The “Big Spider” D-Link DIR-890L/R

By: John Stutsman

Figure 1 -- D-Link DIR 890L/R Unboxed

For some time I had been thinking about replacing my aging D-Link DGL-4500.

I was looking for something turn-key with AC and multi-band capabilities while being powerful enough to cover my entire house as well as portions of my surrounding yard.

After reading a review by Joanna Stern in the WSJ I started taking a more serious look at the D-Link DIR890L/R and ultimately decided to go with her assessment. See:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/wi-fi-woes-time-to-upgrade-your-wireless-router-1422990004

http://blog.dlink.com/the-wall-street-journal-takes-our-ac3200-wi-fi-router-for-a-ride-literally/

Additionally, I found many good reviews at Newegg for the DIR-890L/R:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833127573

So, I pulled the trigger and ordered my D-Link DIR-890L/R and unboxed it on June 4, 2015:

Video 1 -- D-Link DIR 890L/R Unboxing

D-Link’s setup menu was very user friendly and a huge improvement over my DGL-4500!

I chose not the register my DIR-890L/R in “mydlink” – I didn't see a need for it at this time but maybe at a later date I will once I had a chance to think more about the potential security implications.

I upgraded the Firmware to the latest version, 1.06.B04, which can be done either automatically via the menu system or manually. I did both and each was easy and painless in my opinion.

I basically went with all of the defaults except under Settings => Network => Advanced Settings I disabled UPnP to hopefully improve security. Over time I plan to make more changes to improve my networks security.

Windows Phones Connectivity Issue

One issue did arise that was very perplexing at first – on some websites our Windows Phones would load very slowly even though our Wi-Fi transfer rates were quite high on our Windows Phones using speed test.

I finally discovered the root cause of the issues we were having -- IPv6 had not been fully implemented in my area by Comcast!

First I found a thread on Windows Central that described my issue http://forums.windowscentral.com/nokia-lumia-1020/235055-2.htm see also http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/mobiledevices/forum/mdlumia-mdtips/wp8-ipv6-issues/6066df14-a4b8-4953-beb4-1ece9b6182d4

Comcast has an IPv6 Information Center at http://www.comcast6.net/ with a link to “Test your IPv6 Connectivity” at http://test-ipv6.comcast.net/ which confirmed that IPv6 has not been enabled by Comcast in my area.

So, in the D-Link menu I went to Settings => Internet => IPv6 and changed IPv6 to Local Connectivity Only – Saved/Restarted – and our Windows Phones began loading web pages much faster.

Pictures

Figure 2 -- D-Link DIR-890L/R with Antenna at optimal angle

Figure 3 -- D-Link DIR890L/R Rear view showing ports and connections

Figure 4 -- D-Link DIR-890L/R review instructions

Figure 5 -- D-Link DIR-890L/R mounted on 12" Floor Joist below center of Family Room

Performance

Figure 6 -- Download & Upload Speeds from Wired Desktop

Figure 7 -- Download & Upload Speeds over Wi-Fi AC Wireless on Surface 3

Figure 8 -- Download & Upload Speeds over Wi-Fi on Windows Phones

Summary and Conclusion

Overall, after nearly a month of usage, I am happy with my DIR-890L/R. My Wi-Fi connections are noticeably faster (even the Windows Phones after the IPv6 fix) and my wired network feels faster. I like being able to pull it from the box, turning it on, and having everything work after a quick set-up menu.  (I'm still keeping my DGL-4500 as a backup for the time being.)

Please join us in the HSS Networking Forums Thread "Big Spiders" D-Link DIR-890L/R with any question and/or comments on the above and other threads at HSS Networking Forums.

Reference:

HSS Networking Forums http://homeservershow.com/forums/index.php?/forum/65-networking/

D-Link DIR-890L/R Support Page with latest Firmware and Manuals download http://support.dlink.com/ProductInfo.aspx?m=DIR-890L/R

D-Link AC3200 Ultra Wi-Fi Router DIR-890L/R http://us.dlink.com/products/connect/ac3200-ultra-wi-fi-router/

D-Link DIR-890L/R Wireless AC3200 Ultra Tri-Band Gigabit Router, AC Smartbeam Technology http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833127573

SmallNetBuilder (“SNB”) Answer Guy: How Many SSIDs is Too Many? http://homeservershow.com/forums/index.php?/topic/9607-snb-how-many-ssids-is-too-many/