ASUS WL-700gE Wireless Router

Rob Williams · 04-23-2007, 09:21 PM

There have been many feature-packed routers to come out of the ASUS shops in the past year, but the WL-700gE takes the cake thanks to its pre-installed 160GB hard drive. Is this NAS/Router hybrid worth your $200?

You can read the full review here and discuss it here.

04-24-2007, 08:08 AM

1 thing I'd like to know is does the router spin down the drive when not in use? Over time this could make quite a difference in the life of the harddrive.

Thanks in advance.

Greg King · 04-24-2007, 10:01 AM

Thats a very good question and one I was about to ask.

To add to that, whats the upgradability of the hard drive? Would it be to difficult to change out the provided 160 or 250 gb drive and throw in, say, a 500 gb? Could this be as simple as simply ghosting the old drive onto the new one?

Rob Williams · 04-24-2007, 01:01 PM

From what I can tell, the drive does spin down, but it doesn't turn off if it's not in use, similar to when in use on a PC. As for upgradability, it's something I wanted to touch on, but I didn't have a spare hard drive to test it out. It would depend primarily on three things.

1) The firmware would have to support over 250GB... if it does it shouldn't be much of a problem.
2) The drive has to be formatted in RAW (From what I can tell, not even sure how to accomplish this)
3) It might need various system related files.

Once I get a spare HDD I will test it out.

vinnie97 · 04-28-2007, 07:15 AM

Congrats on posting this. The only thing this device is missing is Draft N, right?

That's a big bummer for me, since Asus is guaranteeing upgradability on the AL-500W.

NicePants42 · 04-28-2007, 09:17 AM

I haven't kept up with the latest draft N hardware, but the last roundup I read indicated that not only did draft N not offer any significant speed improvement, but it also had a tendency to interfere with non-N networks.

I'm sticking with my linksys until N is no longer a draft.

Rob Williams · 04-28-2007, 03:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinnie97

Congrats on posting this. The only thing this device is missing is Draft N, right?

That's a big bummer for me, since Asus is guaranteeing upgradability on the AL-500W.

I wonder if it's possible that the 700gE could go through the same upgrade? I'd find it weird that a firmware update could take care of that, thought. Chances are they will release a Draft N version of the router if it sells well enough.

moon111 · 04-28-2007, 04:50 PM

That's one sweet looking device. Would be cool to be able to download content then have any one be able to turn on a computer or HTPC and watch a movie. I hate making DVDs. The ability to upgrade the harddrive is an interesting question. How about remotely accessing a webcam?

Rob Williams · 04-28-2007, 05:11 PM

I couldn't get that feature to work, but I'm not sure if it's because I am using a crappy webcam. I had problems with it before (Notebooks Pro), so I wouldn't blame the router before the webcam. I can't really comment though.

vinnie97 · 04-28-2007, 11:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NicePants42

I haven't kept up with the latest draft N hardware, but the last roundup I read indicated that not only did draft N not offer any significant speed improvement, but it also had a tendency to interfere with non-N networks.

I'm sticking with my linksys until N is no longer a draft.

I can get up to 60Mbps throughput with the Asus AL500W from a floor below the router using both Linksys and Asus hardware clients. I'm happy with the results.

Rob, you're probably right, though Apple pulled a similar move when they offered an 802.11n upgrade to their Airport routers.

Rob Williams · 05-01-2007, 01:38 AM

What kind of connection are you keeping on the floor below? I am having a bizarre problem with my moms PC still. Though I am using WPA-PSK, sometimes her PC will just randomly change it to WPA2-PSK, so I have to come out and change it back. Very annoying... I wish I knew why it was happening.

BTW, tell me what WoW to pick up, and I'll order it... you Tiesto h8r.

vinnie97 · 05-10-2007, 02:11 AM

LOL, the connection down below is pretty solid. I fudged the results a bit above...the highest I actually remember seeing with Qcheck is 54 Mbps.

Sometimes Windows reports an "excellent" signal yet is only connected at "162 Mbps." I'm not sure why that is but this is with utilizing WPA2-PSA utilizing AES encryption.

And there are 2 other WOW albums besides the last...one's the debut (self-titled) and the other is Intensify. I'd recommend both.

05-15-2007, 10:39 PM

hey there, just bought the asus wl 700ge and internet won't work, am on dsl, prolink h9200 modem with pppoa settings, anybody have any advice, have tried dhcp, pppoe, ppptp and static ip just wont work, anyone have any advice?

09-28-2007, 04:41 AM

Hi,

I am very new to networking/routers and was wondering if there would be an issue here for an Imac, PC and laptop (Both on XP) to all run off this router?

I love the features of the extra storage and the continued downloads.

Can anyone tell me if there would be an issue across platforms?

04-23-2007, 09:21 PM	#1
Rob Williams Editor in Chief Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Atlantic Canada Posts: 8,921	ASUS WL-700gE Wireless Router There have been many feature-packed routers to come out of the ASUS shops in the past year, but the WL-700gE takes the cake thanks to its pre-installed 160GB hard drive. Is this NAS/Router hybrid worth your $200? You can read the full review here and discuss it here. __________________ Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 @ 3.20GHz, ASUS P5K Premium WiFi-AP, OCZ 8GB PC2-6400, EVGA GTX 285 1024MB Seagate 500GB, 750GB & 1TB, Pioneer 22x ODD, Corsair 1000HX, Thermalright Ultra-120, CM Storm Sniper Dell 2408WFP 24", ASUS Xonar Essence STX, Ultrasone PRO 750, Gentoo Linux (KDE 4.3.2, 2.6.31 Kernel) "Take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get!" - H.P. Baxxter Profiles: Last.fm \| Xbox Live \| Steam

