By Ki Grinsing

E series Linksys 4200 was first released to the market in January 2011 which was Linksys flagship product with a dual band N750 technology.

Overview

click for spec details

The second generation of Linksys E series is not much different from the cloud generation routers including EA4500 series which is packed with arguably the same appearance. The body a bit thin laid horizontally and internal antennas make this product look nice on your desk. Because lying is put on the table, it takes a bit wider space than the vertical form factor router such as Netgear’s flagship product Wndr4500 N900 router.

Linksys 4200 Main features

• Wireless N750 technology, aggregate bandwidth up to 750Mbps
• Gigabit interfaces
• USB port with built-in media server – DLNA compliant
• Guest network

Linksys 4200 was first introduced when Netgear also introduced the same N750 technology router in CES2011 with WNDR4000. But it seems that Linksys shipped the product into the market earlier than WNDR4000.

High Speeds

When Linksys released the E-3000 N600, I was thinking that this was the ultimate product for a while at least until 2011, but it is not. Basically compared with the E-3000 router, the main different is about the speed. E-3000 is powered by the N600 technology meaning both bands deliver the speeds of up to 300Mbps. On the other hand, E4200 is powered by the N750 technology, means the maximum speeds is 450Mbps for 5GHz band and for 2.4GHz band the speed is up to 300Mbps. These are ideal speeds; you cannot expect the speeds as described by the manufacturer specs.

3×3 MIMO antenna

Like E3000 router, the Linksys 4200 is powered by the latest 3×3 smart MIMO antenna technology for high speed network and larger network coverage. With the addition of wireless multimedia Quality of Service (WMM QoS) engine, the router is ideal for streaming high definition video and smooth gaming experiences. QoS provides prioritization for streaming and gaming over any data type traffic.

Gigabit ports

Not only Linksys 4200 is equipped with Gigabit interfaces, all routers designed for multimedia are equipped with Gigabit interfaces both LAN and WAN ports to allow you connect using network cable from the router to the client computer for very solid and reliable high speeds connection for high speed data transfer or any demanding high-intensive bandwidth applications.

Gigabit WAN Ethernet ports is very essential when you connect the router to the latest DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem with gigabit Ethernet port such as Surfboard SB6120 DOCSIS 3.0 cable modem. But, remember that all the high speed of your local environment doesn’t improve your internet experiences if your broadband internet service is still the same or slow. For better internet connection, you should also upgrade the Internet services plan for better performance plan as well.

USB Port functionality

Both Linksys E4200 and the previous version E3000 include one USB port (with built-in UPnP Media server support for 4200) that let you connect a USB external storage for share. You can easily stream your multimedia files to other home theater devices including XBOX console, Blu-Ray player, PS3 and HDTV with Ethernet enabled.

If you expect to be able to host a USB printer for share across the network, you’ll be disappointed. This router (including E300 and WNDR4000) unfortunately cannot be used to host a USB printer. You need to share your printer in traditional way by attaching the printer to the computer and configure it for share. Or you can purchase a wireless print-server such as Linksys wireless print-server. New generations of Linksys EA series can be used to host your printer.

Advanced Security

Normally the previous router products do not support the Guest network. Today many routers support the secure Guest network. You can create separate SSID for guests with separate password and limited network access. This is good for security reason; you grant your guests internet access without compromising the security. The new Linksys 4200 supports this Guest network feature by limiting access to your local network.

Like other wireless routers today, the wireless security encryption including WPA/WPA2 and RADIUS are also included for wireless security encryptions. Generally the RADIUS is implemented in businesses as the central of Authentication and Authorization for remote access networks. For legacy clients, the WEP security encryption is still included for connecting any types of legacy clients to the network.

Comparison

Many people are wondering if they should purchase this new Linksys 4200 or other routers. The table below compares main features for Linksys E4200 N750 Vs Apple Airport Extreme Vs Wndr4000 N750, not to mention all the specs.

Network diagram

A common diagram for this router can be shown below. For connecting multiple Ethernet-based devices – home theater devices including XBOX console, Blu-ray players and HDTV you can consider Linksys WES610N – multiport wireless media bridge.

Linksys 4200 is a high performance wireless N simultaneous dual band gigabit router which is designed for smooth gaming and streaming HD video for large home.

By Ki Grinsing