Cisco-Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router
by Linksys

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Category: CE
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Digital Photo Product Details

• Connects to a broadband modem, a 10/100 Ethernet backbone, or wireless network
• Long wireless operating range supports 300 feet indoors and 1,500 feet outdoors
• Provides roaming, best access-point selection, load balancing, and network traffic filtering
• Configurable through your networked PC's Web browser
• Can act as a DHCP server for your existing network

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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cisco-Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router

Customer Review: Ideal SOHO wireless solution
Summary: 5 Stars

WPC11 ver 3 - wireless PCMCIA card (PC card) for laptop
BEFW11S4 v2 - wireless router/access point (AP)

Other hardware:

Gateway 800Mhz desktop PC, with two NIC cards
120Mhz Cyrix (old Pentium clone chip) desktop PC, with one NIC
Toshiba 233Mhz laptop (borrowed for this test), no NIC

Existing network:

I have a roadrunner ISP. To share that ISP, I bought a hub, and physically ran cat 5 between the computers. I then downloaded/used a free "proxy server" software program called AnalogX. This worked ok for sharing the internet, but the client computer couldn't access AOL IM and other handy stuff, due to proxy server limitations I think. I'm really not an expert - I kind of fumbled my way through and got that setup working.

How it worked before:

Roadrunner is set up for DHCP. This means that theoretically every day you could have a new IP address (mine is always the same), and that you must have your computer/NIC which is connected to roadrunner set up to accept a DHCP address. So one of my NICs in the Gateway was set up for DHCP, while the other was a static (non-changing) IP address. The old PC also had a static IP. This is important for future steps.

How I physically installed the router:

I turned everything off and unplugged it. Then I unplugged all my cat 5 connections to my old hub. I plugged the cat 5 coming out of my cable modem into the router. I then ran another cat 5 line from my router's #1 port to the NIC card in the Gateway which was set up for DHCP. I then connected the cat 5 which goes to my old PC to the #2 port of the router. At this point, I plugged everything in and booted up.

Software installation:

I put the CD in, and the wizard to add computers to the router came up. I clicked next a few times, always taking the default, and then I was finished. I could immediately connect to the internet. I then repeated this at my old desktop PC, with only one change. After adding it to the router, I couldn't connect to the internet. I went into the Internet Explorer TOOLS/INTERNET OPTIONS choice, selected the connections TAB, clicked the LAN connections button and UNchecked the "Automatically Detect Settings" checkbox. I also had to set my IP addressing to DHCP on the old PC, by right clicking on "Network Neighborhood", selecting "properties", clicking the entry in the list titled TCP/IP, clicking the "properties" button, and selecting "Obtain an IP address Automatically", then clicking OK a couple times. This requires a reboot. When it came back up, I was on the internet here too.

So, I'd say about 45 minutes to get two "wired" PCs on the internet with the router.

WIRELESS PORTION:

I opened the box and read the directions for the PCMCIA (PC) card. they said basically to reboot and put the PC card in the slot. I did, and it was detected immediately. The laptop had been configured to connect to a Novell wired lan, so I was prompted for my OS CD a few times. After that, the install went fine and I rebooted one last time. When the laptop rebooted, I still had to go UNcheck that "Automatically Detect Settings" box to get on the internet. I did not see any mention of that in the documentation. So good for you if you read this deeply into my review.

PERFORMANCE:

SPEED and RANGE - excellent:
Outstanding. Whether on the laptop or desktops, throughput is great. My house is a two story stucco and Brick exterior house. Inside, I went about 30' laterally and 20' down with no discernable loss in download speed. I next went out the back of my house, off my deck and to the back of my patio. At this point, I'm about 60' laterally and 25' down from the router. The connection is still fast and clear. I next went around my house to the front, and across the street to my (generous) neighbor who had loaned me the laptop for this test, and proceeded to surf while on his front porch, approximately 125' from the router, and 25' below. There is also one interior and one exterior wall between the laptop and router. The connection is clearly much slower at this range, but I never lose my connection or time out. It's just slower downloading. I went into his house, and couldn't get a connection. But it would have had to penetrate his stone front house and a couple interior walls to get to me. Overall, the range is very good for my purposes (surfing downstairs/outside).

SIGNAL INTERFERENCE - minimal:
I have a newborn baby, and we were lucky enough to get a 2.4Ghz video baby monitor. I was really concerned that these devices would drastically interfere with each other. I've heard stories, and they made sense to me, that other 2.4Ghz devices could completely disrupt your wireless connections. So I turned on the monitor and positioned the laptop so that the baby monitor transmitter was between the router and laptop. I couldn't detect ANY difference or interference during this test. The laptop internet connection worked identically to how it was with the monitor off. When I turned on the monitor receiver, there was some slight interference - the picture was still clear, but there was an occasional very narrow horizontal band and an associated "tick" sound about once/second. It wouldn't prevent the monitor's use, but it would be irritating if you had the volume up much at all. Since I returned my friend's laptop right after my testing (I was at his house anyway), I just went into the setup program and disabled wireless. This immediately eliminated the interference. I was afraid the disabling would just block throughput but not stop the actual broadcast of a signal. But apparently it stops altogether, which is good for me.

Overall, I can't say enough about how easy it was to install, and how well it all worked. I am a fairly computer-savvy person, but I'm no network expert by any means.

