| Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router |

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Model: BEFW11S4
Brand: Linksys
Manufacturer: Linksys
Average Rating:
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 1078
Platforms: Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows NT 3.5, Windows NT 4, Windows NT 5, Windows Me, Windows XP, Windows 2000 Server, Windows
Operating system: None
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b
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| Features: |
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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| Description: |
| The Linksys BEFW11S4 is your all-in-one networking device This wireless router features support for the 802.11b protocol, which lets you wirelessly access your network and the Internet from up to 800 feet (outside), or 300 feet (inside) away |
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| User Reviews (1078 total): |
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Xbox semi-compatible, April 15, 2003
By Bloody Templar (Smithville, MO USA)
I bought this as part of my plan to turn my house into a wireless Xbox paradise. Aside from problems I had with the WET11 (see my review on that item), I later found out that this product cannot support more than one Xbox connected to Xbox Live at a time. I had some inkling that this might be the case, as it's documented on the Xbox Live web site, but I was holding out hope that the more recent firmware releases may have fixed it. I mean, it's LINKSYS! It's THE name in home networking products.Well, there's always hope for the next firmware release.
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Great but not perfect, April 14, 2003
By unknown
I've been using this for nearly a month now to network my desktop and laptop with my cable modem and it really was the best solution I could find. Cox (my cable provider) wanted to charge an outrageous amount for their routers and I don't exactly have money to throw away. Using a wired network would have been troublesome since I'm not thrilled with the idea of drilling holes in this old house and risking hitting something and since the upstairs and downstairs are on completely seperate power circuits I could not use the electric outlet to network them either.The setup was easy and the router performs very well. My only real complaint is the router has had some serious problems with overheating. At first I couldn't figure out why it would work then suddenly stop working and I would have to turn it off for a while to get it working again. Then I felt the bottom of the router and noticed it was hot (not burning hot but like something that'd been sitting in the summer sun for a little while). I tried moving it to a more open space but that wasn't enough. I had to place a fan blowing directly on it before I could get rid of the overheating. I would have preferred the router come with a built-in fan or at least a warning but I'm easy to please and since it has worked flawlessly ever since I placed the fan in front of it, I can't really complain. I could have done without the headache it caused that first few days though. I can't say the range on the router is amazing but it does manage to reach my laptop almost anywhere in this two story house and for a short distance outside of it (currently my laptop gets a "Very Good" connection through the floor and a wall). I'd recommend the router to anyone on a budget that needs a flexable network solution.
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Good value for the money, but not without problems., April 10, 2003
By unknown
This router is very easy to set up and install for the novice and the advanced network users alike. For the novice, for whom security concerns are not incredibly important, it is nothing more than an installer program away. The problems I have had with it are on some of the more advanced features. The built-in NAT server can be a little flaky and, most importantly, the ASCII input for encryption keys does not work (the router will convert ASCII to the Hexadecimal and the hex will work just fine). All in all, even with its problems, the router is an excellent buy and, for the price, I have not seen anything better out there.
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Excellent choice!!, April 10, 2003
By unknown
I bought this Router/Switch to use at home the wireless cards already found in most notebooks.... Everything worked "out of the box" as most people state, the only problem I found was with my Dell TrueMobile 1180 Mini-PCI card; to solve it I had to check out Dell's user forums.... After a while I got everything working, but the other cards had no problem (D-Link, 3Com, Netgear, Linksys)... If you're looking for a great value, and also a fast, easy and trouble-free install: Get this product! (BTW, There is a new 802.11g Router/Switch now, though I'd better wait until the final specs are out)
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iMac with AirPort card online in 5 minutes, April 9, 2003
By unknown
Just got the BEFW11S4 and an Airport Card for my iMac. Installed everything and was browsing the net in a few minutes. I used the web gui to setup the WAP/router. It was definetly cheaper than an Airport Base Station. I love it.
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Very easy to setup, April 8, 2003
By Joseph A Mitchell (Cincinnati, OH)
Setup was a breeze, using my Road Runner cable internet service. My primary PC was already configured to "Obtain IP address automatically from DHCP server", so I literally did not have to change any settings on my PC. I was up and running in no time. Kudos to Linksys.
