D-Link DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router

CNET editors' review

The D-Link DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router is one of the latest Draft N routers to the market. Believe us when we say it packs a punch. It's by far the fastest 802.11n router we've tested. At $180, it's also one of the most expensive. We've been reluctant to recommend Draft N routers because the spec isn't final and so far, we haven't seen the throughput speeds offered by the standard. There's no guarantee the Draft N products will comply with the final spec, so our advice for now is to wait until we see products actually based on the final spec, probably around midsummer.

• Device type: Wireless router
• Network standard: 802.11n (draft), 802.11b/g
• Bandwidth: 2.4GHz
• OSes supported: Linux; Mac OS 8.x, 9.x, X 10.x; Windows 98/Me/NT/2000/XP
• Security options: WEP; WPA-PSK; NAT and SPI firewalls, MAC address filtering
• Features: 4 Gigabit LAN ports; DHCP support; VPN passthrough; DDNS
• Notable design features: none
• Support: One-year warranty; 24-7 toll-free phone support; e-mail support form; FAQs; knowledge base; driver and software downloads

Combined with the D-Link Xtreme N Notebook Adapter, we saw the best throughput speeds to date for any router tested here at CNET Labs. Ready for the numbers? In our 10-foot maximum throughput test conducted with an Ixia Chariot console, the average throughput was 112.56Mbps. This is a whopping 30 to 40 points higher than most draft 802.11n routers we've tested in the past. Mixed throughput (with an 11g client) clocked in at 77.42Mbps while throughput at long range (200 feet) was 33.33Mbps.

CNET Labs maximum throughput tests (at 10 feet)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Throughput in Mbps

D-Link DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router

112.56 

Trendnet Wireless N-Draft Router (TEW-631BRP)

83.3 

Netgear WNR834B RangeMax Next Wireless-N router

72.7 

Linksys WRT300N Draft N router

71.5 

D-Link RangeBooster N 650 router

68.1 

Linksys WRT150N Wireless-N Home Router

53.93 

CNET Labs throughput tests with mixed b/g and Draft N clients (at 10 feet)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Throughput in Mbps

D-Link DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router

77.42 

Buffalo AirStation Nfiniti router

60.23 

D-Link RangeBooster N 650 router

58.82 

Trendnet Wireless N-Draft Router (TEW-631BRP)

57.1 

Belkin N1 Wireless Router

53.3 

Linksys WRT300N Draft N router

46 

Linksys WRT150N Wireless-N Home Router

28.6 

Netgear WNR834B RangeMax Next Wireless-N router

26.2 

CNET Labs long-range tests
(Longer bars indicate better performance)

Throughput in Mbps

Trendnet Wireless N-Draft Router (TEW-631BRP)

54.1 

D-Link RangeBooster N 650 router

41.04 

Buffalo AirStation Nfiniti router*

38.18 

Belkin N1 Wireless Router*

33.8 

D-Link DIR-655 Xtreme N Gigabit Router

33.33 

Netgear WNR834B RangeMax Next Wireless-N router

32 

Linksys WRT150N Wireless-N Home Router

20.3 

Linksys WRT300N Draft N router

17 

Basic Specs

Product Specifications:
Device Type: Wireless router
Weight: 11.2 oz
Data Link Protocol: Ethernet , IEEE 802.11b , IEEE 802.11g , Fast Ethernet , Gigabit Ethernet , IEEE 802.11n (draft)
Network / Transport Protocol: L2TP , PPTP , IPSec , TCP/IP , UDP/IP , ICMP/IP
Remote Management Protocol: HTTP
Product Basic Spec:
Dimensions (W x D x H): 7.6 in x 4.6 in x 1.2 in
Form factor: External
Connectivity technology: Wired , Wireless
Switching protocol: Ethernet
Features: NAT support , DHCP support , E-mail alert , Wall mountable , VPN passthrough , Auto-negotiation , Dynamic DNS server , Firewall protection , Firmware upgradable , Auto-sensing per device , Auto-uplink (auto MDI/MDI-X) , Dynamic IP address assignment , Wi-Fi Multimedia (WMM) support , Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI)
Networking standards: IEEE 802.3 , IEEE 802.3u , IEEE 802.11b , IEEE 802.11g , IEEE 802.11n (draft)
Bandwidth: 2.4 GHz
Compatibility: PC , Mac