Assessing Your Speed Requirements - NETGEAR WNDR3400 - N600 Wireless Dual Band Router User Manual

• Powerline. For connecting rooms or floors that are blocked by obstructions or are distant
vertically, consider networking over your building's AC wiring. NETGEAR's Powerline HD
family of products delivers up to 200 Mbps to any outlet, while the older-generation XE
family of products delivers 14 Mbps or 85 Mbps. Data transmissions are encrypted for
security, and you can configure an individual network password to prevent neighbors from
connecting.
The Powerline HD family of products can coexist on the same network with older-generation
XE family products or HomePlug 1.0 products, but they are not interoperable with these older
products.
• Wired Ethernet. As gigabit-speed Ethernet ports (10/100/1000 Mbps) become common on
newer computers, wired Ethernet remains a good choice for speed, economy, and security.
Gigabit Ethernet can extend up to 100 meters with twisted-pair wiring of CAT-5e or better. A
wired connection is not susceptible to interference, and eavesdropping would require a
physical connection to your network.
Note: Actual data throughput will vary. Network conditions and environmental factors,
including volume of network traffic, building materials and construction, and
network overhead, can lower actual data throughput rate.

Assessing Your Speed Requirements

Because your Internet connection is likely to operate at a much lower speed than your local
network, faster local networking technologies might not improve your Internet experience.
However, many emerging home applications require high data rates. For example:
• Streaming HD video requires 10 to 30 Mbps per stream. Because latency and packet loss can
disrupt your video, plan to provide at least twice the capacity you need.
• Streaming MP3 audio requires less than 1 Mbps per stream and does not strain most modern
networks. Like video, however, streaming audio is also sensitive to latency and packet loss, so
a congested network or a noisy link can cause problems.
Fine-Tuning Your Network
N600 Wireless Dual Band Router WNDR3400 User Manual
v1.0, August 2010
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