D-Link Wireless N Storage Router DIR-685

We’ve seen routers with screens before – Belkin’s N1 Vision, for example, has been around for more than a year. But although displaying the time and the status of the router on screen is practical enough, wouldn’t it be better to have photos? Or the weather? Or a customisable selection of feeds from a variety of news sites delivered straight to the router?

Features
It sounds incredibly impressive. This is the first router we’ve seen to use its connection to the internet for anything other than simply piping information to a computer, and it should be applauded for that.
And there’s no skimping on router functionality, either. You get four Ethernet ports, 802.11n wireless, and two USB ports for hosting storage or a printer. Speaking of which, you can also insert a 2.5in SATA hard disk (not included) directly into the device, which is great for sharing files cheaply. There is a bunch of extra features designed to make the most of its storage capabilities, including iTunes/UPnP streaming and an FTP (File Transfer Protocol) server so you can access your files while you’re away. In a nutshell, it’s got everything.

Performance
The router works well. When we used it, the Wi-Fi signal was strong, even in our test area, which has a few competing signals. However, the screen is too small for displaying photos at their best and the feeds come through on pre-formatted slides, which aren’t ideal for such a small screen, either. While it’s more attractive than looking at a blank plastic cover, it’s nowhere near as good a dedicated digital picture frame as it is a router.

Ease of use
Initial set-up is very simple – your internet connection needs to be Ethernet, so you’ll need a cable connection or Ethernet modem if you’re on ADSL. Because it’s these connections that ensure the internet is set up properly, the router itself is very straightforward. The wealth of extra features, however, mean you need to be confident with technology and networking to get them set up – even the full manual included on the CD can be a bit vague.
The screen is begging to be a touchscreen but, instead, has directional buttons at the side for navigating the menus. These aren’t terrible but, in the wake of the iPhone, we instinctively found we wanted to touch the screen, not the buttons.

Value for money
As you’d expect from all these extras, the price is positioned at an absolute premium and, while you’re not going to find another product that rivals this router in terms of what it can do, the huge bite it’ll take out of your bank balance may put you off. If it had a larger screen and was better at displaying photos, it might be worth it, but at double the price of a standard router, it’s a bit of an unsatisfactory luxury.