Fritzbox 3490 - waiver without giving?

The Fritz box 3490 and its predecessors have a hard time. You are always in the shadow of big sister models 7270, 7390 and now 7490. Rightly so? The need to adjudicate everyone left, I find that AVM has created with the current models 7490 and 3490 the competition in their own house. Competition .... or would here the term ideal complement better?

For me at least, the 3490 for some time now works as a second "router". Why and why and how the 3490 so suggests, I go out later.

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Features and appearance
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The 3490 is unmistakable twin of 7490. Dimensions and housing are identical except for the lack of (telephone) connections. The power supply of 3490, however, seems to be designed for a slightly lower power consumption through the router. The surface is, contrary to the trend, kept red in a pleasantly matt. That matches the AVM looks and has the nice side effect that it looks not immediately dirty with every speck of dust. Manual, network cable, power supply ... AVM provides here again with everything that is needed for the initial setup. In direct comparison to me only the lack of phone-specific elements, ie Y-cable and telephone adapter noticed.

The housing of the Fritz box 3490 is equipped with a wireless on / off switch and a WPS button for easy and quick installation of additional wireless subscribers.

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Commissioning
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This chapter, I really want to keep relatively short, because I've lost a few words already on the 7490 device. Since both the operating system and the way how the user navigates through the AVM Ersteinrichtungs setup largely identical to the 7490's, I leave it in a: "Installation is extremely clear and well done." Who is not sure yet as a layman, if he trusts himself; on Youtube there are several videos facility and the AVM side bristles with good instructions and support. Actually only means the holding of the credentials of the provider is required and then you can already surf away after a few minutes. Again, the router is located by default in 192.168.178er network. All clients should therefore, if you have never owned a AVM router "automatically obtain IP" to stand or be configured manually according to the same subnet. Calling the setup setups running over [...] or [...]

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What is missing in contrast to the 7490?
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This router is intended for all users who simply are looking for a pure DSL router and either do not need a landline telephony or use on another PBX. The 3490 omitted unlike the top model 7490 on an integrated DECT base station and telephone system with corresponding analog / ISDN connections.

Otherwise, here AVM has spared no expense, the box is equipped with the latest features of rigor in the "small" model so no trace. Whether ADSL / ADSL2 +, VDSL Vectoring and are also supported, as there are 4 Gigabit LAN ports and two USB 3.0 interfaces. At the latter printer or storage media can be connected and provided in the network. A "pressure" and Media Server make it possible.

All connectors also can be turn down for the purpose of power saving, ie 1000Mbit-> 100Mbit and USB 3.0 to USB 2.0

In the area of ​​wireless, no compromise is also necessary. Identical to the top model also dominates the 3490 sparking on two frequency bands (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and the latest Wi-Fi standard AC. AVM can not be here too rags; internally are 6 antennas installed (the competition has often only 3) ensure a good and largely stable data rate.

The operating system is also here already (as Dez.2014) equipped with the latest firmware FritzOS 6.20 and was adjusted accordingly only missing features (DECT, telephony). Otherwise there is no difference in functionality compared to the 7490 can be seen.

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Fritzbox 3490 as a supplement to 7490? Good Wi-Fi in the entire house thanks to WiFi Bridge
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The primary reason to buy for 3490 was less than the use of DSL router but rather as an ideal extension of my network. For a long time I have worked with the AVM FritzWLAN Repeater NG, which was placed between the basement and 2nd floor. However, halving the WLAN has this result transfer rate always. Until recently, no problem, but especially HD Youtube and Co nowadays demand quite a bit from the wireless transmission rate.

In the living room a LAN connection was available, can be set via two wireless routers a relatively large and stable WLAN coverage throughout the house realized. Unfortunately, many documentaries are part of AVM it comes to building a wireless bridge with a second Fritz box a bit outdated, so I describe it again at this point.

