Category Archives: D-Link

D-Link all-in-One 802.11N router with Photo Frame, Storage

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Dlink-NAS-DIR-685D-Link unveiled its first all-in-one home network router; the DIR-685. The router has all the features of a high-end 802.11n Wi-Fi router combined with Network Attached Storage (NAS), SharePort technology for sharing printers and scanners, along with a high resolution 3.2” LCD monitor for displaying photos, desktop applications and network performance.

Designed with convenience and functionality in mind, the new D-Link Wireless N DIR-685 offers a stylish, even chic addition to the digital home. Its upright design allows users to easily view the LCD screen that displays device status via graphical gauges as well as digital photos, streamed video, weather forecasts and other real-time Internet content in up to 1.6 million colours.

As a router, the DIR-685 features a sleek design made possible, in part, by the router’s internal antennas. The Network Attached Storage (NAS) feature supports both UPnP® server functions and BitTorrent™ downloads. A built-in FTP server allows users to access documents, photos, music and other media locally through the home network or remotely over the Internet.

“This router is the ultimate ‘all-in-one’ home networking device that allows consumers to have access the latest technology, directly in their homes. Not only does it offer full functionality as a router, NAS storage, FTP server and print server, it is all wrapped up in one small package so that it seamlessly blends into any home environment and has the added bonus of being environmentally friendly.”

said Andrew Mulholland, D-Link Marketing Manager, UK & Ireland.

The DIR-685 employs D-Link Green™ technology that helps conserve energy in several ways; by automatically recognising port activity and cable length and adjusting power usage accordingly, by consolidating all functions to a single device instead of many separate products, and by using the idle mode which automatically turns off power to the LCD screen.

A wide local area network (WLAN) scheduler can turn off the router’s Wi-Fi module at a preset time and the power adapter complies with Energy Star specifications for average power savings of up to 30 percent. The same power-saving features located in the router’s gigabit ports are also included in the NAS drive.

Both USB ports located on the back of the DIR-685 utilise new D-Link SharePort technology, enabling multiple users to seamlessly share USB devices, including printers, multi-function printers (MFP) and external hard drives, from any location in the home or office. SharePort turns the local USB ports located on the back of the Wireless N router into a fast and responsive virtual port by utilising a new technology of USB over TCP/IP.

To manage the DIR-685’s featured photo frame, D-Link has partnered with FrameChannel, a free web service (internetphotoframe.com) that allows for the customisation of content displayed on the screen, so photos can be easily accessed and viewed.

“This router is the ideal solution for power consumers who want the ultimate ‘all-in-one’ networking device. Not only does it offer full functionality as a router/NAS storage/print server/FTP device, but it is also attractive on any desktop, environmentally-friendly and Internet-secure.”

says Harrison Albert, Regional Sales Director at D-Link Middle East.

More info for the D-Link DIR-685 can be found www.dlink.co.uk

D-Link DIR-685 Xtreme N storage router review

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SlashGear reviews the nice-looking D-Link DIR-685 Storage Router. Is it a NAS router or a digtal photo frame?

“You’d be forgiven for mistaking the D-Link DIR-685 Xtreme N Storage Router for a cheap digital photo frame, at least from just glancing at it. Dominated by a 3.2-inch LCD display, and lacking obvious giveaways such as external antennas, it’s a stylish way to upgrade to draft-n WiFi. There’s also plenty of interest inside, with an internal hard-drive bay and surprising file-sharing flexibility.

D-Link DIR-685 Xtreme N Storage Router

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Of course, in the end this is a wireless router, and so has to be judged primarily on that instead of just its whiz-bang feature set. The good news is the WiFi b/g/n support and gigabit Ethernet ports; the bad news is that there’s neither WiFi A nor 5GHz on offer. The absence of the former is unlikely to affect most home users, but leaving out 5GHz support seems a clueless decision for a flagship router. In a nutshell, the DIR-685 uses the 2.4GHz frequency band (as do various intercoms, short-range radios and other wireless gadgets); high-end rival routers offer the 5GHz, as an either/or or a dual-radio setting, which allows you to switch high-priority traffic (such as streaming HD video or VoIP) to the more stable higher frequency.

Admittedly, you’ll need a 5GHz-compatible WiFi adapter on any device you want to use with such a router, and they’re still in the minority compared to 2.4GHz, but to simply omit the technology altogether seems short-sighted on D-Link’s part. Still, performance on both the wired and wireless sides was excellent, with better coverage than we’ve seen on most WiFi routers. We used a Seagate Momentus 5,400rpm 80GB drive that D-Link supplied for our testing, and BitTorrent proved particularly impressive, notching up download speeds up to six times faster than with our Belkin comparison router.”

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The review concludes with:

“There’s always a fear with convergent products like the DIR-685 that they could be “jack of all trades and master of none”. To be fair, there are some things the D-Link does more seriously than others; we can’t see its 3.2-inch display replacing a standalone digital photo-frame, and the internal hard-drive is obviously limited to the maximum capacity of a 2.5-inch HDD rather than a more capacious (and faster) 3.5-inch. The 2.4GHz limit is also annoying, considering the price, while the whining fan is just plain unacceptable.

Nonetheless, if you have sensible expectations for the onboard storage – and don’t forget, with user-account control, BitTorrent, FTP, remote network management and more, this is still better than a simple USB drive – and can tune out the fan noise then the D-Link DIR-685 is an excellent router and a capable media streamer. The display may seem gimmicky but all but the most jaded will find some useful application for it”

The whole review can be read on SlashGear.

I’m looking forward to getting my hands on one of these to play with, err, to test ;-)