D-Link DGS-2208 8-Port 10/100/1000 Desktop Switch
by D-Link Systems, Inc.
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List Price: Our Price: $45.00 You Save: $26.99 (37%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of D-Link DGS-2208 8-Port 10/100/1000 Desktop Switch
Customer Review: Great for its intended use
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an unmanaged switch, which means that you can not configure Virtual Local Area Networks (VLANS) or Quality of Service (QoS) - though QoS is supported through the implementation of 802.1p, but all the attached devices must support 802.1p in order to use it. Since there is no configuration, all you have to do is plug it into power and plug your devices into it. It really is that simple for any unmanaged switch. It will automatically allow all your devices to talk to each other at the physical layer. Of course, your applications must be configured right to talk to each other, but these unmanaged devices make building the infrastructure a snap.
In answer to a previously posted review, I tested this device in the following way:
-Port 1 connected to my desktop computer with a Gigabit network interface card (NIC)
-Port 2 connected to a 10/100 switch which was connected to a gigabit ethernet storage device
-Port 3 connected to a second DGS-2208 switch which was connectedto the exact same model gigabit ethernet storage device
-Port 4 connected to a laptop with a 10/100 NIC
The point of this setup was to use the identical computer communicating with identical devices through a 10/100 connection and through a gigabit (1000) connection. I transferred a 10 GB file to the ethernet storage device through the gigabit connection first and then I transferred the exact same file through the 10/100 connection. The GB connection was about five times faster.
Now, this proves that the switch does not automatically throttle back to the slowest "connected" device. However, it does not indicate whether the gigabit connections will slow to the speed of 10/100 connections if those slower connections are actually active.
To test this, I transferred the same file from the laptop to the slower connected ethernet storage device while also transferring the file from the desktop to the faster connected ethernet stoarage device. The results? The gigabit connected devices still transferred the data at rates faster than possible on a 10/100 connection. This proves that the gigabit speeds are still achieved even when a 10/100 connection is active.
In the end, due to memory and processor limitations, this device cannot even compare to enterprise-class gigabit switches from Cisco and other providers; however, it is the best performing gigabit switch I've ever seen for under $75.
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Customer Review: Highly recommended product
Summary: 5 Stars
Our first product review for Its Geek Time is this nifty gigabit network switch brought to you by D-Link. For years D-link has taken a back seat to bigger companies like Linksys and Netgear for home network equipment. In recent years D-Link has increased their product quality and can contend with the big guys on an equal footing. This switch is a product that proves that.
The first thing to note about this switch is it is a gigabit switch with 8 ports for less than $50. A comparable Netgear or Linksys switch will cost you much more money. The other important thing about its speed is you can connect 10/100 devices to it and not lose gigabit connectivity to gigabit enabled devices that are also connected to it. On older gigabit switches, the switch would throttle down to the slowest device connected to it.
Another new feature on this switch is its power saving feature. Ports that are not in use are turned off so the device uses less power over all. This turns into cost benefits from less electricity usage, less heat generated by the product, and a longer life span due to less wear and tear. In an age where electricity prices are at an all-time high, anything that saves power is a welcome addition to many homes and offices.
In conclusion, this switch is recommended for any home network or small office network that is on a budget and wants gigabit functionality. This piece of networking technology gets a must have 10 on the d10 of networking from It's Geektime.
Customer Review: Great Switch! Zero Hassles
Summary: 5 Stars
My old Linksys wired router finally started to slowly fail (check your transfer speeds between computers to see if they are still what they used to be - you might find your throughput is no longer as fast as it once was.)
Bought this D-Link DGS-2208 from Amazon and when I hooked this up, it was totally plug and play. Six minutes start to finish from time the box was opened, including getting it to work with my Linksys wireless router. Zero hassles.
I also bought the Intel 1 Gbps internal card for one of my computers that only had the 100 Mbps motherboard network adapter. Now, three of my computers can benefit from the 1 Gigabit transfer speeds - as expected.
The unexpected nice surprises were that my transfers and streaming to my Apple TV are much faster...and my off site Slingbox streaming rate has almost tripled - according to my son who uses it back in England from our cable box here in Florida. I am pretty sure that the Slingbox is only 10 Mbps - so this is probably more an indication of how bad my old wired router had deteriorated.
For under $40, that was a great buy. If you are considering upgrading your network from 100 Mbps to 1000 Mbps, it is absolutely worth doing.
PS: My only complaint with the transaction was with Amazon: they showed it in stock, but didn't ship it until over a week after the order was processed. I order a lot from Amazon - and they are usually great - but not this time.
Customer Review: All you have to do is plug it in.
Summary: 5 Stars
When I decided to purchase this product, I wasn't really considering the power saving features; I was simply searching for an 8-port gigabit switch that would work well with my network.
All I had to do to get this switch (I keep almost typing 'router' but it's not) up and running was to plug it in and connect ethernet cables. It detected my network configuration and after rebooting computers that had been previously on 100mbit, everything was up and running at gigabit speed.
Since then, I haven't touched it. I haven't had to. It just works.
Some other comments have raised questions or issues with operating in a mixed network (some computers at fast ethernet and others at gigabit speed). I'm operating a mixed network and haven't had any issue whatsoever with this switch. It detects the maximum link speed available, configures the connection to that speed, and indicates the link speed with one of two different light colors.
The only mediocre aspect of this switch is the light panel on the front. The various light colors are similar to one another and in close proximity, it's hard to tell which lights are which colors and which are even on without standing directly in line with the panel. Still, I haven't had to even look at it since the initial configuration, so it's a very small issue.
Overall, I'm extremely satisfied with this switch. It's proven itself to be fast, reliable, and intuitive.
Customer Review: Straightforward and simple
Summary: 5 Stars
The switch is easy to use and setup with good performance. There's not much more to add than that really... it does what I expect it to do and looks decent in the process.
My main reason for picking this over the other 2 8-port gig switches was the color coded link lights. I have a mixed speed network with some devices running at 10/100 and most running at 1GB, and I find it useful to have some indication that they are running as expected.
One last thought: I have had no issues with the switch reverting to ALL 10/100 just because 1 device is running at that speed as some other reviewers have suggested. Presumably this was some kind of firmware issue which has been resolved in recently released models... I didn't have to download any new firmware to fix this.
EDIT 12/26/08:
I just bought my second one of these units.
The first one from this original review is still running strong and I haven't had any issues at all with it; so when I needed additional ports another one of these was a no-brainer.
The price is always among the cheapest around for a gig switch (and when on offer with a good rebate it is about as cheap as you'll ever see a good 10/100 MB switch for)
Excellent price by comparison, great performance, and no problems at all with one that's been used day-in and day-out for over a year now. What more could you want from an unmanaged gig switch?