On the design of affordable and green high-performance routers for community networks: short paper

Abstract

We argue that large scale user-driven community networks are becoming viable in areas without access to telecommunication services due to lack of commercial interest. We discuss the design of a key component supporting this claim: a high-performance, low-power-consuming and affordable router with fibre optic capable of forwarding 2 Gbps, 220kpps, powered by only 25W, which is between 7% and 17% of the alternatives in our comparison. The cost of the one-off prototype was below a third of the prices of comparable proprietary solutions and half of other open source alternatives. It can be reduced further in series production. Future work will include widening of bottlenecks without increasing cost and field tests in rural African settings.