A switch is a device to which all computers in a network or section of a network send their data. A switch works out which computer should receive the data and sends it out to just that port. This is different from a hub, which directs everything it receives to all available ports, leaving it up to the receiving computers to work out if the data is intended for them.

It shouldn't be hard to see that a switch is a lot quicker than a hub. All ports on a switch have the potential to run at the full speed of the network to which they're connected. In a hub, the top speed of any port is the speed of the network divided by the number of ports in the hub. There's also a limit to the number of hubs you can connect together to extend a network--there's no such limit when connecting switches.

The FS605, about the size of a Pocket PC or portable CD drive, has a set of six LEDs on its front edge. The first shows when the power from the separate mains power pack is connected, while the other five show when individual ports in the switch are active. They shine yellow for an Ethernet connection and green for a fast Ethernet one, and flash as data passes through them.

You can position this Netgear switch horizontally on the desktop or vertically using the stand provided or wall-mounting. With all recent versions of Windows, all the software you need to set up a network is built into the operating system and no extra programs are needed or supplied by Netgear.

Should you need to connect the FS605 to another switch to extend your network, you don't need to worry about using special cables or designating one of the ports as an uplink between the two switches. This device is intelligent enough to work it out itself and any of the five ports will automatically switch to an uplink mode as required. --Simon Williams