There are many broadband Internet sharing devices on the
market today. What is unique about the Linksys Instant
Broadband EtherFast Cable/DSL & Voice Router is that
not only does it act as an Internet/data sharing device,
but it also
features Voice over IP capabilities as well. A nice
feature of the Voice Router is that there is no need to
boot up a PC to make a VoIP call. Using just an ordinary
analog telephone connected to the RJ-11 port on the back
of the router, calls are routed across the Internet
through Net2Phone's
network to a phone located anywhere in the world.
INSTALLATION
Installing the Voice Router was an absolute snap. We
connected an RJ-45 network wire from a cable modem to
the Voice Router, another RJ-45 from the Voice Router to
a PC, and then connected the power cord. We booted up
the PC and it automatically acquired an IP address from
the DHCP functionality built into the Voice Router. We
were immediately able to browse the Web. That was it. It
was pretty much as "plug and play" as it gets! Though,
we did log on to the Web administrator to customize
various settings as well as enter our Net2Phone account
number and PIN. Also, once we were ready to test the
Net2Phone feature, we had to connect an analog phone to
the analog port.
DOCUMENTATION
The documentation was very good. It contained
step-by-step installation instructions and included
screenshots on how to perform various configurations. In
addition, tips were included on how to get multi-player
online games to work through the LinkSys firewall.
Instructions and detailed screenshots on how to
configure your Windows TCP/IP settings were also
included. Unfortunately, if you are running Linux, UNIX,
Macintosh, or some other operating system, you're out of
luck in finding detailed instructions for them.
FEATURES
The Linksys router supports several standards including
PAP, CHAP, PPP, and PPPoE. Other significant features
include four switched 10/100 Ethernet ports, IPSec and
PPTP Pass through, remote administration and upgrades
over the Internet, as well as DHCP server functionality
to assign IP addresses. Like most Internet sharing
devices, the Linksys product also has a Web-based
administration GUI that is very easy to navigate.
Although only four ports are available, the Router
supports up to 253 PCs on the network by daisy chaining
other network switches and/or hubs. Of course this
router also acts as a firewall with configurable
policies to protect your internal LAN. Administrators
can even block specific internal users' Internet access
with filtering. LinkSys offers free technical support 24
hours a day, seven days a week (North America Only), as
well as a one year warranty.
OPERATIONAL TESTING
After testing the Internet access, which performed
flawlessly, we tinkered with the DMZ (demilitarized
zone), which allows you to publish a single IP address
that is in front of the firewall. This is a useful
feature for applications that cannot reside behind a
firewall. We should point out that the Voice Router has
a "keep alive option" that keeps PPPoE-enabled Internet
access connected indefinitely, even when it sits idle,
simply by sending out a few data packets periodically.
The Voice Router has other features and capabilities,
such as filters and IPSec, but we decided to focus on
the VoIP functionality. After all, our main purpose in
getting the Voice Router for review was to test the
integrated VoIP functionality, which is quite unique for
an Internet sharing gateway device. We were not
disappointed. After entering the account number and PIN
(included with the Voice Router), we simply picked up
the analog phone connected to the Voice Router and
entered a phone number followed by "#."
Also, since the Voice Router works with any analog
device, we actually hooked up one of our cordless phones
just so we could have a "pseudo-wireless VoIP phone
call." In any event, the call went through and we were
able to have a conversation with minimal latency and
very good sound quality. The VoIP functionality worked
without a hitch and we thought it a bit strange that we
were using a regular phone (cordless even) as opposed to
having to wear a headset or use an external microphone.
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
We would like to see support for SIP as well as other
ITSPs besides Net2Phone. We would also like to see the
unit allow a service provider to provision a regular
PSTN phone number which routes the call to the LinkSys
voice router, perhaps using standards such as SIP or
ENUM. Instructions for configuring the TCP/IP settings
on other operating systems besides Windows would be
beneficial. Finally, we recommend that the Voice Router
store call information (accessible via the Web
administrator) that would allow a user to view all calls
made and estimate billing charges.
CONCLUSION
There are many competing Internet sharing devices on the
market today, and certainly LinkSys is one of the
best-known companies in this space. TMC Labs was most
impressed by LinkSys' integration of VoIP functionality,
which just may be the key differentiator when choosing a
product in this genre. As such, we applaud Linksys for
combining data and voice onto a single platform, which
helped it earn an Editors' Choice award.
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To The August 2001 Table Of Contents ]
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