| 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: 1079
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 (1079 total): |
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Don't bother if you have cox.net, February 5, 2002
By unknown
This router does not work properly with cox.net. Save youself the trouble and don't buy it if you are on cox. I spent 2 hours on customer service and they had no answers other than to say "tough luck".
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A feature loaded Wireless Solution, February 4, 2002
By Tan Suan Loke (Simei, Singapore)
It has everything you need to work wirelessly, tried it with 2 of my broadband ISPs (SCV's Mototrola Surfboard Cable modem and SingNet SpeedStream ADSL ethernet modem), works just fine. I must say cable modem is much easier to setup, very much plug and play, but ADSL setup needs good IP knowledge to configure it, especially if you have a ADSL router modem (I was testing with a friend's SpeedStream ADSL Router 5660). Added feature like PPPoE support, NAPT, NAT and its generous 4 port design is a big plus.I like to add that the effective distance is about half of what was advertised. So, if you are living on the edge (of a bulding), you may need to plan your access point location properly. It would be good if there are antenna (or 3rd party) accessories to boost the distance to REAL 100ft indoor or 300ft outdoor or beyond. If you use it in a SOHO environment, this is a PERFECT choice.
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A very good router., February 3, 2002
By Bret Squire (Ann Arbor, MI USA)
This router is very easy to setup and works with Verizon DSL. It is also suggested that you upgrade to the latest firmware. Linksys and Zonelabs are in agreement to have the router communicate with the latest ZoneAlarm firewall program, but this requires the firmware upgrade.
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Wireless??, February 2, 2002
By Jamison Hurst III (Center Valley, PA United States)
Yes, it is wireless, and very cool if you don't have to go through any serious walls. It works fine everywhere except where I need it to work, which is over the garage. Configuration was complex unless you understand ip addresses, dns, etc. I did get it accomplished only to find out it won't reach the room I wanted it in, (about 40 ft.) Support suggests I buy a third party antenna, terrific. Unless you want to use it out on the deck, run the wire!!
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Great product - Easy Install - Solid Customer Service, February 2, 2002
By David Schappell (Seattle, WA United States)
Just bought this today, along with the PCMCIA laptop card and I couldn't be happier. Am laying in bed typing this review now that I've been freed from sitting in the home office. The installation was almost flawless -- the router set up worked pretty much as plug and play. My only difficulty came in getting the laptop to receive the reception from the base. I called the toll free Linksys #, had to wait about 15 minutes on hold, but the rep was fantastic and had me fixed up in less than 5 minutes. The reception in the house has been more than adequate and the freedom of going wireless and still having access to files on my desktop is fantastic. Pros:
* Fast and easy installation
* Toll free customer service
* Great price/value ratio Cons:
* Guides could have been more updated, but they were adequate
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xp setup a nightmare, February 1, 2002
By chris_rav (Yardley, PA United States)
Setup of the router was a snap, and getting the router to log on too my DSL account that uses PPoE was also a snap. But configuring my laptop and desktop to see each other and the internet was a nightmare. There is no documentation for XP, so I had to wing it. Since I'm somewhat computer literate, I figured I could get it to work. After 3 hours of frustration, I used system restore on both machines to get them back to where I was before I started, because nothing was working correctly. After system restore, using the network setup wizard, I got both machines up and running in 10 minutes, after learning from my previous mistakes. 1) XP's firewall will not allow the systems to see each other throught the router (however norton's internet does), so I had to disable XP's firewall. Then the machines could ping each other and the router, but not the internet. Couldn't really figure out why, but by giving the laptop with the wpc11v2.5 wireless card a static IP, and doing the same with the desktop, and turning off DHCP on the router, I was finally able to see the internet. Now that I actually have it up and running, I think it's great. The range with the laptop always gets a 11MBps rate and a good to excellent signal throughtout my home.
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Suffer First, Enjoy Later, January 26, 2002
By unknown
I thought I was computer literate until this thing humbled me. As others have written, you may as well take the manual and use it to level a broken chair leg. On the other hand, tech support was excellent. After a few (OK, OK, alot)of calls, I am up and running and very satisfied. My PC and router are on different levels and on opposite sides of the house and I'm having no problems with range.
