Tag: Netgear

NETGEAR brings back the electronic photo frame as a content source

Article

NETGEAR Meural Wi-Fi Photo Frame press image courtesy of NETGEAR

NETGEAR brings back the desktop digital photo frame with its Meural online content service and photo exchange

Meural’s New Digital Photo Frame Might Resurrect the Comic Strip Calendar | Gizmodo

From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR Meural

Product Page

My Comments

Meural is a brand owned by NETGEAR who offer an online photo frame and content platform.

It is reinvigorating a product class that fell along the wayside thanks to the popularity of smartphones and mobile-platform tablets. But what is this product class?

It is the electronic photo frame that shows pictures held on, usually, removeable storage on a built-in screen. These devices would show the pictures for a pre-determined time period then bring up another picture automatically. It was seen initially to have your parents see digital images of their grandchildren but have also appealed to businesses as cost-effective digital signage that can be located on the reception desk.

There were a variety of these units that connected to your home network and worked with an online photo-exchange service like Ceiva so people can send digital photos to them. The users have control over who can send photos to them to avoid distasteful imagery appearing on these devices. Some of these photo frames even were tied with online content services so that stock photos, fine art and the like can be shown on them.

NETGEAR’s sub-brand Meural has continued the latter trend by offering a range of electronic photo frames that are centred around content services. This is about having these devices repositioned as a “digital art frame”, especially in the form of wall-mounted large screen devices.  As well, the Meural platform will do what Ceiva had done by having an online photo exchange where you and others whom you approve can post photos to appear on these frames.

But they have brought back the classic desktop electronic-photo-frame form factor and substantiated it with a comic-calendar content service. It is a throwback to desk calendar products that featured a comic strip for each day. All of the content services are available for USD$70 per year. But they are offering the Peanuts comic-strip archive including Snoopy for US$30 per year as a stand-alone package.

These electronic photo frames implement touch-free gestures as a way of interacting with them, avoiding the ugly look of fingerprints on the glass or having to grope around the back to press buttons to change images. As well, they work with voice-driven home assistant platforms.

They also use an ambient light sensor so they effectively blend in to the room’s lighting. As well, they turn themselves off overnight so they don’t become too bright while you sleep.

What NETGEAR are realising is that the electronic photo frame can be seen as a digital content distribution medium for art and photography. As well, they are encouraging us not to forget about the idea of the electronic photo frame as a device to display photographs and the like, along with keeping us interested in “digital photo exchange” services.

NETGEAR to offer one of the first Wi-Fi 6 distributed-wireless setups

Article NETGEAR Orbi with Wi-Fi 6 press picture courtesy of NETGEAR

Netgear takes its Orbi mesh Wi-Fi system to the next level with Wi-Fi 6 | PC World

From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR

LEADING A NEW ERA OF WI-FI, NETGEAR ANNOUNCES ORBI MESH WI-FI SYSTEM USING WI-FI 6 SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED FOR THE GIGABIT INTERNET HOME (Press Release)

Product Page

My Comments

As Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) wireless networking comes to the fore, there will be a desire to see distributed-wireless-network systems that support this technology. Here it’s about being able to support many Wi-Fi client devices like laptops, tablets and smartphones along with devices that are designed “Wi-Fi first” including smart-home devices.

NETGEAR have started to refresh the Orbi distributed Wi-Fi system by making a new version that supports this new technology as part of the product lineup they are premiering in Las Vegas at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. It uses the separate radio backhaul that their Orbi system is know for, thus avoiding a dent in performance that can be brought about with systems that use the main “fronthaul” Wi-Fi segment for their backbone data transfer.

But it uses four data streams across the dedicated Wi-Fi 6 backhaul to allow high-speed high-capacity data transfer. It is in addition to four concurrent data streams on the 2.4GHz band and four concurrent data streams on the 5GHZ band for the client devices to use. The system is powered by Qualcomn networking system-on-chip silicon that allows for the higher data throughput.

It is expected to appear during the second half of 2019, primarily as an updated take of the RBK50 wide-coverage devices. A question that will perplex those of us who have an Orbi distributed-Wi-Fi setup is whether the existing Orbi equipment will work with the newer Wi-Fi 6 Orbi devices.

This is more so where smaller or specialised Orbi satellite modules like the RBS50 Orbi Outdoor Satellite unit or the Orbi Voice which is a combination of a satellite unit and Amazon-Alexa-driven smart speaker are part of your Orbi setup. Or you like the idea of “pushing down” existing equipment to secondary purposes so you get more value out of the equipment you own.

What is being highlighted is the idea of using Wi-Fi 6 as a future-proof approach for wireless local networking, including distributed- Wi-FI setups.

