Could someone tell me what exactly I have to look for in the
specifications of an adsl router (I'm looking for a 4-port type,
possibly wireless but at the moment just wired) to make sure it has an
internal adsl modem?

From what I understand some require an additional modem to be plugged
into it and this is what's confusing me as I've looked on many UK
sites trying to find various products but their description isn't
exactly helpful in saying whether the modem part is included. Is there
something simple I'm missing?

Thanks!

In general, if something is sold as just a "router," you should not
expect it to contain an ADSL modem, and if it is sold as an "ADSL
router," it should contain an ADSL modem.

However, there can be cases like the "Linksys EtherFast Wireless
Cable/DSL Router" you cited where the manufacturer is trying to sell
the product as working with DSL even though it doesn't contain a DSL
modem, since you can use it with DSL with the addition of another
device.  Another possibly deceptive one is the "Mentor 4 Port
ADSL/Broadband Router, RJ45 with Firewall."  If you read the detailed
description, it says it has a "1 x 10/100Mbps WAN port for ADSL/ Cable
modem" and "This product has been designed mainly for cable internet
users such as NTLWorld and Telewest who have external broadband
routers with network connection as this device has no internal modem
or USB connections."  So even though it is sold as an "ADSL/Broadband
Router," it doesn't contain a DSL modem.

Sources:

http://www.gladiatorcomputers.com/acatalog/ADSL_Products.html

http://www.gladiatorcomputers.com/productspec/productspeccom.php?pcode=MODMENFR4

Most other devices I checked that were labeled as "ADSL routers" did
contain modems.  I think we can conclude that a name with "DSL" or
"ADSL" and another word separated by a slash, as in "Cable/DSL" and
"ADSL/Broadband," is a warning sign that the router may not contain a
modem.

To be sure, you will have to read the descriptions carefully.  If a
description says "modem/router" or "modem + router" or "no external
modem required" or says you plug the ADSL telephone line directly into
it, it should be safe to conclude that it contains a modem.  If the
only interfaces a description mentions are Ethernet or USB, it may not
contain a modem.

In some cases, you may not be able to tell from a Web description
whether a device contains a modem or not.  For example, I wasn't sure
about the product described on:

http://www.askey.com/html/ADSLRouter_rta020.html

If in doubt, you can ask the vendor or the manufacturer, or just rule
it out and limit your search to products with sufficiently informative
descriptions.


Search strategy

ADSL router


I hope this answer is helpful.  If the discussion above does not
answer your question adequately, please ask for a clarification.

--efn

---

Clarification of Answer by efn-ga on 13 Jun 2003 10:51 PDT

In my answer, I referred to noggywoggy's reference to a Linksys
router, but that reference does not appear in the question.

In case other readers are confused, the reference was in a request for
clarification of a previous, now withdrawn, answer to this question. 
The link  to the page about the router is:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005ARK3/ref%3Dpd_sim_ce_dp/026-3958066-0891639

Thanks for the answer. Definitely more what I was looking for than the
previously posted answer. Thought there'd be a perfectly simple and
concise way of knowing what the product was, but oh well...