ASUS may be known for their motherboards, but they have a wide range of computer products which include award winning netbooks, video cards, tablets, sound cards and even network products. Bigbruin.com has covered many of these products with favorable results. Today we will be taking a look at the RT-N56U dual-band wireless-N600 Gigabit router. This router has a wide range of impressive features such as dual band broadcasting, dual USB ports for hard drives or printers, Gigabit ethernet, encryption, and full support for today's advanced wireless standards.



The promotional image above provides a glimpse of this router, and its unique look which includes a "latticed" finish and diamond shaped elements. Before taking a closer look at the sample provided for review, let's look at some of its published features and specifications as taken from the official product page on the ASUS website.

Features:

» Dual-band for Lag-free Entertainment - Double your wireless performance and bandwidth with simultaneous 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands speed up to 300Mbps concurrently.

» Gigabit Internet Surfing with Hardware NAT - Equipped with a capable hardware NAT acceleration engine and built-in Gigabit Ethernet, it gives you full Gigabit internet performance, making its WAN to LAN throughput up to 2-5 times that of traditional software-based NAT Gigabit routers.

» Ai Radar Optimized and Reliable Wireless Coverage - This unique and efficient design drastically increases wireless signal coverage and quality without increasing power consumption.

» Multi-Function Twin USB Ports - With effortless connectivity to a range of devices and FTP, SAMBA, UPnP AV server and DLNA standard compatible all supported, sharing and networking become easier than ever. Plus, the RT-N56U can continue downloading FTTP, FTP and BitTorrent file to the USB disk all day even when your PC is turned off. Additionally, the twin USB ports allow the router to offer printer and file server functions, so you enjoy simultaneous wireless printing, scanning and file sharing via the comfort of standardized USB!

Specifications:

» LAN Ports:
   » WAN x 1, LAN x 4 RJ-45 for 10/100/1000 Base T
   » Supports Ethernet and 802.3 with max bit rate 10/100/1000Mbps and auto cross-over function

» Antenna:
   » 2 x internal antenna for 2.4GHz application with 3.8dBi gain
   » 3 x internal antenna for 5GHz application with 5.1dBi gain

» Memory:
   » 8 MB flash and 128 MB RAM

» USB port:
   » USB2.0 x 2

» DC Power Adapter:
   » AC input: 100V-240V (50-60HZ)
   » DC output: 19V/1.58A

» Size:
   » 172 x 145 x 60 mm (6.77” x 5.7” x 2.36”)

» Weight:
   » 330g (0.73lb)

» Operating Frequency:
   » Simultaneous 2.4GHz and 5GHz

» Data Rate:
   » 802.11n: up to 300Mbps
   » 802.11a/g: up to 54Mbps
   » 802.11b: up to 11Mbps

» Encryption:
   » Supports 64/128-bit WEP
   » WPA-PSK, WPA2-PSK
   » WPA-Enterprise, WPA2-Enterprise
   » WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup)

» Management:
   » Quality of Service and traffic monitor
   » DHCP server (up to 253 IP addresses)
   » Web-based administration
   » Firmware upgrade
   » Save/restore configuration file

» Network Protocol:
   » Automatic IP, static IP, PPPoE (MPPE supported), PPTP, L2TP

» Security:
   » Firewall: NAT and SPI (Stateful Packet Inspection), intrusion detection including logging
   » Logging: dropped packet, security event, syslog
   » Filtering: port, IP packet, URL keyword, MAC address