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Excellent product, incredible support!, April 7, 2003
By Mr. Larry G. Jones (Palm Springs, CA)
I cant believe what an excellent product this has been. And the incredible support! Have used it for about 8 months and the quality is wonderful; each time I have had a problem or added another computer to the network, the toll free support has solved the problems in minutes. Very happy with this purchase!
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good but has problems, April 5, 2003
By vdch
I didn't realize before I bought this that even though the switch is 10/100 Mbps, the connection between it and the modem is only 10. (this is not a big deal since I'll never reach that speed anyway).What is a big deal though and my biggest problem is it's high frequency pitch. I can't ignore it, it's driving me crazy. Other than that it's a good product. I had a netgear before this that I had to reset every few days. This I haven't reset since I configured it (2 weeks).
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Great home product!, April 4, 2003
By DPP (Houston, Tx United States)
I've been quite please with this Linksys Router. Out of the box installation is a breeze, just shove the cd into your computer and then software walks you through the rest, took less than 5 min. to be up and running. The fact that it has 4 RJ45 ports in addition to the wireless capabilities has been great, that has allowed us to hard wire in the desktop computers (save money on wireless card, why would a desktop need wireless?) and the Laptops have had free roam, never had any range problems or signal problems. I am currently running a hawking tech network card and it works great. Our linksys network card had some issues, so you might want to look into a different card to go with this great router. In conclusion, can handle all you home routing needs, DHCP, firewall, etc. great!
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Fantastic customer service - Best I have ever seen, April 1, 2003
By Erika Dalitz (Hoboken, NJ United States)
I have this router and a wireless card. I have had several problems with connection due to my cable service provider trying to kick off my extra connection. I have now called the linksys customer service three times and every time they ave worked with me to completely resolve my problem. Possibly the best telephone service center I have ever encountered and for that reason, I would recommend Linksys as a wireless gateway for your home. Add to that the benefit of being able to use your cable ISP on two or more computers as well as sharing printers and files and I wonder how I ever lived without it. WONDERFUL!
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Will never buy linksys any more, March 31, 2003
By qmmt (Arlington, MA United States)
1. Wireless connection is not smooth at all. Keep getting stuck. Have to manually reset it quite often. 2. Have been updating new firmware whenever a new one is available. Hoping the quality would improve. However, with every new firmware, the quality seems gettign worse. 3. Now, after 8 month of troublesome experience, the wireless signal is totoally gone. Both my laptop, pda cannot identy a wireless signal at all. Have to call linsys to replace one tomorrow.I won't buy linksys anymore!
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A good start, but needs improvement, March 31, 2003
By kogorman (California, USA)
Most of the features worked just fine, and did exactly what you'd want. There was a single exception, which was in port forwarding. I wanted to put a mail and web server behind the router so that the Linksys would be a firewall for other ports, but could not get the forwarding to work. This feature was described in the manual as "unsupported" meaning, I suppose, that Linksys knew it wasn't 100%.I understand there's now a BEFSR41 v2, and I'm hoping that the new version is better.
