D-Link DIR-855 Xtreme N Dual Band Router review
A dual band model with fair performance and a handy screen.
The first aspect of the DIR-855 you’ll notice is the bright OLED screen built into the front. This shows you the status of your network at a glance, without having to going into the web interface.
Every feature can be customised, and most are easy to adjust, thanks to extensive documentation. However, there are no presets for QoS, which makes prioritising your network traffic a chore.
The DIR-855 can simultaneously broadcast wireless networks on two bands, which can be configured independently. You can set up ‘guest zones’ with different security options, so trusted clients have full access while others can connect with restrictions. There’s also a parental control feature to block websites. Gigabit Ethernet ports are provided, along with a USB port to serve shared storage. This can be accessed by client machines with D-Link’s device drivers installed.
Performance was respectable, though not the fastest. With D-Link’s own DWA-160 WiFi adapter, using the 2.4GHz network at a range of 1 metre the DIR-855 managed a blistering 60.17 Mbit/sec. Impressive, but in practice you’d never use WiFi at that range, and the speed fell to a more modest 24.88Mbit at 15 metres. Speeds were much lower with our standard Centrino laptop adapter, giving only 4.84Mbit/sec at 25 metres.