The first proven retail 5G device comes in the form of a Mi-Fi router

Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot press image courtesy of NETGEAR USA

Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot – first retail 5G device

Article – From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR

NETGEAR Nighthawk® 5G Mobile Hotspot – World’s First Standards-Based Millimeter Wave Mobile 5G Device (Blog Post)

My Comments

There has been a lot of talk about 5G mobile broadband lately with Telstra running consumer trials of this technology in the Gold Coast using 5G “Mi-Fi” devices installed at fixed locations.

Of course, some people are seeing it as an alternative to wireline and fibre next-generation broadband deployments. Here, they are trying to see the technology as an enabler for the “digital nomadic” lifestyle where people live and work while roaming from place to place, keeping in touch with the world with mobile telecommunications technology.

But NETGEAR and AT&T have stepped forward with a production-grade consumer endpoint device as part of a production-grade 5G network being rolled out across the USA. It is typically assumed that the first production-grade consumer endpoint device for a new mobile broadband technology will be a smartphone of some sort or a USB wireless-broadband modem. But this time it is a highly-portable “Mi-Fi” router in the form of a NETGEAR Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot.

Here, it is to use a device that could support high-throughput data transfer arrangements with a network of mobile devices and take advantage of what a production 5G network could offer. As well, the WAN (Internet) aspect of the NETGEAR Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot is based on millimetre-wave technology and is designed according to standards.

Being the first device of its kind, there could be issues with connection reliability because of it implementing technology that is too “cutting-edge”. As more service providers “light up” standards-based 5G networks in more areas and more device manufacturers offer 5G mobile-endpoint devices, it will be the time to show whether 5G can really satisfy mobile-broadband users’ needs or be a competitor to fixed broadband.

I will update this article as NETGEAR and AT&T release more information about this Mi-Fi’s capabilities.

NETGEAR implements a multi-tiered approach to Power-Over-Ethernet

Articles – From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR GS108PP ProSafe Gigabit Unmanaged 8-port Switch with Power-Over-Ethernet Plus press picture courtesy of NETGEAR

The NETGEAR GS108PP switch is able to run with different power supplies to offer different Power-Over-Ethernet power budgets

NETGEAR

NETGEAR LAUNCHES INDUSTRY’S FIRST UNMANAGED SWITCH WITH FLEXIBLE POWER OVER ETHERNET OPTIONS {Press Release)

Flexible PoE Switch with Power Upgrade Options {Blog Post}

Product Page

Previous Coverage

NETGEAR offers an affordable 8-port Gigabit unmanaged switch with Power Over Ethernet Plus on all ports

My Comments

I had previously written up about the NETGEAR GS108PP 8-port Gigabit Ethernet switch with Power Over Ethernet Plus available on all ports as an example of this company offering an Ethernet switch with desirable features at a price that would be seen to be reasonable for small-network applications. Here, it was about each of the eight ports being “powered” to the Power-Over-Ethernet-Plus (802.3at) standard rather than half of the ports, something that was happening with affordable “few port” Power-Over-Ethernet gear that was fit for small networks.

At the time of the previous article, MWAVE, an independent online computer-parts reseller, offered this device to the Australian market for AUD$169 tax inclusive before shipping, but now this price has dropped to AUD$155 tax inclusive.

It is part of a family of 8-port and 16-port Gigabit Ethernet switches with Power Over Ethernet Plus power-supply on all ports that NETGEAR has taken an interesting approach with the overall power budget that these devices could offer.

Here, they offer different power budgets for the GS108LP / GS108PP (8 port) and GS116LP / GS116PP (16 ports) by packaging different power supplies with the different units so these have a different power budget depending on what you buy. They also offer a range of power adaptors with the same voltage (54VDC) but with different current outputs that are available through the aftermarket.

NETGEAR has established this arrangement to allow a network installer to buy an Ethernet switch with a Power-Over-Ethernet power budget that is “right-sized” for the user’s current needs. Then if these need change, they can upgrade the power supply to answer these newer needs.

Power Supply
Bold text is “in-box” option
GS108LP GS108PP GS116LP GS116PP
54VDC 1.25A (67.5W) 60W 60W
54VDC 1.66A (90W) 83W 83W 76W 76W
54VDC 2.4A (130W) 123W 123W 115W 115W
54VDC 3.7A (200W) 183W 183W

This could suit a reality with installations where you are running one or two Power-Over-Ethernet devices to see how you go with this new idea. It may include you upgrading an older device powered by its own “wall-wart” to a simplified Power-Over-Ethernet setup thanks to an active splitter box. Then you decide to add on more Power-Over-Ethernet devices or upgrade extant devices to those with better capabilities while giving them the same kind of treatment as a typical fridge or TV – “bumping” the older unit down to a secondary role in the installation.

Here, you simply switch out the not-so-powerful power supply with one that is more powerful when you are wanting to add more power to the installation rather than junking a perfectly-good Power-Over-Ethernet switch and replacing it with something more powerful. The NETGEAR Ethernet switch can exist in your network for a longer time, serving the higher power load, until newer needs come about such as to head towards a managed switch or something better. Typically this is a plug-and-play upgrade but you may have to flick a slider on the NETGEAR switch to allow it to work with the different power load.

