| Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router |
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Model: WRT54G
Brand: Linksys
Manufacturer: Linksys
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 1702
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: Windows XP Professional Edition
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
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| Features: |
All-in-one Internet-sharing router, 4-port switch, and Wireless-G (802.11g) access point
Wireless data rates up to 54 Mbps--5 times faster than 802.11b
Shares a single Internet connection and other resources with Ethernet wired and Wireless-G clients
Interoperates with 802.11b clients at 11 Mbps
Advanced wireless security with 128-bit WEP encryption, MAC, or IP address filtering |
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| Description: |
| LINKSYS WRT54G - Wireless-G is the emerging 54 Mbps wireless networking standard that's almost five times faster than the widely deployed Wireless-B ( 802.11b ) products found in homes, businesses and public wireless hotspots around the country. The best part is, since they share the same 2.4GHz radio band, Wireless-G devices talk to existing 11 Mbps Wireless-B equipment. Operates as a DHCP Server NAT technology to protect against Internet intruders Supports VPN pass-through Easy configuration with web browser based configuration utility |
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| User Reviews (1702 total): |
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reliable, but RIP don't work, August 24, 2005
By matt.mingkee (Brooklyn, NY United States)
I purchased this router (used as wireless access point) after netgear WGT634U died (used a month!!!)
the difference is night and day!!!
pretty stable (almost no chopping problem when listening audio files from server), and no freezing problem as netgear did
though the signal is not strong as WGT634U (17dBm TX, -91dBm RX max), the antennae are removable/upgradable, that means I can use active antenna to improve RX/TX
however, RIP don't work (unable to link with XP ICS), that I still have to manually to configure ip, or internet sharing don't work with this router with DHCP enabled (points wrong gateway), but my case is pretty special
conclusion: this router works pretty well as access point (with DHCP disabled), and the antennae are removable (RP-TNC)
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Don't use included software., August 23, 2005
By I hate Paul. (Kauai, HI USA)
Make sure you let XP configure thie wireless router. Otherwise the disc that comes with the router will make it practically impossible to use your laptop to connect to any other router, wireless or no. 3 hours with the verizon tech guy today and he finally said the only thing to do is get my computer's drivers fixed.
Other than the 5 hours I've spent trying to make up for the mistake of using their software (which they say you must do though you don't have to and shouldn't!) it works. Bastages.
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Works Great, August 22, 2005
By Amy Cook
I love this product. Now both of us can use the internet at the same time. How cool!
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Great Router, August 22, 2005
By elherderofgoat (San Antonio, TX)
So far I have had no problems with this router. It has worked perfectly and the signal is very strong at about 30 feet. No complaints, all the reviews were correct. It is one of the best routers available and definitely worth the money!
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Customer service nightmare. Read before buying!, August 22, 2005
By Sean M. Chauvin (USAF Academy, CO United States)
I bought a WMP54GS and it died after 2 months. I paid to have it sent off to Linksys and then paid to have it sent back to me because Linksys won't ship to an APO. The card they sent back was a refurbished one which begs the question "Why didn't I just buy a refurbished one to begin with and save money?" The thing that really made me mad was that the antenna that came with the card had been chewed on by a dog! It was mangled. I contact Linksys service and the first person I talk to basically tells me to just deal with it. I finally have to call and speak with someone else just to get them to say they'll check into what they can do. It takes a total of 6 emails and a long distance phone call from Okinawa just to get them to offer to replace it. Here's the catch though, I have to send the card and antenna back to them and again pay to have it shipped back to me. Nice to see Linksys
cares about their customers.
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Expect to cold bood the system every 48 hours, August 22, 2005
By R. Hutchinson
I hooked this up to my cable modem and expected to be on my way. It worked great for 2 days, then stopped transmitting a signal. Cold booted the router and then reconnected internet cable and re-booted all wireless connections and it worked (for another 48 hours then do it all over again). What a piece of trash. Don't buy it.
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Good router., August 21, 2005
By fredpb (Greenwood, SC USA)
I got it working fast enough. It is a nice router in all ways but one. It is not reliable.
A couple of times a week it seems to cease access to the internet. That is, you cannot access the internet at all. All lights blink, and you can still access other computers on wired and wireless LAN. Just no internet. You have to unplug the unit to get it to work again. Very annoying.
I did know about this from researching on the internet before purchasing it, but I bought it anyway. My mistake.
I have returned it and have a cheaper, nicer Belkin.
************ Update on review.
Other brands were not so hot. I got another Linksys and updated it with latest firmware. Problems went away. Have used it for many months now no problem.
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Very east to setup and use!, August 20, 2005
By Mom to an adorable baby boy (Boulder, CO)
This has much better range than the previous Netgear we had (although this one was more than $7!)
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Linksys Wireless G Router, August 20, 2005
By Jen (New York)
If you follow the directions for the order of how to plug things in, you shouldn't have a problem - and if you do a quick call to your ISP tech support should resolve it. It's working fine so far.
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Works Great, August 17, 2005
By mustang_mike (Davis, CA)
So far I couldn't be happier with this router. I basically started from scratch with a new DSL modem and connection, this new router, and a new Linksys notebook network adapter card. I was very surprised when everything was up and running in less than an hour. Setup was easy - I just followed the instructions and the whole process went real smooth, not even one phone call to India!
