05-11-2010, 11:55 AM

Hey all, appreciate any help you can give for this (I'm sure simple) question!

I need to buy a new wireless router, but am not sure if I need a G or N. My MacBook is a few years old (running the originally installed operating system 10.4), so I don't have a super-fast system, it's just a standard model. I do watch streaming video, and there's one other computer on my network.

So, would appreciate your thoughts-- can I get an inexpensive G modem, or are the N models really better for my needs?

Thanks!

05-11-2010, 12:08 PM

Does your machine support N? According to mactracker everything after the 2005 macbook model supported N. Generally speaking the bottleneck for most people is the WAN connection. Most people have 7-20mbps (maybe even 30mbps) - 802.11G is 54mbps at best - so there is generally plenty of bandwidth for most home users with 802.11G. Streaming videos on the internal network - 802.11N will help but I've found that it still doesn't work that well for DVD quality and higher.

If you want to future proof - i.e. when you upgrade 802.11N will have longer legs than 802.11G - but it will cost more for a 802.11N router. You may be able to find refurbished models that bring the price closer. It comes down to personal budget and need.

Again - 802.11N will help moving files on the internal network but you probably won't see any increase in web performance because your bottleneck is your WAN connection.

05-12-2010, 06:27 AM

If there is any future plans that include iPhones and/or Apple TV then i would vote for the Dual Antenna unit. If u don't have any back up system in place then a Time Capsule may save $$$ in the long term.