Page 2 - Physical Look - Hardware
The D-Link DIR-867 is a full size, full featured, and full power Wi-Fi router that has some visual similarities as the main unit of the D-Link Covr. Instead of the plain flat top of the COVR-2600R, however, the DIR-867 carries more visual flare; where diagonal lines mark off areas of differing finishes, different surface gradings, and additional ventilation slits. The entire enclosure is made out of plastic. I measured the DIR-867 and its dimensions are 228.6mm in width, 203.2mm in depth, and 44.5mm in height with no antenna installed -- certainly not compact by any standard, but a little smaller than the COVR-2600R. Curiously, the specifications table and datasheet on D-Link's website lists slightly different dimensions, and I can assure you both of them are wrong.
The D-Link DIR-867 lays flat on your desk rather than aligned vertically to save space like many modern routers. It is equipped with four dual band detachable antennas for some epic multi-user multiple-input and multiple-output wireless communication. As you can see in our photo above, D-Link's logo is boldly embossed in black in the middle, and an array of four multi-color LEDs indicate the DIR-867's power, internet, 2.4GHz, and 5GHz statuses are placed along the bottom. The LEDs are all labeled by a corresponding icon to show you what they do. An indent where a USB port is usually located in front of the router is left blank; the DIR-867 has no USB ports. Inside, the router is powered by a dual-core network processor.
Turning the D-Link DIR-867 around, we can take a closer look at the four dual band antennas attached to the router along with a generous array of ports and switches. These include four Gigabit Ethernet ports, one Gigabit uplink port, reset button, Wi-Fi Protected Setup button, Wi-Fi on/off button, and a 12V DC power input.
Why four antennas, you may ask? The use of multiple antennas for communications has been the foundation of many modern wireless technologies; ranging from short range unlicensed bands such as Wi-Fi to long range licensed bands like LTE cell phone networks. The fundamental principle lies in the fact that multiple antennas allow the designer to enhance performance using beamforming and diversity techniques. Beamforming, in the simplest explanation, allows power to be directed towards a certain direction. Diversity exploits multipath -- where the same signal can arrive via different paths due to reflection and refraction in the propagation channel -- to enhance the received signal quality. Multi-user MIMO, otherwise called MU-MIMO, lets multiple antennas from multiple users to communicate with multiple antennas on base station. Obviously, the more antennas on the access point the better, but we are bound by the laws of diminishing returns.
The D-Link DIR-867 is advertised as an AC1750 router. This means it operates at 450Mbps on the 2.4GHz band via one 40MHz channel with three streams, while an 80MHz channel on the 5GHz band provides 1300Mbps for a total of 1750Mbps theoretical throughput. We will evaluate the performance of this router in just a moment.
Ventilation openings can be seen at the bottom of the D-Link DIR-867. Four integrated plastic feet with rubber bottoms provide about half a centimeter of additional clearance between the router and your table. Two mounting holes in the middle lets you wall-mount your router should you prefer that; this is a great option in my opinion. Meanwhile, a label at the bottom shows information like the serial number, default SSID, and Wi-Fi password. Of course, you are free to change your wireless network name and encryption key in the web configuration interface, but this will get you going right off the bat if you are the type to stick with default settings.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. Physical Look - Hardware
3. Configuration and User Interface
4. Performance Tests
5. Conclusion