Network installers who sell these switches can also find it useful to keep more of the power supplies as well as these switches so that they can “right-size” their installations through the installation’s life. It can also allow for the ability for them to retain the lower-output power supplies from an “upsized” installation to use on another lower-power-demand installation if the original power supply at that installation burnt out.

What I like about this approach that NETGEAR took with these unmanaged Power-Over-Ethernet switches is the idea of providing an upgrade path for people who own an existing unit but have different needs. It also avoids the need to throw away perfectly-working equipment just because you have a different power requirement.

As well, the NETGEAR GS108LP Power-Over-Ethernet switch could be offered at a two-figure price for people and businesses who want to get their feet wet with a Power-Over-Ethernet setup. This is especially if they are seeing the idea of using active splitters to power existing devices like access points or 5-port Ethernet switches “down the line” before going “full steam” with new devices.

NETGEAR offers an affordable 8-port Gigabit unmanaged switch with Power Over Ethernet Plus on all ports

From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR GS108PP ProSafe Gigabit Unmanaged 8-port Switch with Power-Over-Ethernet Plus press picture courtesy of NETGEAR

NETGEAR GS108PP ProSafe Gigabit Unmanaged 8-port Switch with Power-Over-Ethernet Plus

NETGEAR

GS108PP 8-port Gigabit unmanaged switch with Power Over Ethernet Plus

Product Page

Special Offer

MWAVE deal on this switch for AUD$169

Related Coverage

Understanding Power Over Ethernet

My Comments

Power Over Ethernet concept

Power Over Ethenrt concept

Increasingly Power-Over-Ethernet technology is being offered as a product-differentiating feature for small-business and installer-grade Ethernet switches. This is where these switches are able to supply power to network devices using the same blue wire that connects them to the wired Ethernet network.

The feature is appealing towards Wi-Fi access points, VoIP desk telephones and IP-based videosurveillance cameras as a way to power them without having to locate a power outlet near these devices. It also provides a form of central power control for such devices such as assuring access to battery backup for a cluster of devices or to allow a managed Ethernet switch to provide programmatic power control from its user interface.

But a lot of them offer this technology to some, usually half, of the ports available on them. TrendNET previously offered to the American market an eight-port Gigabit unmanaged switch with Power-Over-Ethernet Plus on all ports for US$280 when it came out.

But NETGEAR are offering the GS108PP switch which is a similar device with Power-Over-Ethernet Plus on all eight Gigabit ports for AUD$219 recommended retail price. MWAVE, an independent online computer dealer serving the Australian market. has put downward pressure on the price of this device class offering this Netgear unit with a 123W total power budget for a street price of AUD$169. As well, this model can be mounted on a desktop or a wall thanks to keyhole slots on the side but also comes with a set of rack ears to permit installation in a standard equipment rack.

It has been something associated with NETGEAR where they have offered affordable network-infrastructure hardware fit for small networks. This was primarily in the form of highly-compact affordable five-port and eight-port Ethernet switches with the basic expectations of their era. Gradually as newer network standards came along, NETGEAR would eventually be the first to roll them in to these affordable five-port or eight-port devices. Let’s not forget that they offered managed Ethernet switches that implement Web-based management and “automatic-transmission” operation for quality-of-service management when it comes to voice or video traffic. There was even the Nighthawk S8000 Gaming and Multimedia Switch with the same abilities as one of these business-grade switches but in a housing that would please gamers or not look out of place in a home-entertainment centre.

The next step for NETGEAR to take with some of these technologies is to package and present them to appeal to home users and small businesses while making them affordable. It can also be about endorsing and supporting connectivity and management standards that permit simplified setup of Ethernet-based network infrastructure.

NETGEAR releases the first weatherproof distributed-WiFi module

Articles

NETGEAR RBS-50Y Orbi Outdoor Satellite Module - press picture courtesy of NETGEAR

NETGEAR Orbi RBS-50Y – the first weatherproof satellite module for a distributed-Wi-Fi system ever

NETGEAR Moves Orbi Outside | SmallNetBuilder

I Live in the Woods, and Netgear’s Orbi Outdoor Satellite Sounds Like a Dream | Gizmodo

Netgear’s Orbi Satellite takes mesh WiFi networks outdoors | Engadget

From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR

Orbi Outdoor Satellite RBS50Y (Product Page)

Press Release

My Comments

NETGEAR has continued to invest in their Orbi distributed WiFi system which was initially based on the “router + extender” or star-based setup.

This is one of the few systems of this kind that implement a separate 5GHz wireless backhaul along with Web-based system management rather than cloud-based Internet-dependent system management. A recent firmware upgrade added the ability for a NETGEAR Orbi system to implement a wired backhaul thanks to the Gigabit Ethernet switch integrated in most of the Orbi indoor device.

