Edimax BR-6104K Broadband Router

The Edimax BR-6104K is an inexpensive router that still has all the features any home user or small business will need.

Introduction

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Over the years of doing networking, I have worked with Linksys and D-Link routers for small business and home networking.  These have been the devices I have recommended to my customers with my consulting firm.  After getting an e-mail from a company called Edimax and then receiving the BR-6104K, I wanted to see if I would add them to my list of vendors I would use and recommend.

The Company

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First, let’s find out who Edimax is! Here’s some info from the company’s web site.

Established in 1986, EDIMAX Technology Co., Ltd. is part of the Harvest Group of Enterprises.  We   design, manufacture and market innovative, high-quality networking products.  From our base in Taiwan, our products are promoted in all major markets and shipped to almost every country in the world.  Thanks to our rapid growth, total revenue topped US$43 million in 2001 with a global workforce of over 700. In 2002, revenue is expected to reach another peak of US$53 million.

EDIMAX products cover LAN and WAN networking solutions. Our product categories include Network Interface Cards (NIC), Switching Hubs, Print Servers, Broadband Routers, Wireless LAN solutions and other accessories. We provide complete solutions for enterprise, workgroup and SOHO markets.

EDIMAX is a service-oriented company.  We pride ourselves on providing complete and innovative products to the marketplace and stress our own in-house R&D.  All products shipped by us have passed strict quality control and compatibility testing.  All products have passed FCC, CE and Microsoft, Novell and NSTL certification where required.

Edimax’s growth has continued through the end of 2003 with revenue of US$69 million.

The Product

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Let’s look at what this router has to offer. Here’s a quick list of features.

• Broadband Router, 1 x WAN + 4 x Switch 
• Internet Access via Cable or xDSL
• Supporting UPNP, DHCP, Auto MDI/X
• Virtual Server and DMZ
• Hacker Attack Prevention (DoS)
• Datasheet User Manual
• NAT / NAPT IP Sharing 
• SPI Anti-DoS Firewall 
• Supports DDNS (DynDNS / TZO)
• Supports Special Applications (Port Triggers) 
• VPN Pass Through (IPSec / PPTP / L2TP)
• Obtains WAN IP by PPPoE / Static IP / PPTP / DHCP
• Bridge Mode Between WAN and LAN
• Web User Interface (Remote Configuration)
• System Status (Port Connectivity, DHCP MAC / IP Mapping)
• Security Log
• Firmware Upgrade

lP Sharing
The NAT/NAPT function lets you share the ADSL line to all the Intranet users (support up to 253 users). It also provides virtual server and virtual DMZ functions to let your internal servers be accessed from the Internet.

Supports Special Applications
The router can let you setup trigger ports of special applications, and let you utilize Internet services smoothly.

Anti-DoS SPI Firewall
The SPI (Stateful Packet Inspection) firewall can protect your Intranet PCs from illegal access and many kinds of DoS attacks from the Internet, and alert you by e-mail if some event happens. It also provides Internet access control function.

Virtual Server and DMZ
The virtual server and DMZ function let you setup your servers in the Intranet and still can provide services to the Internet users.

UPnP
UPnP let you configure Internet connection easily and use special Internet applications more smoothly.

DHCP
Automatically assigning IP addresses to networked PCs.

Web Configuration
You can configure the router through the friendly Web user interface with a browser.

The box contains the router, power adapter and a CD with the user manual.

Some more specs:

• High Performance RISC CPU
• 8 MB SDRAM
• 40 MBPS throughput
• 1 10/100 WAN port
• 4 10/100 LAN port

Using the Router

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I have used the router for over two weeks now and have found it to work perfectly.  Considering I have had no issues with any of the features, I still decided to test the one thing that scares most people — a firmware upgrade!  I downloaded the firmware from Edimax’s web site in a zip format.  Unzipping the file showed I had a .bin file for the new firmware.  Using the router’s built-in update utility, I updated the firmware, and the router rebooted within a minute. The only noticeable change is that they did have an IP address in the new firmware for the time server.  This is a small but nice feature. 

The interface is clean and user-friendly	Set up your time zone
The Router supports many types of connections	The LAN Settings
The router offers protection against several DoS attacks.	The advanced DoS settings lets you choose exactly which DoS attack to protect from.

With all the viruses and hackers out there today, I would say having a router is a must.  Even for one machine, you are getting protection against hackers on boot up before software firewalls come up.  I did testing from www.broadband.com and www.grc.com to let them try to break past the router, and they could not.  This is the kind of protection I expect from a router.

Conclusion

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It is amazing to see what has happened to the price of routers.  They have dropped considerably compared to even a year ago. Priced at $34.00 on Newegg, I do not think you can go wrong with this router.

Pros:
·  Small sleek design
·  Reset Switch
·  Easy to read LED
·  Port 4 auto sensing for cross over for hub
·  Extremely easy to configure

Cons:
·   None noticed

I’m awarding this router a 9.5 out of 10 and the Golden Bear Award!