Part of open source hardware (can be) opening up firmware, in previous posts and talks about OSH (open source hardware) we’ve outlined routers and equipment which are open for hacking and improvement by allowing tinkerers and developers to modify the firmware. NETGEAR seems to have jumped feet first and has released a router specifically for hackers. Could this be the router of Makers? (via /.)
The open source Wireless-G Router (model WGR614L), enabling Linux developers and enthusiasts to create firmware for specialized applications, and supported by a dedicated open source community. The router supports the most popular open source firmware; Tomato and DD-WRT are available on WGR614L, making it easier for users to develop a wide variety of applications. The router is targeted at people who want custom firmware on their router without worrying about issues, and enjoy the benefits of having an open source wireless router.
The WGR614L features a 240 MHz MIPS32 CPU core with 16 KB of instruction cache, 16 KB of data cache, 1 KB of pre-fetch cache, and incorporates 4 MB of flash memory and 16 MB of RAM.
More:
Open source hardware, what is it? Here’s a start…
Open source hardware @ Etech (PDF).
2 thoughts on “NETGEAR does open source (hardware) router”
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Did they release the circuit diagrams and make them open, or just the firmware?
if its just the firmware, the Linksys WRT54G/GS started out as open source, linux based, firmware. Linksys still offers a linux router as the WRT54GL.
Judging by the “quality of build”, or lack there of, I’ve seen from Netgear, I’d prefer the Linksys option, even if its more expensive.
BTW: Linksys made the standard WRT54G/GS proprietary when they realized that they weren’t allowed to (and therefore refused to) provide the source to some of the Broadcom components, due to licensing agreements.