (DOC)
1-13 Europe (Except and ) (ETSI)
1-14 (TELEC);
Security: 64-bit and 128-bit WEP Encryption; WPA encryption
Antenna: Detachable Antenna 1.8dBI
Firewall:
IP Filtering
NAT (Network Address Translation) with through
MAC Filtering
Supported WAN type: Static IP, Dynamic IP, PPPoE,PPTP,L2TP, WAN Failover via 3G
Connection Scheme: Connect-on-demand, Auto-Disconnect
NAT function: Class C ;One-to-Many; Max 253 Users; Virtual Server; DMZ Host VPN
PPTP, L2TP and IPSec Pass Through
Config.& Management: Web-Based IE, Navigator browser and SNMP
DHCP Server and Client
Working Environment
Temperature: 0~40oC, Humidity 10%~90% non-condensing

Mackieman · EVDO Junkie Joined: 31 Oct 2005 Posts: 490

I'm not sure what game you're having issues with, but I would be willing to bet that it's World of Warcraft. I don't really get into WoW but I have played other games for testing purposes and used a variety of applications through KR2 and have had no issues. I imagine the problem you're encountering deals with a lack of open ports in the KR2 firewall. There are lots of guides out there on how to configure this but the reality is that EVDO is not a great medium for online games in many cases. It will have some pretty significant latency issues, even when the available throughput is high. This is caused primarily by the RF medium in which EVDO operates. If you're running EVDO Rev. 0 instead of Rev. A, this issue will be magnified. That said, basic connections should still be possible if you've opened the correct ports in the firewall.

Concerning your question about the n radio, it is important if WiFi throughput and signal range is a concern for you. It is the next generation of consumer WiFi and more adapters are becoming available to support it. However, the n standard is still in draft form with the IEEE and has not been approved formally. Most products are compliant to Draft 2.0; as of July 2008, Draft 5.0 has been released for review. The WiFi alliance has specified a new day of March 2009 for ratification. Some devices will require firmware updates to be compliant with the final standard but that's not a huge issue in most cases. The g radio in the router Alltel sells will work ok, but not be as fast or have as much range as n.

However, if you're having issues with KR2, I doubt you will see any change in another router. At this level, most routers are functionally identical. Since KR2 is working well for you, I would investigate opening the correct ports to allow the game you want to play to work correctly.

aac02 · EVDO Fledgling Joined: 25 Jun 2008 Posts: 18