You sure can tell it’s CES week. D-Link has jumped in and is reporting several new products, including the new Xtreme N450 Wi-Fi router using the N protocol. It’ll be released in the second quarter, although pricing hasn’t been set yet. The big draw here is a claim that it’ll support unreal speeds of up to 450 Mbps. Really the only other interesting thing about it is that it’ll have built-in printer sharing. That’s at least mildly interesting.
Now personally, I’ve never seen the speeds that these router manufactures claim they are capable of. At least, not wirelessly.
Fancy quickness aside, D-Link’s also thrown everyone a curveball with the 802.11n Xtreme! N! DIR-685! router which features a… photo frame?
"This router is the ideal solution for the consumer who wants to be the first on his or her block with the ultimate ‘all-in-one’ networking device," says Daniel Kelley, senior director of marketing for D-Link Systems in Fountain Valley, Calif. "Not only does it offer full functionality as a router/NAS storage/print server/FTP device, it is attractive on any desktop, environmentally friendly and Internet secure."
If you live on a block that’s competitive about who’s getting the first “all-in-one” networking device, then you should probably move to a less nerdly street. The DIR-685 looks pretty unique, though, as its 3.2-inch LCD “displays device status via graphical gauges, digital photos, streamed video, weather forecasts and other live streaming Internet content in up to 1.6 million colors” customizable via website InternetPhotoFrame.com. There are also two USB ports on the back for sharing printers and whatnot.
Pricing? Nope. Availability? Nope. Great, thanks for the info!