Initially, they offered different router and satellite modules that answer different needs, either as systems or additional client modules that people can add to extant Orbi systems to shape their system’s coverage.

But they have showcased the Orbi RBS50Y weatherproof satellite module which is the first first module for a distributed-WiFi system to be designed for outdoor use. This module, which is weatherproof to IP56 standards, connects to any NETGEAR Orbi or Orbi Pro routers wirelessly using that same dedicated backhaul.

Client devices connect to the network via an AC1300 dual-band dual-stream Wi-Fi radio which can allow an extra coverage of 2500 square feet (232.3 square metres). There is also the ability to have the unit’s main LEDs work as a night-light and work to scheduled on-off times.

The RBS50Y is powered through an AC adaptor so you would need to have an electrician install a power outlet near where you want to install the satellite module. You may get away with snaking the power cable from outside to inside the building through a small hole that you drill for this purpose. The computer press expressed that it could be desirable to implement 802.3af/802.3at-compliant Power Over Ethernet so you could use Cat5 cabling and a power injector which can make the installation process easier for this device. I would add to this that such a connector could be used as a way to exploit the recently-supported Ethernet backbone functionality offered to the Orbi distributed-WiFi system.

At the moment, this device is to be sold for a suggested retail price of US$329.99 ex tax with the computer press grumbling that it costs more than an Orbi setup or standard router. But I see this more as something intended to be added on to an existing Orbi setup to take it further and this NETGEAR Orbi RBK50Y outdoor satellite module has been honoured with a CES 2018 Innovation Award.

Netgear offers more of the Orbi extenders

Articles

NETGEAR Orbi distributed WiFi system press image courtesy of NETGEAR

NETGEAR Orbi distributed WiFi system

Netgear releases two (slightly) cheaper Orbi routers | Engadget

Netgear announces two new Orbi routers | TechCrunch

From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR

Orbi Wi-Fi System

Press Release

Product Page

My Comments

Most of the recently-issued distributed-wireless systems that consist of modules that extend Wi-Fi coverage across a larger area are typically architected for a large suburban home. But you may want to get the coverage right for a smaller or larger area such as a New-York-style apartment or a larger country house.

NETGEAR have revised their Orbi distributed-wireless system which is based on a “router + extender” setup. This consists of a three-band router serving as a hub device while the satellite devices work in a similar vein to the range extender although there is a separate waveband implemented for backhaul purposes as well as providing for a simplified setup and roaming routine. In this system, one of the bands is kept as a backhaul between the extender devices and the router.

But they have released a few more “right-sized” output extenders for the Orbi distributed-wireless system. The original system, known as the RBK50, was capable of working an AC3000 network with a 5000 square-foot coverage. On the other hand, the RBK40 works an AC2200 network capable of covering 4000 square feet of space. There is a third system, known as the RBK30 which uses a satellite unite that plugs directly in to the power outlet like most range extenders or HomePlug devices. This also uses AC2200 network technology and can cover 3500 square feet.

For example, I would recommend for a small single-storey house or apartment the RBK30 if you are answering the typical setup where your router is located at the front or back of the house. Here, you are nudging the coverage out to an area that is not fully covered because of the equipment being up the front. The RBK40 or RBK50 could answer needs like multi-storey or split-level houses, or larger single-storey houses. In this situation, you want to, for example, make sure that there is equal Wi-Fi coverage upstairs and downstairs or, again, “nudge” the coverage out towards the back of your house.

NETGEAR are also selling these repeaters as accessories rather than as part of an Orbi system. This is important for those of you who are wanting to provide infill coverage for an existing Orbi system such as to deal with a larger house.

The NETGEAR Orbi and its peers would work well for buildings where the interior walls aren’t constructed of highly-dense building materials. You would run in to problems with, for example, the brick or sandstone home where you built on an extension, or one of the English cottages where there was an emphasis on brick or masonry construction for the inside walls. The reason I am calling this out is because the Orbi system implements a dedicated 5GHz band for the backhaul while your network devices connect to the router or extender devices using another 5GHz and 2.4GHz band created for the network.

Personally, I would like to see the NETGEAR Orbi systems available as a variant that uses a HomePlug AV500 or HomePlug AV2 powerline backbone or can exploit an Ethernet backbone as an alternative to the wireless backbone for those environments where that backbone can’t cut it.

A question that needs to be raised in the use cases that NETGEAR demonstrates in their online marketing collateral is whether an Orbi Satellite extender can be “daisy-chained” to an extant Orbi Satellite extender. This may be of concern to those of us who decide we want to extend the Orbi System from the extender such as to “push out” the range further.

What I like about the latest NETGEAR Orbi additions is that NETGEAR are “right-sizing” this distributed-wireless system to suit different coverage areas like apartments, small homes and larger homes as well as providing a way to “fill-in” coverage dark spots.

