Home users who want a solid-performing.

Home users who want a solid-performing, no-frills router that's easy to locate up will be happy with the Microsoft Wireless Base Station MN-700 Its refined setup utility for the router and PC Card will be especially appealing to networking novices. Although the MN-700 does not provide many of the advanced features that other router in our roundup present its performance on our benchmark proofs was excellent.

Initial Configuration and Documentation

Microsoft has done a hazard to make installation of the MN-700 as unintimidating as possible. It has provided careful packaging, stickers warning you not to disconnect your existing equipment, and comprehensively written documentation. And the straightforward installation utility configures the two the router and PC Card.

Management and Features

Additional features and management options are kept to a minimum in this device. granting the unit has both an SPI and a NAT firewall, neither is configurable. however it has everything you ne for a simple abode network, including a DHCP server and virtual DMZ The management interface is rather primitive, still it is easy to use and well integrated with Windows XP

Security

For a result geared toward the home market, we wait for a more comprehensive and active approach to parental- have charge of features than this router has. The solution is limited to URL filtering. In boundarys of other security, it supports WEP and WPA.

Performance

Copyright ?© 2004 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserv Originally appearing in PC Magazine.