If you want the best router on the market, go with Cisco. You won't find a more secure and versitile router out there. If you want to save yourself a lot of green, then Linksys is the way to go. They are owned by Cisco, and some of their technology has been cross platformed with the home networking routers.
You can get good deals on Cisco router/cable modems. They afford you many options in configuration and security if you understand telnet