CES 2009

The all new true dual-band wireless router WNDR3700 at CES 2009.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks.)

I reviewed the Netgear WNDR3300 wireless router a while ago and complained that it wasn't a true dual-band router, citing that it was only able to offer Draft N performance in one band at a time. Now at CES 2009, Netgear makes up for that with its all new successor called RangeMax Dual Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router WNDR3700.

Netgear hopes to make the WNDR3700 the ultimate in wireless routers for both home and small business environments. Like all true dual-band wireless routers, such as the D-Link DIR-825 or the Linksys WRT610N, the WNDR3700 features separate Wireless-N access points that can operate concurrently. This means both 5Ghz-based and 2.4Ghz-based wireless-N clients can get connected to the router at the same time.

The router also supports Gigabit Ethernet with all of its ports (4 LAN and one WAN) being able to handle bandwidth up to 1000Mbps. Like the Linksys WRT610N, the WNDR3700 supports external storage via its USB port. Coupled with an external hard drive, the router offers network storage functionality to all computers in the network.

Other than that, the rest of the router's features include:

• Powered by a 680 MHz MIPS processor, efficient power amplifiers and eight ultrasensitive antennas--promising some of the highest speeds and most reliable coverage.
• Advanced QoS with automatic traffic shaping ensures lagfree gaming, solid VoIP call connections, and jitter-free HD streaming.
• New Smart Wizard installation process, featuring a multilanguage graphical user interface
• Simplifies security setup with a "Push 'N' Connect" button that seamlessly connects wireless clients based on WPS
• Provides double firewall to protect the network from external hacker attacks
• Supports multiple SSID feature for guest access
• Configurable as a wireless repeater

The new Netgear WNDR3700 will be available in the first quarter of 2009 and is estimated to cost $179.

Netgear's mobile router at CES 2009.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)

D-Link did this a while ago by making its DIR-825 router support USB 3G mobile modems, and today at CES, Netgear introduced its 3G-only mobile router, the MBR624GU.

The router has a compact form factor and can be used only with USB 3G modems. It is compatible with most 3G modems on the market. It will not, however, work with other DSL or cable modems like most regular wireless routers do.

The MBR624GU mobile router doesn't have a WAN network port to support regular broadband modems.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)

It's rather disappointing that the MBR624GU doesn't support Draft N but instead stays with the 802.11g standard speed, which caps at 54Mbps. While this speed is already faster than the cell data speed that most cell carriers can offer, data exchanging between computers within a wireless network would benefit from the much faster wireless-N speed.

Other than that, the MBR624GU shares a long list of networking features with other Netgear routers such as Wi-Fi Protected Setup, double firewall, VPN pass-through and the option to turn the Wi-Fi on/off with a button. The router supports the highest level of Wi-Fi and WPA security encryption. It will also work with most universal car-power adapters.

This seems like a great router for those who are on the go and need to share their mobile cellular data plans with others. If you are looking for a router that can handle both mobile USB modems and regular broadband modems, however, I would recommend the D-Link DIR-825.

The 3G Mobile Broadband Wireless Router MBR624GU will be available in the first quarter of 2009 with the estimated price of $129.

The Internet TV Player at Netgear's CES demo.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)

Together with the Digital Entertainer Elite, Netgear showed on Wednesday its new Internet TV Player (ITV2000).

This is an Internet set-top device with a simple remote control that allows viewers to watch Internet videos from various sources on their TV screens. It works with both new HDTVs and old analog TVs.

The purpose of the device is to display on a big screen TV what you would normally watch alone on your computer.

Currently, the device can stream content from popular sites such as BBC.com, CNN.com, ESPN.com, EuroSport.com, NBC.com, PGATour and TMZ.com, as well as video powerhouses YouTube, Google Videos, Yahoo Videos, and MetaCafe.

The Internet TV Player supports streaming of live TV broadcasts from Internet sites around the world. It can also handle paid movies from on-demand services such as CinemaNow.com.

The device can perform intelligent searches of Internet videos, including targeting video sites by country, topic of interest, person, or popular Web site. It can also play video, music, and photos from a local USB flash drive, as well as from the Netgear's ReadyNAS family of network storage solutions.

The Internet TV Player connects to the home network and the Internet via Ethernet or wireless USB adapter.

What the ITV2000 can do is not new; the Sony Bravia can do pretty much the same thing. However, the ITV2000 is the first device to deliver the technology in such a small package. It is just slightly larger than a deck of cards.

The Netgear Internet TV Player is expected to be available in early Summer 2009 with the estimated price of $199.

The Digital Entertainer Elite EVA9150 at Netgear's CES demo.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)

During CES 2007, Netgear joined the home entertainment department with the Netgear EVA8000 Digital Entertainer HD, a networked digital content streaming device. Two years later, Netgear unveils the device's successor, the Digital Entertainer Elite EVA9150, which offers a few significant improvements.

First off, it now comes with a 500GB internal hard drive for extra local content storage. This means the device now not only works as a media-streaming device but it can also store content on its own. The hard drive is even removable so you can change or replace it with a larger hard drive.

Secondly, the new player now sports Draft N wireless (as opposed to the sluggish 802.11g in the EVA8000), making it a true wireless HD media streamer. The device supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies with a speed of up to 300Mbps.

The EVA9150's wired connection, however, remains at 100Mbps, which is disappointing considering its wireless connection could be three times as fast.

Like the EVA8000, the new player can plays video, MP3s, and digital photos from PCs, Macs, or a network attached storage device to your HDTV. It can streams media directly from the Internet sources, such as YouTube, Internet radio, Flickr photos, RSS feeds, and podcasts. The EVA9150 can also automatically find all shared digital media files on your home network and organizes them into an easily accessible library.

The Digital Entertainer Elite EVA9150 has a long list of supported multimedia content formats, including:

• MP3 up to 320Kbps or variable bit rate
• WMA8 and WMA9 files up to 192 Kbps or variable bit rate
• WMV9 up to 1080p (to 40Mbps)
• Internet radio (streaming MP3)
• Video codecs: MPEG 1/2/4 SD; MPEG-2 HD; HP@HL to 40 Mbps; MPEG-4 Part 2 HP@HL to 10 Mbps (Xvid); H.264 HP@HL 4.1, VC1/WMV9HD to 1080p 40 Mbps
• Video file formats: AVI, DivX, Xvid, WMV9, MOV, M4V, VOB, MPG, MP1, MP2, MP4, ISO, IFO, MKV (with AC3 only), TS, M2TS, PS Audio formats: MP3, WAV, WMA, AAC, FLAC, WMA-Pro, M4A, M4P, AC3, DTS pass-through, PCM, LPCM, AIFF
• Photo formats: JPEG, BMP, PNG, TIFF

On the back of the device, you will find the following ports:

• HDMI for audiovisual output
• RCA connector for composite video output
• RCA connectors for component video output (high-definition support)
• Digital audio output S/PDIF (coaxial/optical)
• Stereo RCA audio ports
• USB 2.0 port
• Ethernet port
• S-Video port
• SCART composite and RGB

Netgear's new Digital Entertainer Elite EVA9150 is expected to be available in the U.S. in February for $399. In the meantime, you can check out CNET's review of the Netgear EVA8000 Digital Entertainer HD for more information.

The EVA9150's ports

(Credit: Netgear)