New firmware available for original Orbi system (1.8.0.6)

Consumer Electronics Show 2017–Accessories and the Home Network

In this article about the Consumer Electronics Show 2017 that occurred in Las Vegas, Nevada, I will be covering the trends affecting computer peripherals and accessories and the home network.

1: Computer Trends

2: Accessories And The Home Network

Peripherals and Accessories

A very dominant usage case being highlighted for laptops and 2-in-1 computers is the creation of a fully-fledged workstation at your main workspace or game-playing space. This involves connecting the portable computer to at least one larger-sized screen along with a desktop-grade full-size keyboard and mouse. Such workstations may even be the place where you connect extra non-portable storage devices like USB hard disks or optical drives or connect to your network via a blue Ethernet cable rather than the Wi-Fi wireless connection for improved reliability.

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon USB-C Thunderbolt-3 detail image - press picture courtesy of Lenovo USA

USB Type-C or Thunderbolt 3 ports will be seen as the way to connect expansion docks, peripherals and the like to your laptop

The USB-C connector and its higher-speed variant, the Thunderbolt 3 connector have been valued as a way to provide a single-cable connection option between your laptop and the normally-sessile peripherals once you used an expansion module, commonly known as a docking station or dock. Here, you would connect all the peripherals to this expansion module then connect your laptop computer to that same device via USB-C or Thunderbolt. This is also underscored by a significant number of these devices being equipped with USB Power Delivery to power the portable computer from that same device, underscoring that “one cable to connect” goal.

Let’s not forget that some manufacturers are integrating this “dock” functionality in to some of their display monitors so that these screens are where you can connect your keyboard, mouse and external hard disk.

Lenovo had pitched the ThinkVision P24h and P27h monitors which have a qHD (2560×1440) display resolution and an sRGB high colour gamut “out of the box”. These monitors, with the super-narrow bezel, implement a USB-C connection to the host computer facilitating a DisplayPort 1.2 connection, the data connection, and a Power Delivery connection with a power budget of 45W, along with a four-port self-powered USB hub.

LG's 32" 4K monitor with HDR10 - press picture courtesy of LG USA

LG’s 32″ 4K monitor with HDR10

LG had teased a 32” 4K monitor which has the narrow bezel and can handle HDR10 video but also offer this similar USB-C connectivity and USB hub. They also tweaked the monitor’s integral speakers for that bit of extra “kick” from the bass. They also are pleasing the gamer clans by offering the UltraFine 34” 5K and 4K UHD gaming monitors with features like AMD’s FreeSync technology and 1ms motion-blur reduction.

Dell had advanced a range of monitors including the UltraSharp 32” 8K UHD model and the 27” Ultrathin monitor which has its electronics housed in its base. This monitor implements USB-C connectivity to the host along with a QHD display.

Dell UP3218K 8K 32" monitor press image courtesy of Dell

It’s not 4K resolution in this Dell 32″ monitor, it is 8K resolution

They even advanced the 24” Touch monitor with an integral 10-point touchscreen along with the 24” Video Conferencing Monitor which has an integral Full-HD IR Webcam that has a privacy shutter. This monitor’s camera also adds on support for facial-recognition login under Windows Hello while the sound is catered for with a pair of 5-watt speakers and a noise-cancelling microphone built in.

Dell S2718D 27" slimline monitor press image courtesy of Dell

Dell’s slimline 27″ monitor with its electronics in its base

Even households aren’t left out with a range of monitors from Dell that are designed with aesthetics and high-grade on-screen experiences. For example, the Dell 24 and 27 monitors (S2418HX / S2718HX) implement the ultra-narrow-bezel design being implemented in most of Dell’s laptops and all-in-ones plus the ability to support HDR along with Waves.Maxx sound tuning.

For those of us who have a screen that currently “ticks the boxes” for our computing experience at our desks, most of the manufacturers are offering highly-capable Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C docks. Remember that you can daisy-chain 6 Thunderbolt-3 peripherals from the same Thunderbolt-3 bus, which can open up a range of possibilities.

For example, Lenovo and Dell are offering these expansion modules as part of their official accessory lineups. Lenovo’s contribution is in the form of the ThinkPad Thunderbolt 3 dock (US279) with video connectivity in the form of 2 DisplayPort, HDMI and VGA ports; 5 USB 3.0 ports; audio jack for those speakers; a Gigabit Ethernet port; and USB Power Delivery for the host computer with a power budget of 60 watts. There is a USB-C variant that offers similar functionality for computers not equipped with Thunderbolt 3 connectivity.  But Belkin have previewed the Thunderbolt 3 version of their original Thunderbolt 2 Express Dock, which will have 3 USB-3 connections, 2 Thunderbolt 3 / USB-C connections, two audio connections, a DisplayPort video connection and a Gigabit Ethernet connection. This device can supply a USB Power Deliver power-demand of 85 watts, again reducing the need for extra power supplies for your computer.

