On Networks' N150R - a basic 802.11n class router. Once the router replaces the firmware provided by its vendor with the firmware of the same hardware from the NETGEAR brand, the performance will be much better. This time I will introduce a similar concept product, but it is a mainstream 802.11ac level product - ZyXEL X650. The currently discontinued router is AC1200-class - with a peak speed of 867 Mbps when operating at 802.11ac (5 GHz) and 300 Mbps when operating at 802.11n (2.4 GHz). This product is free when I buy the SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime network tuner (as old readers may have thought of, I often need to re-purchase). At about the same time, its individual price was $34.99.
Before discussing the potential for this router to change, let's take a closer look. Let's start with the outer box:
There is a thin quick-to-use guide in the box, along with a document and application CD:
A wall plug-in power supply:
Of course, the router itself:
Note that there are many passive air vents on the top and sides of the router (no fan inside):
This is a close-up of the label on the bottom of the router:
Lifting the close-up, there is a rare thing in the lower left corner of the back of the router: the physical switch for the dual-band Wi-Fi radio subsystem that turns off the router:
Remove the eraser under the four "foot" of the router:
There is a Phillips screw under each rubber:
Unscrew the screws and slowly peel off some plastic sheets to pry the upper part of the plastic case apart:
Then you can see the front of the PCB:
The ones that immediately caught your eye may be the transformers of the three Magnetic Communications companies (Magcom), one is the GT1802DA, and the other two are the 3603DA, which are used for the WAN and the four LAN Ethernet interfaces on them. Or maybe the first thing you see is that there are two large chips on the PCB with heat sinks. Or a mysterious chip package with no devices installed in the lower right corner, and two packages with connectors below them.
In my experience, the XyXEL X650 seems to be based on Realtek's RTL8197D-11AC reference design. Each of the two external antennas is dual-band (note the black and gray lines connecting them). First look at the top right corner of the PCB and you will see the Edimax EW-7822MAC plug-in daughter board installed in the mini PCIe expansion slot on the PCB board.
The main chip on the daughter board is Realtek's RTL8812AR, which is the core device of the router's 5GHz Wi-Fi subsystem:
The matching Wi-Fi chip is Realtek's RTL8192CE, which is directly soldered on the PCB main board. At the lower left of the mini PCIe daughter board, the main work of 2.4GHz is completed:
So, what do the sockets with no chips on the right side and all the component tags with the "D" prefix on the PCB do?
Why do router hardware manufacturers have to bother with the seemingly redundant mini PCIe sockets (and daughter cards) in the design? Although I am not sure, I think so. Think again that the ZyXEL X850 is an "AC1200" class router, which means that the router achieves 2x2 MIMO in the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. If the manufacturer wants the same PCB to support 1×1 MIMO (that is, an AC580-class 802.11ac router with a single stream per band, or a similar basic 802.11n product), it can cancel the card and replace it with the master. Additional chips are mounted on the PCB, and then only one antenna (and main PCB cable connector) is used for 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz operation.
What are the positions of the two connectors that are not installed below (to the right of the LED array)? I didn't take a recent photo, but I told you (and believe me), the relevant PCB marks indicate that they are used to implement USB functions ( Such as locally connected network printers and storage devices). The router's SoC main chip supports these features, so their lack may simply reflect the router vendor's intention to retain these features for higher-priced router models—just by software (and of course, add connectors and corresponding shell openings). The difference between the two can be achieved.
Lifting the router's main SoC chip, WikiDevi told me that this is Realtek's RTL8197D, which is located below this special radiator:
In the lower left corner is the system's DDR2 SDRAM, which is the NT5TU32M16DG 512Mbit memory device from Nanya Technology. Under another heat sink, I think it should be Realtek's RTL8367R-VB chip, which is used to implement the switching function of Gigabit Ethernet (I left the heatsink, so the function of the router is complete, I can put together and put it later. It donated).
The PCB can be easily removed from the housing by removing the other 4 screws. You can turn the board back and look at the rather empty back as usual:
This is a more recent photo that shows the Macronix MX25L3206E's 4MB serial flash (and other components):
Now we finally have to talk about the concept of "hardware twins" mentioned at the beginning of the article. Remember that I recognized the mini PCIe board as the Edimax brand early? As the facts show, the hardware of the ZxXEL X650 is basically the same as the Edimax BR-6478AC router, which is another product worth discussing (by the way) , it does provide a USB port).
Why is this important? Because ZyXEL has not released firmware updates for the X650 since mid-2013, many product discussions have reflected that "this product has great hardware potential, but there are many software bugs and imperfections." But Edimax did a better job and provided long-term software support for the equivalent of the X650 BR-6478AC. The owner of the aggressive X650 revealed how to plug Edimax's firmware update into the ZyXEL brand router and turn it into a more robust product. Just don't try to use the Edimax firmware to swear that there should be a USB port that doesn't actually exist!
Guangzhou Yunge Tianhong Electronic Technology Co., Ltd , https://www.e-cigaretteyfactory.com