As far as performance, I haven't seen the connection drop once, and when I run speed tests, there's no difference between being connected wirelessly to this router, and being connected directly to the DSL modem. The firewall also seems to be very effective, based on security scans I've ran from dslreports.com.
I've since also added the Linksys wps54G wireless print server to my network, and it too works flawlessly with this router.
So I'm very happy with this router and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to start a home network - especially for the current sale price.
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Lynksys wireless router, August 16, 2005
By redhat
Very easy to install. works great. I tried others but this is the best.
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very easy to install, August 15, 2005
By Jeremy Slavkin (Chicago, IL)
This router was extremely easy to install. Took less than an hour to hook up. Product manual very descriptive and simple to use. Fast data copying and internet usage.
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set up not easy but Linksys helpful, August 13, 2005
By wireless user (new jersey)
the setup is on a cd, but it errored out on me. I had to call linkys support to get it to get to the website for setup.
every step of the way it didnt work as the setup guide said. I had to call linksys 3 times. they were helpful & gave me a direct # to call so I didnt enter the que. SOunds like tech support was in India, but I had minor problems understanding.
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Not bad, but..., August 13, 2005
By CMOS (Chicago, IL)
...the signal strength leaves something to be desired IMHO.
The setup was literally a snap under OS 10.4 -- all I did was connect the thing to my active cable modem, turn on my G5 and the system auto-detected the router. From that point all I had to do was click a button to connect to it.
The browsing speed was OK but the downloads were literally 1/12th of my normal bandwidth, even though the router was only about 10' away, behind a total of about an inch of dry wall, a hollow closet door, and another inch of particle board desk leg. I played with the antennae and other settings (firewall, etc) but none of them alleviated the problem. The airport software was up to date and giving me three out of four bars as a signal indicator, so software / the Airport Extreme card wasn't the issue.
Some people download third party firmware that circumvents the signal strength limiter but I wasn't about to do anything that might void the warranty and thus my ability to return it. Recommended for more open interior spaces but if you have to go through any amount of construction materials or thick desks or shelves, think twice.
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Less than expected, August 12, 2005
By tech guy (Seattle, WA USA)
I had heard good things about this product and with a bit of patience it works as advertized. I am always a bit leary of a product that warns me to install software before trying to use it and there it was in big bold red letters. Problem is the software is for Windows and I use Macs, so the software is useless to me.
Really, just using the browser utility for setup works fine, it won't explode if you don't load the software. Some of the configuration is confusing and it's not clear when you change a parameter that it actually was changed. This was most evident when changing the channel from the default. I like the built in switch function, it works as a default. The signal strength is good and the product is reasonably priced.
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Wireless G, Router, August 12, 2005
By JR (Dominican Republic)
This product works like it is, 4 0 5 walls between my laptop and this router and have a Good Signal
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Since Jan 2005, August 12, 2005
By I [heart] Electronics! (Cuthbert, GA USA)
I have been a happy owner of this router for almost 8 months now, and have had no problems after setup with the router. My matching card in my laptop [also Linksys] is beginning to give a little intermittent problem and my laptop loses signal occasionally, but usually I use the Remove Hardware icon on my taskbar in WinXP and safely remove the card and plug it back in, and I get it back. I haven't called tech support on this yet, but maybe I should. I know it's local to the laptop because my 14-year old daughter is usually on the desktop and can easily check for Internet. As I remember, setup took a while because the version of the software on the included CDROM was not what was needed, but I easily used the Cat-5 cable to get on the Internet and downloaded what was needed. Support on the website is extensive and easily searchable. I got useful help from LinkSys' phone support, but had to wait on hold a while. Have not needed them since I installed the laptop card [which I got later].
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Difficult to setup, missing some basic features.., August 11, 2005
By D. Desai (CA, USA)
I own a mac, and the router had labels all over it to run the installation CD before using it. The CD does not work for a mac. It took me a while to figure out how to configure it with a mac (which was actually pretty straightforward).
The router also dosent have a very important feature that i needed, which is Reserving IP Address according to the mac addresses. This is important if you run servers behind the router.
The interface is also not so user-friendly. For example, from the list of currently connected computers, we cannot select them to add to the authorized list.
These are some of the things that are present in any cheap router available in the market. Basically was quite upset with the router.
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Easy to install; durability confirmed, August 11, 2005
By No Patience (Richardson, TX)
Very easy to install and connect with wireless cards in house [just carefully and methodically follow their install directions; don't rush like me (I have almost no patience, hence the pen name)]. Works well with a Linksys Cable Modem.
BUT:
1. Didn't hold up well in a recent electrical storm (waddya expect). Its on a surge protector, but electrical charge probably came through the cable line and blew out a Motorola SB5100 modem and one of the router's ethernet ports. Can connect just fine (and speedily) through the other three. [Update (12/06) - ITS HELD UP FINE FOR 1.5+ YEARS]
2. Signal strength a little disappointing in other parts of a 3200 sq ft house. [Update (12/06) - signal strength has proved to be just fine wherever I've connected.]
3. Have had it for 1.5 years.
I will replace it (when I need to) with another Linksys.
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Exactly as they said it would be., August 10, 2005
By FreudWasRight! (Chicago)
This is a no-nonsense, excellent piece of equipment making life SOOOOOOO much easier for just a couple of dollars. Just make sure you take advantage of the secuirty features, which take a little bit of time to tinker with and figure out. To my knowledge, nobody is accessing my DSL from another wireless computer...and I live in the density of a major American metropolis.
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