BEST NETWORKING PRODUCTS OF 2013

     

ROUTER
BUFFALO AIRSTATION EXTREME AC 1750 GIGABIT DUAL BAND WIRELESS ROUTER
Buffalo’s AirStation Extreme AC1750 Gigabit Dual Band Wireless Router offers good performance and the latest wireless networking standard, 802.11ac. An extremely welldesigned and powerful user interface caps off this premium, feature-rich, dual-band router, which can also operate as an access point or wireless bridge. —SAMARA LYNN

NAS (SOHO/PROSUMER) 
SEAGATE CENTRAL
The Seagate Central is simply the best fixed, single-drive NAS device we’ve tested, and is ideal for sharing and streaming files throughout your home network. Seagate also provides a complimentary remote access service, so you can access your data anywhere, any time. —SL

NAS (SMB)
SYNOLOGY DISKSTATION DS1812+
With capacity of up to 32TB—that can be expanded to 72TB!—and top-notch performance, this box can handle anything an SMB could think to throw at a NAS. The often-dreary task of storage management is brightened by Synology’s Hybrid RAID technology and the ease of configuring the unit’s fault tolerance. —SL

NETWORK UTILITIES

WD MY CLOUD (ANDROID)
The WD My Cloud app is a companion to Western Digital’s My Cloud NAS device, delivering a surprisingly robust level of data management as well as excellent remote access. A well-designed interface makes it a snap to manage the My Cloud from any smartphone. —SL

NETWORK APPLIANCES
KERIO OPERATOR 1210
The Kerio Operator Box 1210 is a full-featured small-business VoIP in a compact box. Good security tools, detailed reporting, and extensive administrative functions sweeten the deal. —SL

NETWORK MANAGEMENT TOOLS
NETWORK TOOLBOX (IOS)
The intuitive Network Toolbox turns your iOS device into a networking toolkit. It’s a one-stop, central console chock full of networking utilities such as SHODAN, FTP, Telnet, Ping, and more. —SL


TECHNO ITEM LIST