Ideally, you take a PC coming via WLAN directly to the second Fritz box. The PC and the second box must not be connected at the time of the device to the normal network, thus disconnecting any cables and wireless companies of 3490. The 3490 is then brought into the so-called client mode

-> Internet menu -> Access
-> ISP = Another ISP / other
-> Connection = External Modem or Router
- To share> mode = Existing Internet connection (IP-client mode)
-> Connection Settings UP / Downstream = Leitungskapazitswerte of each terminal
-> Eg 2000Kbit / s and 18.000kbit / s
-> Change Connection Settings
- Relate> IP address automatically via DHCP
-> DHCP hostname = eg FritzBoxB

This DHCP hostname is important, otherwise you can not the Fritz box in the browser by name.

-> Menu home network
-> Fritz box-name = example FritzBoxB

Now the Fritz box for the bridge mode is enabled. The router functionality is turned off, ie, the second Fritz box behaves like a guest on the network and receives from the primary Fritzbox a network address assigned. This is achieved by again surrounded the client in the "primary-Fritz box WLAN" and the Fritz box now connects via LAN 1. ONLY LAN1! You will be assigned a new IP. (This can be seen in the primary Fritz box in the home network). Called the web interface is now in the browser, as in my case, more than [...]

Now it is entirely up to you whether you want to work on the whole house with an SSID, same SSID and the same radio channels recommends AVM, so for all wireless guest officially there is only one wireless and they heard nothing from the change of the Fritz boxes 1 and 2, or whether with separate WLAN uses names and guests aware of separates. I prefer the latter.

Perhaps even a wichtie restriction for all who want to use this: The guest-Fi is only available at the Primary Fritzbox is that 3490 is configured via LAN 1, there is no longer the. Who still does not want to give up a guest account, must perform a guest access LAN4.

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WLAN transmission power
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The transmitting power of 3490 is to settle similar to 7490. For me, it leaves, as well as in 7490, a conflicting opinion. On the one hand I find the reception in the 2.4Ghz band very well, and that. Without external, large antennas on the device On the other hand I find the range (not data throughput) of 7270 still significantly better. Worst has cut the 5GHz band with me, which makes probably only in small one-storey tenements within the same space properly for flow. However, coming in between walls or floors, the range and therefore the throughput breaks mercilessly. And, although in contrast to the 2.4Ghz band, at least in my neighborhood nothing is going on.

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Energy consumption
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This subject is indeed in recent years more and more important. And for a device that runs quasi 24/7 this is also understandable. Given the strong processor, the 3490 proposed here better than me. With me 3 LAN cables are connected (not all the time) turned and WLAN. A port running on Gigabit and USB is not used. The consumption is about 6.2 to 7,5Watt. That's an average of 1 watt less in comparison to 7490. The utilization (total) is loud AVM at about 50%. I appreciate therefore consumption of 10-15Watt if the box is active on all ports + wireless.

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Conclusion
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Yes, what is there to say in conclusion? The Fritz box 3490 does not constitute a waiver for me. She has all of my features require on board, is cool and efficient, bursting with the latest features and is almost foolproof to use. The 3490 is given the small surcharge for expensive repeaters AVM, worth considering for those who like me want to build a wireless bridge to extend the range. But also for those who want to want or use consciously any telephony functionality in the router. Unfortunately, AVM itself is the strongest competitor here. And routers as AVM owner of the first hour I have learned that in particular, when it comes to the resale of the router after a few years, the top models, in other words, in this case erziehlen the 7490, significantly higher prices than the smaller models. The same applies to the support. Simply because a full-featured model appeals to a larger group of buyers. Therefore, everyone should think carefully about whether he, if only one device to be used in the house, the current charge of just 50 is not yet well spent for 7490. Spontaneously, I would argue that it would offset this charge at the latest when reselling again.

Me anyway thrilled even the "small" 3490, which will now be with me for a number of years in service. As a nice side effect I have by 3490 now also a spare router, if that should ever fail 7490. Anyone who is professionally dependent on Internet reluctantly accepts, an Internet outage in buying ;-) Yet one should not forget that even the supposed "savings model" of AVM with currently 150 is not a real price bargain. Even more serious, it looks like, if you take a look at what price areas already covered by other, admittedly somewhat less-equipped models, manufacturers, eg TP-Link are traveling. Because it shows what is possible even at a significantly lower price. This also leads me to a star deduction, has nothing to do with the support, the menu, the operator or the equipment. Nearly 100 would have been appropriate here, in my opinion.