This is a slightly strange review – I’m reviewing an N-band router without actually owning (that I’m aware of) any equipment that receives N-band. However, what I want to know is whether (and the theory goes that it should) it will still improve signal strength.

The Zyxel comes in relatively modest packaging which, to be honest, is refreshing – a recycled box inside a thin exterior box and a few bags to hold individual pieces of equipment. Inside, there’s the router itself, two screw-on antenna (always good to see, so they can be replaced with more powerful versions, if you wish), a power supply, ethernet cable, ADSL cable, some brief instructions and a CD containing a router setup program and a more detailed manual.

The router itself is a smallish white unit with lights along the front of the top. This includes a handy wi-fi switch for quickly turning wireless off and on. Along the back is the usual 4 ethernet ports, ADSL port, power socket and, again handily, a power button.

As with most routers, set-up and administration is performed via a webpage (or via the supplied software) that you access via a supplied IP address, username and password (make sure you change the default password, though!). For initial ISP configuration, a “Wizard” will automatically configure this for you (although it can be performed manually, if you wish).

The administration menu was familiar to me, as it’s design is the same as the one on my ZyXEL NSA210 NAS drive.

The range of features available are quite considerable and suggests this is a router more for small businesses rather than your average consumer, especially considering the security features on offer. However, if like me, you like the “power options” then this will provide you with everything you might need – WMM, keyword-based website blocking, DDNS, a command-line Telnet interface, a packet-filtering firewall, management via SNMP and support for static routing and VLANs.

A firmware update is available, so I’d recommend upgrading that as soon as you can.

Testing

I set the ZyXEL up next to my current router, a Netgear DG834Gv4, and only had one powered on at a time. In all cases, encryption was turned on, but only WEP.

Signal tests were then performed one storey up and the other side of the house – in this case, my bedroom!

Running an Android wi-fi analyser I could see a definite 5-10db signal improvement from the ZyXEL, compared to the Netgear. Running Network Stumbler on my Netbook, I observed similar improvements (see graphs). For the layman, this is an extra bar on the wi-fi signal meter.

For file performance tests, I transferred 407MB of data (consisting of 118 files and 15 folders) between my Acer Netbook and my daughter’s aged IBM Thinkpad, both running Windows XP SP3. My Netbook was downstairs in the living room, whilst my daughter’s laptop was in her room – opposite ends and storeys of the house, ensuring they were a good distance apart. The router was situated downstairs, about half way between the two machines.

The Netgear performed the transfer in 5 minutes 40 seconds, equating to 1.2 MB/s. The ZyXEL performed the transfer in 5 minutes, 19 seconds, equating to 1.3 MB/s.

So, a definite improvement in signal strength, but little in the way of performance. As N to G band shouldn’t improve the speed itself, this is the result I expected.

Summary

An excellent router at a good price. Packed full of features, it may be overkill (and a little confusing) for the average consumer, but for a small business or “tech head” such as me it’s ideal.

Even if you haven’t yet upgraded your laptop to N-band, this will still provide a stronger signal strength.

At the time of the review, the best price I found was a little over £64 at eBuyer.

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Western Digital Elements SE

Now I have a Pogoplug, I really needed some hard drive storage to plug into it.

I’ve owned a couple of Western Digital Passport external USB drives before and have always found them to be small, quick and quiet – exactly what I was after in this case. So, I bought a 500GB Western Digital Elements SE.

The SE is a matt black (much better than the glossy black of the Passports which easily show the slightest scratch) slab of plastic. At one end is a micro USB connector (a change from the original mini USB of the Passport) and a white disk activity light. And that’s it.

All power is provided via the USB. With the Passport I found that I didn’t always get the necessary power and WD were very good in providing me with a replacement cable which splits into 2 USB connectors – one for data and power and the other for additional power. The WD website mentions that an “optional cable is available” for this purpose, but it doesn’t state how to get one or how much it costs.

The box packaging contains just the drive, a short USB cable and a small booklet (which is about the warranty rather than the drive itself). It works with Windows and Macs and is available in storage levels up to 1TB.

