Belkin has today revamped its line of wireless routers with the introduction of its Surf, Share and Play range.
Designed to simplify home networking for a wide range of users, Belkin's latest come pre-loaded with specific apps (applications) designed to provide common functionality such as automated backup and music streaming.
Kicking off the range is the entry-level Surf Wireless Router, priced at £49.99 (or £69.99 for a model incorporating an ADSL/Cable modem). Designed to provide reliable web access, it offers Wireless N connectivity, four Ethernet ports and just one bundled application; Self-Healing, an app that "automatically detects and resolves network problems and runs routine maintenance scans to give you the clearest wireless channel".
Moving up a notch, the Share Wireless Router, priced at £69.99 or £89.99 with a built-in modem, expands functionality with the addition of a single USB port, allowing users to attach a USB storage device or printer. Making use of the added functionality are two additional apps; Memory Safe, an automatic backup utility, and Print Genie, a printer sharing tool.
Heading into gamer territory, the Play Wireless Router, priced at £79.99 for the router alone or £99.99 for an ADSL/Cable version, adds dual-band wireless to the mix. In addition to offering the apps pre-loaded with the Surf and Share routers, Belkin's Play model comes armed with an array of multimedia apps, including a media streaming application dubbed Music Mover, a media tagging application dubbed Music Labeller, and a personalised playlist application dubbed Daily DJ.
Topping the range is Belkin's premium Play Max Wireless Router (pictured below), priced at £99.99 for the standard model or £119.99 for the Play Max Wireless Modem Router. Equipped with all the features and functionality of the Surf, Share and Play models, the Play Max doubles the number of USB ports to two and features four high-speed Gigabit Ethernet ports, making it one of few routers to offer both dual-band Wireless N and Gigabit Ethernet connectivity.
The Play Max router also introduces another two exclusive apps; Torrent Genie, a torrent download manager, and Bit Boost, an application that simplifies network traffic prioritising.
The functions served by Belkin's applications are of course already available via third-party solutions, but Belkin is hoping its integrated apps will offer a better user experience, and its Surf, Share, Play and Play Max product names should certainly help simplify the choice available to consumers.
There's no indication of how well the routers perform in the real world, but Belkin certainly has us interested. US consumers can expect to see the new range appear at retail in April, followed by a European launch in May.
Belkin's complete specifications are available via the company's press release: Belkin makes home networking easy for everyone with Surf, Share and Play
