Netgear, a provider of networking products, has launched RangeMax Wireless-N Gigabit Router with USB (WNR3500L), an open source router offering Gigabit Ethernet ports and ReadyShare USB storage access.
The company said that the new router runs on Linux platform supporting applications created by multiple development partners and the dedicated open source community. Some of these partners include BigFoot Networks for providing network speeds for online gaming, Leaf Networks for remote access, Paragon Software for USB file reads and writes, and Sputnik for hotspot locations. Linux-based firmware such as DD-WRT, OpenWRT and Tomato, are also available on the new router.
According to Netgear, the new product features a 480MHz MIPS 74K CPU core with embedded hardware acceleration and incorporates 8 MB of flash memory and 64 MB of RAM. It features five 10/100/1000 (one WAN port and four LAN) ethernet ports with auto-sensing technology with WAN to LAN speeds in excess of 350 Mbps.
The company added that the router incorporates an 802.11n access point with a wireless repeater mode to extend range. In addition to its Gigabit Ethernet ports, the router includes a USB 2.0 host port for USB networked storage and for developing other custom applications, including remote access; and DLNA/UPnP Media Server support, and USB modem support for 3G/4G/WiMax cellular connections.
The new router protects the network from intruders via a double firewall and Denial-of-service attack prevention. The company claims that the wireless connection is secured with support for Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA), WPA2-PSK, while Push ‘N’ Connect using Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) allows users to add computers to the network securely.
Som Pal Choudhury, senior product line manager for advanced wireless at NETGEAR, said: The debut of our opensource RangeMax Wireless-N Gigabit Router is significant as it is the first full-featured Wireless-N Linux router to combine wide ranging capabilities, features, infrastructure and a community to enable application development.
“Feedback and ideas from our open source community have been key in developing this powerful platform. We are therefore very pleased to announce our Development Partner Program, with multiple software vendors and developers creating customised, robust, commercial-grade applications on the WNR3500L.
