A wireless router is a device which most homes have. It is providing us with an internet connection pretty much anywhere we want to go in our home. Today, everything and everyone are on the internet. You are communicating with your family, friends and even with your co-workers through internet, making extremely important business deals or sharing experiences from holidays. That’s why routers are part of our lives and due to that it is extremely important to choose the best router under 200 for your home and your needs. Here are some basic information about routers and some things you must consider:

Speed ratings

Wireless routers measure their speed in megabits per second (Mbps). The newest wireless connection have data rate of 248 Mbps and they are called Wireless n, which is about 20 times higher than first devices 802.11b. This is enough to send music, videos and bigger files in short time, which is very important today, because everybody is using internet for sharing files. Speed of the internet depends on the range of the wireless router, so it is extremely important to find out the range of the router before buying one.

Single/dual band

Wireless signal works on 2 frequency bands, 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz. 2.4 GHz frequency is lower frequency and people use it when they are surfing on the internet or when they have few devices connected to the particular wireless router. But, if you have a wireless router that use 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz than that router is a dual band. With that kind of router you can share big files in very short time, which is important. So, if you use internet very often for sharing files or some bigger activity, than dual band is for you. Dual band routers are more expensive than single band routers, but they have better performance.

For wireless router is important to have stable connection. For testing the signal strength and connection people are making different tests. One of the most popular test it so-called Stress test. In that test, your router is sending are receiving data for 24, 48 or more hours without stopping. If the internet connection is durable through specified time, without any disconnection or any kind of braking and freezing, than that wireless router has passed the test. You can also check the signal strength by testing the speed in different distances and with or without obstacles (like walls).

Read User Reviews

One more thing, and maybe the most important thing that you should do before making your purchase is to read the user reviews. You don’t want to buy a router that is likely to go out within a few months. By reading the reviews on Amazon, Newegg, or Cnet, you can be sure that you are getting a quality product.

Author bio:

Phillip is and expert and enthusiast for technology and everything related to technology. He dedicates his time to research and test different gadgets and devices.