SUPPORT:

Since buying my router, I have not needed support. Before the purchase, I emailed Linksys support to ask them if the baby monitor would be a problem. They emailed me a generic "here's what can goof up your wireless connections" document in return. I wasn't impressed with that. But the next night, a Linksys support technician calls me at home to discuss my email and the document. We end up talking for about 20 minutes, and they've never sold me anything. I was impressed with that, and that's the biggest reason I chose Linksys. In addition, I called the tech support line and asked them about 2.4Ghz phones and monitors. My call was in the middle of the day, and was answered by a technician in about 15 minutes, which I thought was fine.

Overall, it's a great product that's almost "STUPID PROOF" easy to set up, and works well. I highly recommend both the NIC and router.

Description of Cisco-Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router

The BEFW11S4 is chunkier than a standard Ethernet switched hub, but is so versatile that a little extra bulk is acceptable. Basic installation involves little more than plugging in the power cord and connecting the Ethernet output from your cable or DSL modem to an input port on the back of the device. Four Ethernet ports on the back accept connections from computers with standard network interface cards, while two antennas on the back handle the unit's wireless capabilities. The standard ports operate at up to 100 Mbps, while the 802.11b technology allows for wireless transmissions at up to 11 Mbps. That's not the blazing-fast performance you'd get from more expensive 802.11a or 802.11g wireless products, butis more than enough to handle Internet connection sharing, LAN gaming, and normal file transfer duties.

This product's forte is Internet connection sharing, as it serves as a single point of contact for every computer attached to a home network. All your ISP sees is one IP address sending and receiving Internet traffic, even though several computers on the other side of the BEFW11S4 might be accessing the Internet at the same time. The other nice thing about this setup, as opposed to standard Internet connection-sharing software, is that no particular PC must be turned on before the others on the network can access the Internet. As long as the BEFW11S4 is running, any PC can get on the Web.

Although the device is surprisingly easy to set up, a Web-based interface is available that lets advanced users access security settings, permissions, and a variety of other options. It is easy to use and can be accessed by any PC on the network without having to install special software. The unit itself provides plenty of feedback, as it is equipped with several LEDs that indicate the status of each standard connection, along with the wireless signal. There also is an uplink port on the back that lets users add more hubs, switches, or other devices as their network grows.

The router performed as expected in tests, providing fast 100 Mbps speeds to two basement computers using the standard Ethernet ports and a steady 11 Mbps signal to a third PC located upstairs and about 40 feet laterally from the base transmitter. The strength of the wireless signal is entirely dependent on the conditions in which the device is used, but most home users shouldn't have a problem reaching any one room of their house from any other room.

Perhaps the only drawback to the BEFW11S4 is that if installation doesn't go as smoothly as it did for us, configuring the device could be difficult for novice users. It's designed to be a plug-and-play unit, but there are hundreds of seriously advanced settings lurking under that friendly façade that can really mess things up if they are not configured properly. The good news is that most users likely won't have any problems, and once the BEFW11S4 is set up it works so smoothly and seamlessly that you'll forget it's there after a while. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• Easy installation, seamless operation
• Makes it very easy to share an Internet connection
• Powerful configuration options for those who want to get their hands dirty

• Wireless Ethernet adapters to connect to a PC must be purchased separately
• 802.11b transmission speeds are pokey compared to more modern standards

For more information on the differences between an Access Point and a Router wit h Access Point, see the following table:

See a comparison diagram of the different wireless technologies.

Wireless networks are rapidly becoming more popular and coming down in price. Since they don't require cables, you can use the devices anywhere in an office or home, even out on the patio. There's no need to roll out an Ethernet network cable to each room of a house; you can network anywhere -- without wires. Outside of the home, wireless networking is available in hotspots at coffee shops, businesses, airports -- great when you're on the road and need to get some work done. For convenience, wireless networking is the answer. What Wireless Standard is Right for Me? Now that you've decided to create a wireless network, the next step is to figure out which wireless standard to use. Basically, a standard is a set of specifications for a device. All devices that follow a specific standard share operating characteristics, such as the radio frequency used and maximum data transfer speed. For wireless networking, there are three standards to choose from at this time: 802.11b 802.11a 802.11g To learn about the differences between the standards and select the right one for your network, click here for an easy-to-understand chart.

Configurable as a DHCP server for your existing network, this router acts as the only externally recognized Internet gateway on your LAN and serves as an Internet NAT firewall against unwanted outside intruders. It can also be configured to filter internal users' access to the Internet. The 4-port switch dramatically increases the speed of multimedia and gaming connections.

This device comes with a one-year warranty and free 24/7 technical support.

Note: All Linksys routers now include a special edition of Norton Internet Security! Claim your free CD-ROM by calling (800) 814-0180, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Pacific time, seven days a week.

See a comparison diagram of the different wireless technologies.

Wireless networks are rapidly becoming more popular and coming down in price. Since they don't require cables, you can use the devices anywhere in an office or home, even out on the patio. There's no need to roll out an Ethernet network cable to each room of a house; you can network anywhere--without wires. Outside the home, wireless networking is available in hotspots at coffee shops, businesses, and airports--great when you're on the road and need to get some work done. For convenience, wireless networking is the answer. Which Wireless Standard Is Right for Me? Now that you've decided to create a wireless network, the next step is to figure out which wireless standard to use. Basically, a standard is a set of specifications for a device. All devices that follow a specific standard share operating characteristics, such as the radio frequency used and maximum data transfer speed. For wireless networking, there are three standards to choose from at this time: 802.11b 802.11a 802.11g To learn about the differences between the standards and select the right one for your network, click here for an easy-to-understand chart.