In the last post I wrote about CES 2017, I had cited Zotac’s external “card-cage” graphics module which uses Thunderbolt 3 connectivity as a way to enhance their “midget PC” product. This isn’t the only product of its kind to appear at this show. MSI also premiered the GUS (Graphics Upgrade System) “card-cage” external GPU system. This is styled for gaming and is a refresh of their original GUS external graphics module that they launched in 2012, but implementing the Thunderbolt 3 standard. It has a 500W power supply and USB 3.0 Type-C and Type-A connections.

Beyond the docking stations or, should I say, expansion modules, there have been a few other computer accessories with one being of note in the form of a Kingston 2Tb USB thumb drive.

The home network

A key trend affecting the home network this year at the CES 2017 is the concept of distributed Wi-Fi wireless systems. This consists of kits that use multiple devices to spread the Wi-Fi network’s coverage over a large area. They have appeared because most householders have run in to issues with their home network’s Wi-Fi wireless segment not providing reliable wireless coverage everywhere in their house.

They are typically based on a single chipset and most of them implement a dedicated wireless backhaul between the slave devices and the master access point. A significant number of these devices implement a “mesh” topology where there is a “root” node that works as a router along with multiple access point “nodes” that connect with each other and the “root” node to provide Wi-Fi coverage, using multiple backhaul connections for load-balancing, fail-safe operation and increased bandwidth. Other systems implement the traditional router and range-extender method with a single upstream connection but have a simplified setup method and properly-simple roaming between the access points.

The problem with these systems is that you have to use equipment that is offered by the manufacturer as part of that same system. This means that there isn’t any of the interoperability available which, at the moment, is stifling innovation.

Qualcomm launched their Wi-Fi mesh chipsets which can implement Bluetooth, CSRMesh and Zigbee also to support the “Internet Of Things”. The software is based also around a dedicated software framework and cloud-services. But these systems also support wired backhauls and multiple-hop mesh setups.

D-Link Covr router and wireless extender package press image courtesy of D-Link

D-Link Covr router and wireless extender package

D-Link had premiered the Covr distributed Wi-Fi system which consists of a router and a wireless extender that implements the automatic setup and simplified roaming. For those of us with existing home networks, they also offered a Covr HomePlug system consisting of two wireless access points linked by a HomePlug AV2 powerline backbone. Another example that purely uses a Wi-Fi backbone is the NETGEAR Orbi which implements a router and a satellite extender device.

On the other hand, Linksys provided a true-mesh setup in the form of the Velop Wi-Fi system that implements multiple nodes. The Velop system even is able to work with Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant such as controlling the guest Wi-Fi network or asking Alexa to quote your network’s credentials. Click or tap on this link to see a Linksys YouTube video which explains what Velop is about if you can’t see it below.

As well, Linksys have launched the WRT32X Gaming Router which implements the Rivet Networks Killer Wi-Fi chipset similar to what is implemented in the Dell XPS 13 Kaby Lake Ultrabook. Here, it is optimised to work with client devices that implement the Rivet Networks Killer chipsets but is a 3×3 802.11ac MU-MIMO system that supports 160kHz bandwidth. There is also the EA8300 Max-Stream AC2200 Tri-band MU-MIMO Gigabit Router which is a more affordable device based on a 2×2 802.11ac three-radio design. Both these routers are equipped with Gigabit Ethernet for LAN and WAN (Internet) connections.

Linksys even offered a WUSB400M dual-band MU-MIMO 802.11ac USB wireless network adaptor as a way to retrofit your existing laptop or desktop computer for the new-spec Wi-Fi segments. This network adaptor connects to the host computer via USB 3.0 and can work at a 2×2 AC1200 setup.

What Linksys have been offering is a representative of another trend affecting the home network’s Wi-Fi segment where Wi-Fi network infrastructure hardware is working on a simultaneous three-band approach, operating on the 2.4GHz, 5.0GHz and 5.8GHz wavebands at the same time. As well, Wi-Fi repeaters are even being setup to implement the 5GHz bands as the preferred backhaul. Amped Wireless is another company also offering the three-band Wi-Fi network-infrastructure equipment in the form of a router and an extender.

NETGEAR Nighthawk S8000 Gaming And Media Switch press picture courtesy of NETGEAR

NETGEAR Nighthawk S8000 Gaming And Media Switch – for the home network or home entertainment unit

NETGEAR’s not silent here with the Nighthawk S8000 Media Switch which is a media-optimised Ethernet switch implementing some of the quality-of-service technologies in their managed switches but optimised for household use. As well, this house-friendly switch can support functions like link-aggregation for increased throughput on supported devices like desktop computers and NAS units with two Gigabit Ethernet connections supporting this mode.