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Problems with insalation and poor reception., January 25, 2002
By pfairbairn2 (Oakland, CA)
Maybe I got a lemon.. I dont know. But I had to wait about an hour for technical support the first time I called then about 25 minutes the second time. All I needed was to upload new Firmware and erase the flash memory. That finally being done...it Worked!!! Yaa!! Utt OHH!! However, I took my labtop with the Linksys PC card installed the went to my room... not more then 30 feet away and I have a "poor quality link" Thats not far.. On the side of the box it says 11mps @ 100 ft. I'm getting 2mps at 30 feet according to my configuration utility and a yard stick. Hmmm Maybe my walls are made out of led or something...
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documentation and web site lacks mac support, January 25, 2002
By omniremark (Portland, OR USA)
after updating the firmware using a pc, this wireless router works perfectly with mac os x and the airport (802.11b) card inside the apple powerbook g4 titanium. it is disappointing that the macintosh platform is not discussed in the documentation or on the linksys product support web site. it wouldn't hurt to mention that when entering the 26 digit number for a 128-bit WEP key on the mac, you must precede it with the '$' symbol. it is particularly disappointing that there is no way to update the firmware without using microsoft windows.
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VPN users be aware, January 22, 2002
By swimmer79 (Mesa, Arizona USA)
I bought this router last December. Got it up and running in less than 30 minutes after my cable connection was installed. I had two Win98 desktops (one with CAT5 and one with wireless connection) and a Linux laptop on the router's network. They all worked and were able to access internet and share files among themselves. I had been using VPN for telecommuting and after the router was installed, the VPN appeared working as well, at least initially. I was able to access company network and saw remote Unix file system using Linux NFS. When I tried to actually access files or sub-directories, the NFS broke down and I could not even shutdown the Linux laptop (NFS was not able to unmount the remote file system that I viewed). The second problem I encountered with the router was that the wireless connection would sometime jam the router for no reason and all the network traffic would stop. The only way out was to press the reset button on the back of the router. Both problems were resolved after I upgraded the router to the latest firmware. If you use VPN, you definitely want to upgrade to the latest firmware. Other than these initial problems, this has been a great product for my needs.
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Easy Installation, mediocre reception, January 20, 2002
By unknown
I have just finished installing the wireless router and wireless pcmia network card. The directions were good, and it was set up in about 15 minutes. The notebook install went OK to. The reception for me was poor upstairs. One floor away, approximately 30-40 ft? I do like this product, and am enjoying sharing my broadband connection on my laptop.
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Router, Firewall, Hub, and wireless all in one, January 19, 2002
By unknown
I originally set up a wireless network using the Intelipoint wireless network. It worked OK, however it needs one of the PC's to be the "server". The LinkSys product IS the router so my original "server" PC can now be free to do other things.I have 3 connections in the house: 2 wireless connections (a remote desktop and a laptop), and a desktop physically connected to the Linksys via ethernet. The configuration is done by browsing a specific web address that is handled not by internet but by the device itself, sot there is no need to install ANYTHING on the PC's in the network. I am getting about 100' pretty reliable and the data rates are pretty decent. The connection to my DSL ISP required me to get some info upfront, but after that little hurdle, the system was up an running in about 1 hour. I'm still fighting some windows (TM) issues regarding networking, but otherwise I recommend this product very highly. The manufacturer's web site is pretty useful, before and after the purchase.
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Impressive, January 19, 2002
By tim1198 (austin, tx United States)
Installation was very difficult, although the help on the CD was decent, the wait on the help line was 40 minutes. Everybody that owns the linksys talks about their difficulties. My cable modem helpdesk people were very experienced, so they directed me to get it going. One thing to note: I had to input my MAC number in the installation setup (the web setup) and had to follow VERY specific bootup procedure, then everything came on like a lightbulb. The procedure is: Power everything down, power only the cable modem until the "cable" light is solid, indicating a link, then powerup the linksys, wait 10 seconds, then power up the computer. Input the MAC ID of your network card in the installation, power everything back down, and repeat the setup procedure one more time.Once it came on, it is awesome!! My wireless link speed is the same as if it was plugged in with cat5. This is anywhere in the house (1600sqft). I can't believe I waited so long....
