However, like most modern routers, the BoB Lite also feels cheap. Its plastic is not quality, the device feels a little too light to really be stable, and there really wasn't much ventilation on offer. This isn't a business-class device, and it doesn't represent the high end of town in ADSL routers.
Features
To be honest, the featureset of the BoB Lite is about as standard as you could expect from an ADSL router in 2011, with a few exceptions.
All of the basic router functions '” a web-based interface, firewalling, DHCP support, NAT IP address sharing, support for ADSL2+ speeds and 802.11b, g and n Wi-Fi access and so on '” are here '” as well as quality of service support, VPN pass-through and so on, and the BoB Lite also adds functionality for more advanced users such as virtual local area network and server and DMZ zone support. The support for USB devices and 3G modems is also a welcome addition, although we're not sure how much use it will see.
However, to be honest, these are all par for the course in 2011. To demonstrate what else is on offer, the FRITZ!Box 7270 being promoted by Internode at the moment currently also comes with integrated PBX functionality, as well as being able to function as a base station for six cordless phone handsets, and even an ISDN port. It also does so in a smaller package.
The FRITZ!Box also supports version 6 of the internet protocol '” a feature which is speedily becoming a must-have for home and small business broadband routers. The BoB Lite does not support IPv6 '” although iiNet says the feature can be added via a software update in future.
Critically, however, the BoB Lite does support the TR-069 standard being used by iiNet to ensure uniformity of service delivery across its network '” meaning iiNet's staff can configure the device remotely, and it will support delivery of iiNet's fetchtv content through its IPTV set-top box (reviewed here).
One other feature which the BoB Lite is listed as coming with is the ability to automatically retrieve a user's login and password details from iiNet's servers when you connect the device and switch it on. However, it is not locked to iiNet '” you can also use the device on the networks of other providers.
Performance
Our initial ten minute experience when we connected our BoB Lite unit to our long-term iiNet naked DSL connection wasn't fantastic.