This is also intended to complement the Nighthawk X10 gaming and media router which has an integrated Plex Media Server for USB Mass-Storage devices connected to this router’s USB ports. It is also one of the first few home routers to offer 802.11ad WiGig (60GHz) same-room wireless network LAN segment capable of a throughput three times that of the fastest 802.11ac Wi-Fi network; along with the 802.11ac 4×4 MU-MIMO three-band Wi-Fi wireless LAN segment.

As well, there are 8 Gigabit Ethernet ports which can also support port-trunking for failover or high-throughput operation like the Nighthawk S8000 switch along with the WAN (Internet) side being looked after by a Gigabit Ethernet connection. The processing horsepower in this performance router is looked after by a 1.7GHz four-core CPU and it can support VLAN setups of the port or 802.1q tag variety.

Both these devices are pitched at “core” online and VR gaming enthusiasts with those hotted-up gaming rigs along with people who are in to streaming 4K ultra-high-definition TV content. But they can also earn their keep with those of us who run our businesses from home and want “big-business-grade” connectivity for IP-based communications or cloud computing.

Another trend that is surfacing is security-optimised broadband routers for the home network. These offer the “unified threat management” abilities associated with business-grade Internet setups but in a manner that appeals to the ordinary household. The latest from this class of network-Internet “edge” device is the Norton Core router. This device implements content-filtering and security software that is also focused towards the Internet-of-Things devices in your household due to the increased awareness of security risks and poor software maintenance practices associated with these devices.

The self-updating router works with Symantec’s DNS service to prevent DNS hijacks as well as implementing deep-packet inspection on unencrypted traffic to screen for malware and network intrusions. As for encrypted traffic, the Norton Core router will inspect packet headers for and connections of this traffic class. It also comes with Norton Core Security Plus endpoint-protection software which is a variant of the business-grade Security Premium endpoint software and can be run on 20 devices running either Windows, MacOS, iOS or Android but the router is dependent on this endpoint software for the full protection..

Lenovo Smart Storage home NAS press picture courtesy of Lenovo USA

Lenovo Smart Storage home NAS

Most of the network-attached-storage units were focused on the “personal cloud” trend with the device being the centre of your data-storage universe while software and services work to locate these devices from afar. Similarly, some of them are using rich media servers which can do things like obtain further data about your media content. One of these devices is one that Lenovo launched called the Smart Storage 6Tb NAS which implements facial image recognition along with event-driven recognition to make it easier to identify and organise pictures of people just like what Facebook and Windows Photo Gallery were about. This unit has 802.11ac 2×2 Wi-Fi for portable use but can be connected to your home network via an Ethernet cable.

The next article about the 2017 CES will be highlighting the trends affecting home entertainment including the new smart TVs that will be showing up.

NETGEAR keeps the tradition coming with their network infrastructure

For a long time, NETGEAR have been known for offering cost-effective hubs and switches for use with twisted-pair wired Ethernet segments in homes and small businesses. In the early days, this meant very small five-port unmanaged 10/100Mbps hubs and switches that didn’t cost much and could allow you to easily consider wiring for Ethernet.

To the same extent, they released a 56k dial-up modem router with an integrated four-port hub which was the first product of its kind to offer dial-up Internet across a network without the need for a computer to be running. But it was considered a product ahead of its time thanks to ADSL or cable broadband Internet not being available in many areas and not many home networks being set up for the Internet. But it led on to some of the most capable NETGEAR modem routers to surface like the DG834G which had won a significant amount of accolades in its day.

NETGEAR GS-110TP Gigabit PoE-supply Smart Switch

NETGEAR GS-110TP Gigabit PoE 8 Port Smart Switch

Subsequently they were one of the first companies to offer some affordable unmanaged Gigabit switches that can be a Power-Over-Ethernet power-source device. This was offered on half of the ports on these devices but they gradually offered some Web-managed models that had all of the ports covered.

Another approach was to offer Web-managed Ethernet switches that had a focus on ease-of-use. This was about a “big-business” feature where an Ethernet network can be managed to do things like manage quality-of-service or segment a LAN for further control. But NETGEAR’s approach not just provided the Web-based dashboard on each of these switches but provided an “automatic-transmission” approach to quality-of-service management in a manner to make this concept appeal to the small network. One of these switches that NETGEAR offered was even designed to be able to be powered using Power-Over-Ethernet, something that could appeal to “regional” switches or those devices serving a cluster of network equipment at a table or desk.

NETGEAR Nighthawk S8000 Gaming And Media Switch press picture courtesy of NETGEAR

NETGEAR Nighthawk S8000 Gaming And Media Switch – for the home network or home entertainment unit

But NETGEAR took this concept further with a gaming-grade network switch that has the features of a business-grade network switch but is pitched towards gamers and multimedia enthusiasts. The Nighthawk S8000 Web-managed switch has the ability to be managed like the typical business-grade managed switch but invokes the “automatic transmission” approach like some other NETGEAR switches for QoS management. It is presented in a style that makes it attractive to use in the home entertainment centre where a 4K UHDTV, XBox One or PS4, and similar devices are installed and you want something better than Wi-Fi for online gaming or video streaming at Full HD or 4K UHD.

