Do you leave your router on at all times?

50Twuncle

almillar wrote: »

You can find this out by looking at the labelling on the router, or its PSU. No guessing required.

The TalkTalk HG635 fibre router has No Such label on it - try googling this model to see if you can find its consumption ...
You will find nothing !!

50Twuncle

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2017/01/energy-usage-uk-home-broadband-routers-big-isps-compared.html

Does say around 6 watts average
Also see the 3rd paragraph on rebooting routers !!


"One of the problems with some of these services is that they can respond negatively to repeated disconnections / router reboots (depends how the ISP implements DLM), which could make your line slower and as such it’s best to keep them connected 24/7. In other words, you’ll probably get away with saving power by switching them off at night, but don’t do it too often."

bsod

The internet (and journalism) is awash with false statements. IT consultants or people who know a bit about computers, or those pesky helpdesk call handlers, are not necessarily a good place to obtain facts from

People often read or hear something once and take it as fact for the rest of their life, or read too much into something, or read something that can be taken either way, and choose to take the inference that reinforces their original mindset.

The third (I'd better say this before someone questions it) paragraph fits into the latter category.

50Twuncle

bsod wrote: »

One of the problems of the internet, or journalism, or gossip, or listening to it consultants, is reading or hearing something once and taking it as fact for the next 20 years, or reading too much into something, or reading something that can be taken either way, and choosing to take the inference that reinforces your original mindset.

The third (I'd better say this before someone questions it) paragraph fits into the latter category.

But - in the case of my TT HG635 - It is true
Admittedly, it was in the 2nd week of connection, when my system was in "learning mode" - but repeated reboots (blame the OH) - Caused my network speed to drop from 20Mbps upload to less than 1Mbps and download, from 78 to less than 10Mbps - after a BT reset - it went back up and has stayed on and ever since and has remained at 20/78 for 2 years !!

bsod

one swallow does not a summer make

mattytun

Power usage from an average home router is definitely minimal. Most modern routers are designed to be left on at all times, but it's not uncommon to turn them off when they aren't in use for several hours or more. For example, many businesses with open Wi-Fi hotspots turn off their equipment when they close for the night.

There are certainly security benefits to turning off your router, but if you have a good router that's well-configured and keep it up-to-date, those benefits are usually minimal. Also, some consumer routers have a tendency to overheat or encounter other issues when left on for extended periods of time, especially as they age.

As far as benefits to leaving it on, I can't really think of any that would concern an average user, other than convenience. Some multi-service providers (e.g., Verizon FiOS) require that the router stay on in order for other devices in your house, particularly telephones and televisions, to work properly. If you have "smart home" devices, they'll likely need internet access to work, for which your router will need to remain on.

John_Gray

mattytun wrote: »

There are certainly security benefits to turning off your router

And these benefits are...?

Or are you alleging that a specific router which is powered on only 12 hours per day is half as likely to be hacked as when it is on 24 hours per day?

By extrapolation, then, the safest router is one which is never powered on at all! :rotfl:

AndyPix

^^ I suppose technically it is !!


If its not on then it aint getting hacked now is it :rotfl:

kwikbreaks

50Twuncle wrote: »

The TalkTalk HG635 fibre router has No Such label on it - try googling this model to see if you can find its consumption ...
You will find nothing !!

I did...

http://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2017/01/energy-usage-uk-home-broadband-routers-big-isps-compared.html/2

It isn't 100% clear if these figures are for the 635 or the 633 with only a 100Mbps switch but I imagine the difference will be small.

* TalkTalk (Super Router)

The Super Router is a tricky one because TalkTalk initially used the HG635 model, before later adopting a cheaper HG633 to fill the role and this sacrificed the HG635’s 4 x Gigabit Ethernet ports in favour of the slower 100Mbps standard.

Never the less it does still support 802.11ac WiFi with a 3×3 antenna array (Peak speeds: 300Mbps (2.4GHz) and 900Mbps (5GHz 11ac)) and 1 x USB3 port. However in our experience the WiFi performance of TalkTalk’s Super Router is a bit disappointing in comparison to the others.

Power Consumption (ISP Figures)

Minimum / IDLE = 6 Watts

Maximum / LOAD = 10 Watts

The result suggests that the Super Router should cost between £8.14 (IDLE) and £13.58 (LOAD) per year to run, which isn’t anything to really worry about.

AndyPix

bsod wrote: »

The internet (and journalism) is awash with false statements. IT consultants or people who know a bit about computers, or those pesky helpdesk call handlers, are not necessarily a good place to obtain facts from
.

Prey tell, where would someone such as yourself obtain information then ? As you have ruled out most of the choices ..
(The internet, journalism, IT consultants, people who know a bit about computers and helpdesk droids)

Someone's personal experience perhaps ... ?

bsod wrote: »

one swallow does not a summer make

It appears not