Cisco Linksys E4200: NAS features reviewed

Note: We tested the E4200 as part of our One Stop Storage feature in PC World's May 2011 issue. The review here relates only to the router's network storage features, and is not intended to be an overall review of the product.

The Cisco Linksys E4200 is a dual-band (2.4GHz and 5.0GHz) wireless-n router with a single USB storage port. Setup is easy enough via the “Cisco Connect” software, which provides some basic router status and configuration tools. Particularly useful is the ability to quickly and easily manage access to the E4200’s wireless guest network. However, the desktop software is sadly lacking in storage settings. For that, you have to go to the browser-based interface.

Said interface looks rather complex, but I was able to find my way around without much trouble. It does contain comprehensive popup help for each page of options, but that’s not quite as nice as TP-Link’s help-sidebar always visible on each page. Buried in that somewhat-confusing interface is a wealth of features and options, that allow you to tailor almost everything the router does to your needs.

Once you find the right page, storage setup is actually pretty simple. Connect your drive, refresh the page until it appears, then click “Create Share” next to your drive. You have to choose a name, specify which folder is to be shared (or the whole drive, if you so wish), and who will have access to it.

Media streaming is provided via the UPnP AV protocol, but there’s no sign of an iTunes server or BitTorrent client.

Where the E4200 really shines in the storage department is its high write speed. I observed an average of 7MBytes/sec write for large (100MB) files, well over twice the write speed of competing devices from Belkin and TP-Link. If your main application for a NAS solution is a place to centralise your in-home backups, this comparatively high write-speed is ideal.