Cisco-Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router
by Linksys
|
Our Price: $72.97 Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $22.95 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
|---|
Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cisco-Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router
Customer Review: Excellent value, and fully configurable
Summary: 5 Stars
I came from an older Netgear 802.11b wireless router that worked in 2 rooms and didn't have coverage over the entire house. This new wireless router, the Linksys, simply rocks!!! Signal is great in all of the rooms of my 3 story, 3 bedroom long house (40ft) even when I put the router in the furthest, lowest corner of the house. I'm really impressed.
Previously, I never thought that buying a new router could speed up my connection. Since I'm only on DSL, I figured that my transfer rates could never exceed 11mbps over the phone line, so why bother with an 802.11g network?
I have no idea why it's faster, but it definitely is faster. Maybe something to do with simply the connection being stronger and less packets being dropped? I don't know, I'm not an IT guy. All I know is that this router rocks.
One tip, though. I used the included setup CD at first, but if you have SBC Yahoo! DSL, you're using a PPPoE client where you need to put monkeypoo@sbcglobal.net and then enter your password into the router. You can't do that in the setup CD. You'll have to go the semi-advanced route of opening your web browser and typing "http://192.168.1.1:0" and going into the router manually, menu by menu.
Anyway, I'm completely satisfied with my purchase. On top of all this great stuff, the firmware was released to the Linux community and 3rd party programmers have hacked the router so you can do a lot of cool stuff. Go to the Anandtech.com forums and search for this router and you'll find SVEAsoft has a lot of awesome firmware. The most important feature seems to be the ability to boost the antenna power from 24dB to a whopping 84dB :) Happy surfing
Customer Review: Life is grand when things work the way they are supposed to.
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently decided to move up to a wireless router from a Linksys model BEFSR41 wired router. Although I was predisposed toward the Linksys brand because of a good experience with the BEFSR41, I was somewhat concerned about the mixed reviews on the WRT54G Wireless-G Router. After extensive research about the various alternatives, I decided to opt for the Linksys model, primarily because of its compatibility with VPNs, which I use to access a corporate network from outside the office. Set-up was as simple as plugging in four wired PC connections and the power cord. The default settings worked beautifully and I had immediate web access on all four PC's at speeds that appeared to be even faster than the old wired router. I then accessed the Linskys DHCP server and made some fine tuning adjustments based on the well-laid out instructions. Then came the big test. I have an older house with mostly plaster walls and brick exterior. Damned if the thing didn't go right through them all like a hot knife through butter. My wireless range provides outstanding coverage throughout the three floors of my home, covering about 5000 sq. feet. I also was able to receive excellent reception outside at ranges easily exceeding 150 feet. The VPN works like a charm and coverage is even better than I expected. All in all, I couldn't be more thrilled. No spotty coverage, no need to call tech. support. Just plugged it in, fine tuned some security and wireless adjustments and away I went at wireless speeds equalling the speeds of the hard-wired PC's. It's hard to understand why there is such a variance of opinion about this product. It's performance in my case has been absolutely flawless.Customer Review: excellent range and performance
Summary: 5 Stars
I replaced my D-link 802.11b router because it could not hold a connection continuously. See my other reviews for the details. I also wanted to switch to Broadcom hardware (which the linksys uses) because my WiFi MiniPCI card in my dell laptop with lucent silicon in it used 70% of my 1.2Ghz laptop's CPU when using the wireless at full speed. This is because the Lucent drivers use PIO whereas the Broadcom drivers use DMA. I am not sure if this is still the case with lucent drivers.The new linksys set up immediately. I ran my speed test program and was able to get 2400+ kbytes/second thruput with the linksys, using 64 bit WEP encryption, all with less than 5% CPU. That's more than 4x the best speed I was able to get with the 802.11B device with encryption turned OFF!
I use the device more like a wireless hub, not in router mode, since my internet connection is no where near the middle of the house where I want the wireless access point to be. I had one problem after I upgraded the firmware which I think was caused by some important parameter in the device being changed after the upgrade. I am not sure about it. I had to go back up into the attic and connect with a wire before I could get it working again.
Oh, and don't ever do what I did: do not ever upgrade the firmware over a wireless connection! What I was thinking I do not know - I am lucky I didn't lose the connection halfway through and render the device useless.
This device never drops connections, so I stay logged into Windows Messenger continuously.
Great product, no problems. Not even sure why I upgraded the firmware. I am running 1.42.2.
Good luck!
Customer Review: Breeze to setup, stable connection, fast transfer rate
Summary: 5 Stars
I'll skip all the irrelevant technical jargon that has already been mentioned and get straight to the point. I've already mentioned three main positives on this router in the title. Now a few random key points that I find important to take a note of:
1. Version 4.0 - If you have earlier versions, upgrade to firmware version 4.0. Do not, I repeat, do not use version 5.0. Make sure you look under the router by the serial number to find out which version firmware your router shipped with, and get it updated to 4.0. If you are already at 4.0, perfect. Leave it alone (assuming you dont plan to do anything fancy w/ the router).
2. The WRT54G is not the same, or even close to the smaller and physically attractive WRT54GC. The C i suppose stands for compact. The WRT54GC has slower, more intermittment connection when compared w/ the WRT54G. I would say this could just be my unit, but I've read this from other reviewers as well. So stick with the WRT54G, avoid the WRT54GC.
3. The WRT54GS is great if you plan to take advantage of the firmware updates. If you are simply looking for a G router to connect - the WRT54G is perfect.
Also like to mention that many of the negative reviews on the d-link routers I simply did not experience. One that comes to mind is the DI-514/524, which has HORRIBLE reviews but worked fine for me. I think it is just a matter of setting it up correctly.
WRT54G is a great router. Also, there is a cool Cisco sign that lights up in yellow like the batman sign along with a myriad of green lights - perfect for the holiday season, and just... cool!
Customer Review: A Happy Three Years - Very Satisfied Customer
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased this in 2003 for use with a family desktop/music server, two wireless laptops and a Buffallo wireless access point for the kid's desktop. Internet access was supported via cable modem.
Set up was plug and play. Setting up the encryption with a home network was kind of a pain (more Microsoft O/S issues than anything else) but I don't recall that taking more than an afternoon to do. Never had any issues after that.
The only problem we experienced was with our 2.4 GHz phones. When the phones were in use the router would not function (it is also 2.4 GHz). So, we had no Internet access during conference calls. Obviously, an unacceptable situation. To fix this, we just bought a 5.8 GHz phone. I could see this causing a problem for folks in a high-density living situation like an apartment building. E.g., you can't really control whether your neighbors have 2.4 GHz wireless phones! Anyway, something to consider if guaranteed uptime is at a premium for you.
We have had no issues with data transfer rates. We can transfer very large powerpoint slides and web-surf without any noticable difference from the T-1's we have in the office. From a distance perspective, we have had the router in a basement office and still had strong signals on the 2nd floor, in the backyard, etc. We've also not noticed any speed problems when all of us were using our machines at once.
So, all-in-all, a very reliable and secure appliance for us. It finally went in a power surge after a couple of years -- so be sure to surge protect! I am writing this review as I purchase a replacement.