Now, back to that box a minute. WD refers to as “Earth friendly”, yet there’s no suggestion of the box being recycled, and they use plastic to hold the drive inside the box, rather than recyclable card. And the drive, inside the plastic is wrapped in plastic before being put in a plastic bag. And is it really that friendly to include a warranty leaflet that could have been placed on the drive itself? “Earth friendly” doesn’t cut it for me.

Plugged in, the drive is incredibly silent. Thankfully, WD haven’t felt the need to install any software, so it’s formatted and ready for use.

Performance

As per my recent USB memory stick review, I’m using CrystalDiskMark for benchmarking the drive.

I’ve used this software, and recorded the results, for a number of different disk types in the past – internal, external, flash drives (e.g. SD), USB memory sticks, etc.

In a direct comparison to a previous Western Digital USB external drive that I’ve owned (a 60GB passport drive), it has similar scores, although a little slower (to be expected because of the larger driver size).

The results were as follows:

Read Sequentially: 25.51 MB/s
Read 512k files: 18.12 MB/s
Read 4k files: 0.426 MB/s

Write Sequentially: 24.06 MB/s
Write 512k files: 23.67 MB/s
Write 4k files: 1.164 MB/s

Read performance lags behind internal SATA drives (although it’s quicker than the internal drive in my work laptop!), as you’d expect, as well as the WD Passport Drive. There are a few other quick exceptions (an SDHC card with a rather good small file read speed and a very quick 2GB USB memory stick) but, overall, the drive has the performance that I’d expect. When it comes to reading small files, the SE shows high speeds that are more consistent with SATA drives.

Write performance is only beaten by the SATA drives and the WD Passport. And, when I refer to the Passport being quicker, I should add that it is only marginally so. Small file writing is very fast, second only to my Passport drive – and that includes SATA internal drives. Other write speeds are up 5 times quicker than, say, a USB memory stick.

Summary

Quiet, small, a decent lick of speed and a good price. What else could you ask for? Ignoring the odd environmental claims and WD’s need to keep changing USB connection types, this is a smart option for anyone needing a small external USB drive.

I bought mine for a smidge under £60 from my local Tesco, and it’s the cheapest price that I can currently find.

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For a while I’ve been watching the eBook reader market with interest. Not necessarily for myself, but my wife is an avid book reader, and only a truly amazing device would probably move her away from the paper variety.

Amazon’s Kindle was a start, but it relied on a limited 3G network arrangement in the UK (basically it was a US company providing it, so to keep costs down images, for instance, for newspapers were suppressed). However, it’s ability to easily download newspapers and magazines directly to the device was a real selling point.

On July 29th, Amazon.co.uk started taking pre-orders for the all-new Kindle featuring a new electronic-ink screen with 50 percent better contrast than any other e-reader, a new sleek design with 21 percent smaller body than the previous Kindle, while still keeping the same 6-inch-size reading area, and a 15 percent lighter weight. The all-new Kindle with wi-fi is available for £109 and with free 3G wireless and wi-fi for £149. Both of these prices are, I have to say, are amazingly good.

The UK Kindle Store features a vast selection of titles – including new releases and bestsellers. In addition, over 170 top UK and international newspapers and magazines are also available in the UK Kindle store for single purchase or subscription. All subscriptions are auto-delivered wirelessly to Kindle and start with a free 14-day trial.

The full of improvements in the new Kindle are…

• All-New, High-Contrast E-Ink Screen – 50% better contrast than any other e-reader
• Read in Bright Sunlight – No glare
• New and Improved Fonts – New crisper, darker fonts
• New Sleek Design – 21% smaller body while keeping the same 6″ size reading area
• 15% Lighter – Only 247 grams, weighs less than a paperback
• Battery Life of One Month – A single charge lasts up to one month with wireless off
• Double the Storage – Up to 3,500 books
• Books in 60 seconds – Download books anytime, anywhere
• Free 3G Wireless – No monthly payments, no annual contracts
• Built-In Wi-Fi – In addition to the 3G wireless, you can connect to Wi-Fi hotspots
• 20% Faster Page Turns – Seamless reading
• Enhanced PDF Reader – With dictionary lookup, notes, and highlights
• New WebKit-Based Browser – Free 3G web browsing (experimental)

If you’ve been interested in an eBook reader and haven’t yet “taken the plunge” then I think this is an excellent time to finally give it a try.