AVM Fritzbox Fon WLAN 7270

Now routers are given away with most broadband contracts, why would anyone consider buying a new one, especially one with such a hefty price tag as this?

The answer is that the Fritzbox is the most capable router we have ever looked at, even if it does require some work for the best results.

The Fritzbox connects to your broadband connection at the wall socket and can share this either wirelessly (up to the latest and fastest 802.11n standard) or through the four wired network sockets on the back. Setting it up was fairly straightforward, though tweaking some options could have been easier.

The back has more sockets than you might expect, including two for phone connections: this is the first hint of the extra features the Fritzbox offers, as it not only manages your internet connection but your telephone calls as well. Besides the two wired phone sockets, you can also connect up to six Dect cordless home phones.

It has four answerphones built in to manage internet phone calls as well as the landline and phones can be assigned extension numbers. You can also create dialing rules such as setting the internet account as the phone’s default but swapping to the landline automatically if you call a number not included in your talk plan.

A USB socket on the back of the Fritzbox can be used to connect it to a printer or a USB hard disk. Music playback from the USB hard disk worked well, but our elderly HP printer did not.

The router takes a bit longer to set up because of the extra connections, but the supplied CD provided plenty of help. The Fritzbox is not for everyone but demanding users will find it brilliant.