Cisco Consumer Products launched the Linksys E4200 Maximum Performance Wireless-N Router today. The new model is aesthetically designed, easy to set up and NGNBN ready – with simultaneous dual-band and maximum wireless speeds of up to 300 and 450 Mbps respectively.
It is ideal for those looking to set up a wireless environment in their home for their latest gadgets – gaming consoles, media streaming, file sharing between computers.
The router will not look out-of-place in a modern sophisticated living room.
The Linksys E4200 home router is the flagship model of the new Linksys E-series family line – designed for optimum home theatre performance, it promises to work seamlessly with the latest entertainment devices, including Internet TVs, iPad mobile devices, game consoles, smart phones, e-readers, and VoIP devices.
Apart from its powerful performance and range to deliver smooth streaming of video, music and uninterrupted gaming in the home, its sleek and stylish design has also been awarded the reddot design award 2011. I like the design – it looks like a slick Hi-Fi console and would not look out of place in any modern living room.
Recommended retail price in Singapore
| Linksys E-series family of Wireless-N routers |
MSRP SGD |
 |
S$279 |
 |
S$249 |
 |
S$159 |
 |
S$99 |
Available at: Challenger Superstore, Harvey Norman, Best Denki, Courts, South Asia Computer, PK Computer, Inforcom Technologies, Fuwell, A Genuine Technology, Cybermind Computer House, Cyberactive Technology and Bizgram.
The launch event was held at the Inforcomm Experience Centre at the Esplanade Xchange today. The live demo had a NAS streaming three different HD videos simultaneously to an Xbox, a computer and a tablet at the other end of the room more than 30 metres away. All three movies played smoothly – the speed and range were rather impressive.
The device remained cool to the touch throughout the demo, perhaps due to the efficient heat dispersion design, with plenty of ventilation holes in the honeycomb grid at the bottom of the router. I like it that the gadget had its own ON/OFF switch on board so you can easily power it off when not in use.
Worldwide shipments of wireless-N routers are expected to grow 158% from 2010 to 2014, and the number of households with multimedia networks will grow 103% over the same time period – according to a November 2010 report on Worldwide Home Networking by research firm IDC.
4 x Gigabit ports, 1 x USB port and a dedicated ON/OFF switch
Key features of the Linksys E4200
Next Generation Nationwide Broadband Network (NGNBN) Ready – optimises the speed of the fibre broadband network to deliver the performance demanded by wireless devices today, providing maximum performance of up to 300 Mbps (2.4 GHz) and 450 Mbps (5.0 GHz); with four 10/100/1000 Mbps Gigabit Ethernet ports.
Robust Signal Strength – comes with a combination of internal and external amplifiers coupled with six antennas to help increase the signal strength across greater distances, providing improved home network coverage and reducing dead spots.
Cisco Connect Easy Set-Up – provides a simple three-step set-up guided by a software wizard, taking away the frustration and complexity of setting up a home network. Simply pop-in the installation CD and the device is ready in minutes.
Other features of the E4200
Wireless-N technology – built to the latest 802.11n standard for optimal speed and range.
USB Port – Connect a USB flash or hard drive to add storage to your network. The port can be converted into a virtual USB port to enable printers to easily connect to the network and become available wirelessly to all users in the home.
UPnP AV Media Server – to share and stream your stored photos, music, video and data files.
Security – WEP, WPA and WPA2 personal and enterprise encryption to protect the network. Parental control can be exercised at the router level to control access to undesirable websites. A separate guest network supporting up to 10 guest accounts can be set up for sleep-over guests so they do not have access to your private network. It supports VPN passthrough but not VPN endpoint.
For more details, you can visit www.linksysbycisco.com.