04-24-2007, 01:01 PM	#4
Rob Williams Editor in Chief Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Atlantic Canada Posts: 8,921	From what I can tell, the drive does spin down, but it doesn't turn off if it's not in use, similar to when in use on a PC. As for upgradability, it's something I wanted to touch on, but I didn't have a spare hard drive to test it out. It would depend primarily on three things. 1) The firmware would have to support over 250GB... if it does it shouldn't be much of a problem. 2) The drive has to be formatted in RAW (From what I can tell, not even sure how to accomplish this) 3) It might need various system related files. Once I get a spare HDD I will test it out. __________________ Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 @ 3.20GHz, ASUS P5K Premium WiFi-AP, OCZ 8GB PC2-6400, EVGA GTX 285 1024MB Seagate 500GB, 750GB & 1TB, Pioneer 22x ODD, Corsair 1000HX, Thermalright Ultra-120, CM Storm Sniper Dell 2408WFP 24", ASUS Xonar Essence STX, Ultrasone PRO 750, Gentoo Linux (KDE 4.3.2, 2.6.31 Kernel) "Take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get!" - H.P. Baxxter Profiles: Last.fm \| Xbox Live \| Steam

04-28-2007, 05:11 PM	#9
Rob Williams Editor in Chief Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Atlantic Canada Posts: 8,921	I couldn't get that feature to work, but I'm not sure if it's because I am using a crappy webcam. I had problems with it before (Notebooks Pro), so I wouldn't blame the router before the webcam. I can't really comment though. __________________ Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 @ 3.20GHz, ASUS P5K Premium WiFi-AP, OCZ 8GB PC2-6400, EVGA GTX 285 1024MB Seagate 500GB, 750GB & 1TB, Pioneer 22x ODD, Corsair 1000HX, Thermalright Ultra-120, CM Storm Sniper Dell 2408WFP 24", ASUS Xonar Essence STX, Ultrasone PRO 750, Gentoo Linux (KDE 4.3.2, 2.6.31 Kernel) "Take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get!" - H.P. Baxxter Profiles: Last.fm \| Xbox Live \| Steam

05-01-2007, 01:38 AM	#11
Rob Williams Editor in Chief Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Atlantic Canada Posts: 8,921	What kind of connection are you keeping on the floor below? I am having a bizarre problem with my moms PC still. Though I am using WPA-PSK, sometimes her PC will just randomly change it to WPA2-PSK, so I have to come out and change it back. Very annoying... I wish I knew why it was happening. BTW, tell me what WoW to pick up, and I'll order it... you Tiesto h8r. __________________ Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 @ 3.20GHz, ASUS P5K Premium WiFi-AP, OCZ 8GB PC2-6400, EVGA GTX 285 1024MB Seagate 500GB, 750GB & 1TB, Pioneer 22x ODD, Corsair 1000HX, Thermalright Ultra-120, CM Storm Sniper Dell 2408WFP 24", ASUS Xonar Essence STX, Ultrasone PRO 750, Gentoo Linux (KDE 4.3.2, 2.6.31 Kernel) "Take care to get what you like, or you will be forced to like what you get!" - H.P. Baxxter Profiles: Last.fm \| Xbox Live \| Steam

05-15-2007, 10:39 PM	#13
wekoweko@gmail.com Guest Poster Posts: n/a	help hey there, just bought the asus wl 700ge and internet won't work, am on dsl, prolink h9200 modem with pppoa settings, anybody have any advice, have tried dhcp, pppoe, ppptp and static ip just wont work, anyone have any advice?

04-24-2007, 08:08 AM	#2
EZero Guest Poster Posts: n/a	1 thing I'd like to know is does the router spin down the drive when not in use? Over time this could make quite a difference in the life of the harddrive. Thanks in advance.

04-24-2007, 10:01 AM	#3
Greg King Tech Junkie Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,976	Thats a very good question and one I was about to ask. To add to that, whats the upgradability of the hard drive? Would it be to difficult to change out the provided 160 or 250 gb drive and throw in, say, a 500 gb? Could this be as simple as simply ghosting the old drive onto the new one?

04-28-2007, 07:15 AM	#5
vinnie97 Obliviot Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 7	Congrats on posting this. The only thing this device is missing is Draft N, right? That's a big bummer for me, since Asus is guaranteeing upgradability on the AL-500W.

04-28-2007, 09:17 AM	#6
NicePants42 Partition Master Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 383	I haven't kept up with the latest draft N hardware, but the last roundup I read indicated that not only did draft N not offer any significant speed improvement, but it also had a tendency to interfere with non-N networks. I'm sticking with my linksys until N is no longer a draft.

04-28-2007, 04:50 PM	#8
moon111 Partition Master Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Ontario Canada Posts: 269	That's one sweet looking device. Would be cool to be able to download content then have any one be able to turn on a computer or HTPC and watch a movie. I hate making DVDs. The ability to upgrade the harddrive is an interesting question. How about remotely accessing a webcam?

05-10-2007, 02:11 AM	#12
vinnie97 Obliviot Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 7	LOL, the connection down below is pretty solid. I fudged the results a bit above...the highest I actually remember seeing with Qcheck is 54 Mbps. Sometimes Windows reports an "excellent" signal yet is only connected at "162 Mbps." I'm not sure why that is but this is with utilizing WPA2-PSA utilizing AES encryption. And there are 2 other WOW albums besides the last...one's the debut (self-titled) and the other is Intensify. I'd recommend both.

09-28-2007, 04:41 AM	#14
sixfoot10 Guest Poster Posts: n/a	platform compatibility Hi, I am very new to networking/routers and was wondering if there would be an issue here for an Imac, PC and laptop (Both on XP) to all run off this router? I love the features of the extra storage and the continued downloads. Can anyone tell me if there would be an issue across platforms?

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