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Belkin reveals Advance N900 DB router, keeps your MW3 marathon top priority with IntelliStream
Belkin has added another wireless networking kit to it's N-series lineup here at CES. The company has announced its Advance N900 DB, a dual band WiFi router capable of 450Mbps speeds per band. Featuring six MultiBeam antennas, the tech makes watching Hulu Plus from your basement much easier and looks to cut down on those pesky dead spots. Also outfitted with IntelliStream, the device automatically prioritizes video and gaming streams and houses a 600MHz multi-thread processor that multitasks across all networked devices. For connected storage or wireless printers, the N900 packs two USB 2.0 ports enabling access to those peripherals from workstations other than your desk. If you're looking to take the leap, the router will be available for pre-order this month and at retailers in April, setting you back two Benjamins. See the PR after the break for all the details. Update: We snagged a quick hands-on with the device here at CES. Check out the gallery below and the video after the break.
Belkin repackages old wireless routers for its new N-series lineup (updated)
This wouldn't be the first time a company repackages old routers for the new year, but to be fair, there haven't been many technological advances recently for them to do much else. Belkin happens to be one such company, which has just announced five N-series 802.11n WiFi routers ranging from $39.99 (N150 at up to 150Mbps) all the way up to $129.99 (N750 at up to 450Mbps with dual band and USB). Frankly, a quick glance at the specifications doesn't show much of an improvement from last year's models, and that "exclusive" MultiBeam range-extending technology seems to be just a fancy name for MIMO. Still, you gotta give it to Belkin's designers for the new chassis design -- we much prefer this rounded look to the previous boxes. You can now grab an N150, N300, or N600 DB in the shops, whereas the N450 and flagship N750 DB will be showing up in mid-May. See press release after the break for the full details. Update: Belkin got in touch to finally shed some light on MultiBeam. Essentially, this is a new antenna technology that beefs up the routers' MIMO signal with a 6db gain, as opposed to just 1.5db on traditional onboard "trace" antennas. Another feature delivered by MultiBeam is an improved, apple-shaped coverage pattern, which apparently bests the standard donut-shaped version. The high end N450 and N750 also come with "implicit beam forming" that focuses the radio signal beam onto client devices for more reliable connection. Let's see if the guinea pigs can prove these claims.
