I have a 24" Core 2 iMac (white). It has the G ethernet.

I don't have a wireless router, this will be my first. I do have 10mbps cable. I plan on owning a iPod Touch and possibly an Apple TV in the future.

1. Which brand is your favorite router/

2. Is it worth the extra money to get an "n" router?

Everyone here loves Buffalo, although they're discontinued.
I have been pleased with my Belkin. If you go directly to their site sometimes they have great specials (e.g. half off everything).

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MacManMaz
... 2. Is it worth the extra money to get an "n" router?

Could be, if you're going to send HD video to the AppleTV.

My favorite would be an Apple BaseStation. I have a Linksys at my studio that I seem to have to reset a few times a month, works fine, though. At home I have a Snow BaseStation that I bought when they were announced, what, maybe 5 or so years ago? It has never even hiccuped in all of that time. I probably paid around $150 for it at the time, but it's ease of setup and use has been well worth it to me.

Your iMac may be "n" capable with a software update, not sure which model they started with (unless it is already). Apple's Extreme BaseStation is usually available as a refurb at the store.

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Black Landlord
Everyone here loves Buffalo, although they're discontinued...

To set the record straight, Buffalo routers are not discontinued. The company is complying with an injunction imposed by the Federal Court for the Eastern District of Texas with respect to the offer to sale, sell, use, import or manufacture of Buffalo’s IEEE 802.11a and 802.11g standard compliant products. The case is under appeal to the US Court of Appeals. Buffalo has already succeeded in its case in Japan. Buffalo was picked as the target of this legal action, but it could ultimately involve all manufacturers of wifi devices. Nineteen (19) companies; including Cisco, Intel, and Microsoft; have made amicus filings supporting Buffalo. [www.buffalotech.com]

The whole mess was begun by Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), a govt. group that obtained Japanese patents for wifi technology. These patents have since been ruled invalid by the Japanese.

How about the soon to be released Time Capsule - Apple's backup drive/router?

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Panopticon
To set the record straight, Buffalo routers are not discontinued

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Thanks. Noted.

you don't necessarily need a WiFi router. If you have a wired connection to your iMac (which seems to be the case currently), then you enable WiFi sharing on the iMac and yout touch will connect to the iMac. I am not sure about the Apple TV, but a quick look at Apple's web site seems to imply that is also has built-in Wifi, so both iPod Touch and Apple TV should be able to connect to the iMac WiFi. In other words, the iMac will act as a WiFi base station. of course, the iMac would have to stay ON.

You don't mention how important the price is. I've found the cheap $30 routers to be fine for general use.

But I've also become a fan of AirTunes, available with Apple routers, that allows you to play iTunes music wirelessly to a stereo. If you have a few extra bucks, I think an apple AirPort router would be sweet.