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Easy, January 18, 2002
By jcf4413 (Waterford, MI United States)
This is a great product with loads of features and could not be easier to setup. I have three computers at home using the cable modem and the throughput is very good even with several simultaneous users. My wireless adapters are those of another manufacturer and they all linked up instantly. I highly recommend it for home use.
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Good Value for the money, January 16, 2002
By unknown
Recently purchased this wireless router and have been happy with it so far. It is fairly reliable and consistent but the set up took myself and my brother (a computer science major at Georgia Tech) about 4 hours to get the whole network working. It has a few problems, it doesn't transmit well through brick or several walls and access to DSL goes down often, don't know whether it is DSL problem of Router problem. But it has been a very good value compared to the [amt] one the phone company tried to sell.
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The Easiest Router that I have ever configure, January 16, 2002
By cavarpe (Annandale, NJ United States)
I buy the product and was thinking that the configuration was like a normal router that you need to know all the information and how to make the routing and how to configure all the interfaces, but this product you just plug it to your network and it take all the info and in less than 5 minutes your online wireless, that's the best part, for a house the speed is great. No degradation of signal. You can move all around the house and the connection will be on. The and is Really Plug and Play the card, just have to download the Windows XP software and install it and you are online
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So Far - So Good!, January 16, 2002
By jack@randrforhorses.com (Challis, ID USA)
It takes some reading to get set up to be sure you know the "Do's and Don'ts" but once you do that the installation is not all that tough. I have an Ethernet network cable connection to my own computer (use a 3COM Etherlink 10/100 NIC) and it "flies" compared to my old 28.8kbs ISP connection. Have a second PC connected via a Linksys WMP11 Wireless PCI Card approximately 50 feet away in a straight line but on the floor above me in a log house with a regular stud wall (with a doorway), a hallway and second 18" diameter log wall (with another doorway) between the Router and the PC. The connection floats between "very good" and "excellent" holding at 11Mbs. I plan to also connect a laptop with a Linksys WPC11 Wireless PC Card in the near future. In short, so far I'm VERY impressed!
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extremely easy to setup, January 14, 2002
By Vincent Apesa (Sterling, VA)
I've had no problems at all with this device. The setup/adminstration is web-based and intuitive. Occasionally the router needs to be rebooted but I'm not sure if that is due to my DSL modem or the router.
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Hit or miss, January 11, 2002
By unknown
This appears to be a great product if you can get past the setup. I bought this on the recommendation of my father-in law who set it up in his house and had no problems. My experience was far different.
I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and use Pac Bell DSL. It appears that Pac Bell originally gave me an IP address that worked with my desktop Windows 98 but wouldn't work with the Linksys product or my new Dell laptop with Windows XP. XP identified my IP address as invalid despite the fact that it had worked for two years on Windows 98 on the desktop. So after a very short time I was dead in the water regarding the setup and Pac Bell had no answers
So a long story short, I had my IT guy at work come home with me and after 4 long hours and two Pac Bell technical people on the phone (the first rep was stumped and had no answers) we finally got it working on the new laptop. The desktop never did work and we finally just swapped out of Windows 98 and into Windows 2000 and then we were finally able to raise the browser. The Linkys had pinged the internet on the desktop 98 but we weren't able to get it to open the browser. I took my IT friend to a very nice dinner afterward for his help.
Bottom line, easy if you are lucky, but it can turn into a disaster if you don't have networking IT expertise or access to it. Be prepared if you buy it that it could take a while to get it right.
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awesome, January 11, 2002
By unknown
I am not a techhead...this is a fabulous product - it works wonderfully with my new laptop - it's easy enough to set up and worked first time. Buy it
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