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My first Wireless Router, and I'm happy with it, March 24, 2003
By tanis_ml (Tampa, FL)
Linksys Router's seem to be the personal choice and recommendation of every computer expert I know.My wife wanted to be able to use her laptop from her job, with our broadband connection at home, so I started shopping around. The problem I was coming across though, was that wireless routers made by other companies only accepted wireless connections. Which meant I would have to buy a wireless PCI card for our desktop computer, in order to still receive the high speed connection it already had. In addition to the wireless card for the laptop, and the router. Linksys has the answer though, the BEFW11S4 is capable of connecting up to four computers through RJ45 cables, in addition to sharing a wireless signal. Everything you need comes in the box. There is an RJ45 cable to connect the Router to your computer, and the current RJ45 you are using can connect the modem to the Router. The instructions are very easy to follow with photos to show you exactly what to do. Be careful not to make the same mistake as I did though, and instead of jumping in, read the instructions fully before you start. There are two things that you will need to do to make installation speedy and simple. The first is to contact your ISP before starting on the installation, just to make sure you have all the relevant information you need. The Fast Start guide includes a list of the questions you should ask, and what information you should have before you start. I just wish my ISP had been as helpful at giving me the required information as the guide for the Router was. Secondly you need to make sure that you start running the installation CD before you connect the router to anything. This way the setup program will start gathering the information about your current settings that your computer is currently using, so that it can transfer it to the router later on when you connect it. Configuring the Router was an extremely easy task. The instructions are fool proof so it was nearly impossible to go wrong with them, with detailed screenshots showing you what to do. There are also seperate instructions for each Operating System, with screenshots showing exactly what to expect during installation. I had the router up and running within 15 minutes and had I read the instructions first and gathered all the information I need first, I have no doubt that I could repeat the process in even less time. I have not had any problems with the Router at all and it was definitely money well spent as far as I am concerned. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a way to share a high speed internet connection between computers with wired ethernet connections and wireless connections. We also used a Netgear MA401 802.11b Wireless PC card for the laptop, just because some of the reviews for the Linksys equivalent gave me the impression that installation was going to be a pain. There hasn't been any problems with compatability and we're now enjoying a broadband connection on two computers in our home.
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Incredible ease of use and quality, March 24, 2003
By D. Schwartz (Seattle, WA United States)
It amazed me how easy it was to set this thing up. It came ready right out of the box, and after I connected it, it allowed my two computers to share a lone cable connection without any further tinkering with settings.This is a great buy for anyone looking for a user-friendly way to set up their home network.
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F.Y.I.awsome, March 23, 2003
By v (orono, maine)
I purchased mine from radio shack and i have to say that though I found wireless keyboards and the mouse as well to be disappointing this Linksys has been anything but. I really am happy with my purchase and love the mobility I now enjoy. It does not exagerate it's claims.
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Straight out of the box!, March 23, 2003
By R.Merrell (Ewa Beach, Hawaii United States)
Open. Place cd in cd-rom. follow steps. 5 minutes later. Up and running. Desktop OS WIN XP. Laptop OS Win XP.(Wireless USB adapter WUSB11). Printing in five minute to the shared printer. It took me longer to unpack the equipment then it did to set up. Great price! Don't bother with the latest and greatest. Remember this was the latest and greatest not to long ago. I'm not an expert. but I can get around ok with a computer...I guess that makes me dangerous! Good luck.
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Excellent item, March 22, 2003
By A wireless user (Los Angeles, CA)
I have used this router for about 3 months and it is extremely reliable. 802.11b is perfect for Internet sharing as the faster standards (802.11a or 802.11g) won't increase your speed unless you are transferring files on your own home network.
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Excellent Product, March 19, 2003
By nexnevo (NY United States)
Once you set this unit up. It's virtually problem free. It works perfectly. I setup a wireless network for someone with this router, it has been about a year and not a single complaint. I personally use this router as well. Another quality product from Linksys
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Issues in getting an IP from ISP, March 18, 2003
By Martin Luke (Bronx, NY USA)
I wanted to replace my 4-port linksys switch with the wireless one. For some reason the wireless unit does not accept any IP (dynamic ip) from the ISP provider. When I setup the IP to a static one it works well. I tried another unit and the same problem with it also. There is definitely a problem here.I am now using both units - the wired one is geting the IP address from my ISP and giving out a DHCP address (on the 192.168) space to the wireless unit - which in turn is goving out DHCP addresses (on the 10.10) to my laptop and desktop. ... Again they dont take dynamically assigned addresses from your ISP. Upgrader both to their latest 1.42.2 firmware.
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worst product I ever bought, March 16, 2003
By nikhilc (New York, New York, USA)
I bought this wireless router from ... and followed all the installation instructions. For some reasons my router's default IP was configured to 192.168.2.1 and it wouldnt accept the password specified in the manual. When I called up customer service, it was the worst customer service I have ever encountered. The guy was rude, impatient and blamed me for having messed up the IP and setting the wrong password. He went even went on to say that somebody must have done it in my absence and then to top it hung up on me. I have spent way too much time, trying to figure out this piece of Junk and am ready for a refund .
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