Linksys WRT150N Review

Laptop Mag Verdict

This budget router provides good throughput and range for the price, but you'll need an expensive connection card if your notebook doesn't have 802.11n.

Pros

  • +

    Good throughput for price

  • +

    Powerful setup program

  • +

    Excellent security

Cons

  • -

    Expensive PC Card adapter

  • -

    Not nearly as fast as premium 802.11n routers

  • -

    No Gigabit Ethernet support

Why you can trust Laptop Mag Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

For $119, the Linksys WRT150N is one of the best deals in wireless networking today. Of course, a good deal usually comes with a few tradeoffs, and this router offers only a slim feature set and slower speeds than premium 802.11n routers.

The WRT150N--which Linksys has positioned as a bargain router for those who don't want to pay $149 for the WRT300N Wireless-N Broadband Router--is a bare-bones device with only two antennas, compared with the three found on most N routers. It has a smaller footprint than other routers but otherwise has the exact same design as every other Linksys model. The company includes a powerful and (mostly) stress-free setup program that eases you through the configuration process, prompting you to save your security password as a text file and walking you through most options easily enough.

This model seems stripped down in other ways, however. There aren't any parental-control filters, and the 10/100-Mbps wired ports are too slow for high-def video transfers around your home; most premium routers use 1-Gbps ports. Also, there isn't a matching ExpressCard. For the best speed, you have to buy the Linksys WPC300N PC Card, which, at $119, is the same price as the router.

On our tests, the WRT150N sped along at about 88 Mbps under the best conditions, using a four-endpoint test with Ixia IxChariot 6.4. In a 4,000-square-foot house, the Wi-Fi signal spread far and wide up to about 600 feet but provided a shaky, inconsistent signal at 1,000 feet and beyond. At its bargain price, this model can't compete with the faster speeds we've seen on higher-end N routers, such as the Apple AirPort Extreme or Buffalo WZR-AG300NH, but you get what you pay for.

Overall, the WRT150N delivers what you might expect for $100, with a setup program that's both powerful and straightforward, but we wish there were a bargain-price 802.11n PC Card adapter to match.

Linksys WRT150N Specs

Company Websitehttp://www.linksys.com
Size7.4 x 6.9 x 1.6 inches
Supported Protocols802.11b, Draft 802.11n, 802.3u, 802.3, 802.11g
Warranty/SupportOne-year parts and labor, 24/7
Weight1.2 pounds
More