This unit even implements link aggregation / port-trunking for up to four Ethernet ports so that the Nighthawk S8000 switch can be purposed as an “off-ramp” for a high-speed link to a gaming rig, router or NAS with this kind of connectivity. In this case, the bandwidth offered by the aggregated ports is treated as one high-speed link. Let’s not forget that this unit can be integrated into a sophisticated VLAN-driven network and NETGEAR put a tentative price of US$99.99 for this unit intended to be released around March 2017.

The goal with all of these products is to offer something that could be considered only fit for big business but at a cost-effective price and with an approach that reduces operational complexity.

NETGEAR have fixed security exploits in some of their newer routers

Netgear DG834G ADSL2 wireless router

If you are running a recent NETGEAR router, make sure its firmware is up to date

Article

Netgear Patches Its Router’s Security Holes, Download Your Updated Firmware Today | Lifehacker

From the horse’s mouth

NETGEAR

Original Security Advisory

Models affected
Smart Wi-Fi Router AC1600 R6250
AC1750 Smart Wi-Fi Router – 802.11ac Dual Band Gigabit R6400
Nighthawk AC1900 Smart Wi-Fi Router R7000
Nighthawk X6 – AC3200 Tri-Band Wi-Fi Gigabit Router R8000
Nighthawk AC1750 Smart Wi-Fi Router – Dual Band Gigabit R6700 Beta firmware
Nighthawk AC1900 Smart Wi-Fi Router R6900 Beta firmware
Nighthawk 4G LTE Modem Router R7100LG Beta firmware
Nighthawk DST – AC1900 DST router
HomeNetworking01.info coverage
R7300DST Beta firmware
Nighthawk X6 – AC3000 Tri-Band Wi-Fi Gigabit Router R7900 Beta firmware
Wi-Fi VDSL2+/ADSL2+ Modem Router D6220 Beta firmware
AC1600 WiFi VDSL/ADSL Modem Router – 802.11ac Dual Band Gigabit D6400 Beta firmware

My Comments

NETGEAR had faced a serious problem with some of its recent-model routers due to a security exploit in the firmware that drives these network-Internet “edge” devices. Previous coverage about this issue had required you to use another router for your home network to stay secure.

This has had NETGEAR rush out firmware updates for each of these affected routers in order to mitigate the recently-discovered security exploit.

A problem that besets most of the commonly-available home-network bardware is that firmware updating requires you to visit the manufacturer’s site, download the firmware as a special file package for your device, then upload that package to your device via its Web-based management interface. This can daunt some computer users who haven’t much experience with these kind of hardware maintenance tasks.

Personally, I would like to see steps taken to support automatic firmware upgrades such as what AVM are doing with their Fritz!Box devices, or at least the ability to click on a button in the management interface to start the download and update process for the device’s firmware. This is a practice that is being implemented in most of the European-made modem routers, along with most consumer-electronics devices like Smart TVs and set-top video peripherals.

There is also the issue of protecting the update files so that you aren’t installing malware on your device and it may involve processes like authenticity checks for software delivered as part of a firmware update or functionality add-on.

The update procedure

The update procedure will require you to download the updated firmware package using your regular desktop or laptop computer. Here, they recommend that you connect your regular computer directly to the router using an Ethernet cable if you can do so for the download and update process to be sure that this process works reliably.

Follow the link listed in this article to the NETGEAR-hosted support page for your router’s model. You will see the link for the firmware package you need to download. Here, you download that firmware package to your “downloads” folder.

Then, once you have downloaded the firmware from the NETGEAR site, you log in to your router’s management page from that same computer using your favourite Web browser. For these routers, the URL is http://www.routerlogin.net. Subsequently, you have to visit the ADVANCED tab, then the Administration option, then the Firmware Upgrade option.

In that screen, you click the Browse button, which will pop up a file-system dialog box where you have to find the firmware file that you downloaded in your “downloads” folder. Once you have selected the firmware file, click the Upload button to transfer the firmware to your router, whereupon it will commence the updating process. Leave the router alone during this process so as not to interrupt this critical process. You will see a progress bar to indicate how the upgrade is progressing.

Once this update procedure is done, a good practice would be to regularly visit NETGEAR’s support pages for your particular router and check for newer firmware on a regular basis. Then, if there is newer firmware available for your device, update it following the instructions on their Website or the general instructions listed in this article.

Conclusion

The increased awareness by industry and computer media regarding software quality and data security for dedicated-purpose devices connected to the Internet along with consumer / small-business network-infrastructure devices is going to make companies who design these devices or the software that runs them wake up regarding these issues.