NAS drives are hard drives or disk arrays that attach directly to your network. (See “Network-Attached Storage,” macworld.com/tktk[CB1].) They are great for network backup or central storage for shared files and media collections. While some have built-in Wi-Fi, all have Ethernet ports; you should use the latter, because shuttling files is much faster over wires.

What to Buy

Adding wired components to your wireless network isn’t really worth it unless you’re using Gigabit Ethernet.

All Intel Macs, as well as iMacs released since mid-2005, PowerBooks since late 2001, and Power Macs since mid-2000, have Gigabit Ethernet. (To see if your Mac qualifies, select Apple: About this Mac, click on More Info, select Network in the Contents sidebar and Built-in Ethernet in the Active Services subwindow, and then look up Media Subtype in the subwindow below.) Routers have come late to the Gigabit party: Apple has offered Gigabit on its AirPort base stations since mid-2007, when it introduced the Gigabit AirPort Extreme.

From top to bottom: 3Com OfficeConnect Gigabit Switch 5; Linksys EG005W; Zyxel GS-108B; SMC SMCGS8 EZ Switch.If you don’t have Gigabit Ethernet, your wired connections will only run at 100 Mbps, negating many of the advantages of wired over wireless.