Introduction
Last February I reviewed the
DPG-402
dual-WAN router by Xincom. The router was based on a 50 MHz
ARM
processor and was capable of load balancing and shotgunning two
broadband internet
connections. Our tests yielded very impressive results,
downloading files at a
whopping 8 Mb/s. Today we are taking a look at one of Xincom's
latest offerings. The DPG-602 offers the same outbound load
balancing features as the 402 along with an inbound load balancing
function. Inbound load balancing can be very advantageous for small to
medium sized businesses. For
instance, a company can save a great deal of money by switching from
a T1 connection to two cable internet connections. Normally, the
upload speed is much slower for a cable modem than a T1. However,
with two
broadband connections at 4000K downstream and 500K upstream a
piece, you can get near T1
speeds on the upload and up to six times faster download speeds.
The Xincom DPG-602 also has a few other advantages over its younger
brother such as a faster CPU, faster throughput, and Quality-Of-Service
functions.
Package Contents
The package I received from Xincom came in a white box with many
of the same contents as the 402. An AC/DC power adapter,
troubleshooting guide, quick start guide, two Cat-5 patch cables, and
a complete manual on CD were included. The manual I
received was a CD-R which makes me think that it is still being
revised. Hopefully, this is the case. The manual still
needs some improvement to be more helpful. Also included with
Xincom's newer routers are rack-mount ears. I was very pleased to
see this as it is something that most people expect in a high-end piece
of networking equipment. The only problem is that the rack ears
are not sized for a standard rack unit. A rack unit is 1.75
inches high and the Xincom routers are only 1.2 inches high. This
means a slight gap at the top and bottom of the router when
rack-mounted. Still, it's better than placing it on a
shelf. Below is a screenshot of the 602 in my network rack with
the 402 sitting below it. By the way, I'm currently in the
process of remodeling my basement. So, the white dust all over
the rack is from drywall. Definitely not the proper environment
for electronics. The new router wasn't exposed to the dust though.
Features
In Comparison
The chart below details the difference in features between
Xincom's various routers. As you can see, they have a router for
just about everybody. You will also notice that advanced features
such as inbound load balancing and VPN services add quite a bit of cost
to the product.
Features
|
XC-DPG402
|
XC-DPG502
|
XC-DPG503
|
XC-DPG602
|
XC-DPG603
|
CPU (Risc)
|
50 MHz
|
166 MHz
|
166 MHz
|
166
MHz
|
166 MHz
|
RAM
|
4 MB
|
16 MB
|
16 MB
|
16
MB
|
16 MB
|
Flash Memory
|
512 KB
|
1 MB
|
1 MB
|
1
MB
|
1 MB
|
| WAN Ports |
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
| Lan Ports |
4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
| Throughput |
12 Mb/s
|
44 Mb/s
|
44 Mb/s
|
44
Mb/s
|
44 Mb/s
|
| Sessions |
10,000
|
100,000
|
100,000
|
100,000
|
100,000
|
| Inbound Load Balancing |
--
|
--
|
--
|
YES
|
YES
|
| Outbound Load Balancing |
YES
|
YES
|
YES |
YES |
YES |
| Auto Failover |
YES |
YES |
YES |
YES |
YES |
| SPI Firewall |
YES |
YES |
YES |
YES |
YES |
| uPNP |
--
|
YES |
YES |
YES |
YES |
| QoS |
--
|
YES |
YES |
YES |
YES |
| VPN |
--
|
--
|
YES |
--
|
YES |
| MSRP |
$99
|
$299
|
$399
|
$799
|
$999
|
