| Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster |
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Model: WRT54GS
Brand: Linksys
Manufacturer: Linksys
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 556
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
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| Features: |
Warranty - 3 years
Standards - IEEE 802.3, IEEE 802.3u, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11b
Ports - One 10/100 RJ-45 Port, Four 10/100 RJ-45 Switched Ports
Button - Power Port, Reset Button
Cabling Type - UTP CAT 5 |
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| Description: |
| LINKSYS WRT54GS -- The Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster is really three devices in one box. First, there's the Wireless Access Point, which lets you connect Wireless-G, Wireless-B, and other performance-enhanced SpeedBooster devices to the network. There's also a built-in 4-port full-duplex 10/100 Switch to connect your wired-Ethernet devices together. Finally, the Router function ties it all together and lets your whole network share a high-speed cable or DSL Internet connection. Easy configuration with web browser based configuration utility Linksys Parental Control Service (free trial included) keeps your family safe on the Internet, setting profiles for time-of-day and day-of-week access restrictions, and controlling which of 16 content categories each family member is allowed to see Also includes email & instant messaging filters |
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| User Reviews (556 total): |
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Excellent device, easy setup, solid performance, November 28, 2006
By philosopher (Texas)
The key to installing this device is to insert the setup CD into the computer BEFORE DOING ANYTHING WHATSOEVER TO YOUR COMPUTER and follow the step-by-step directions carefully. Throw away any directions you may have downloaded from the internet or Microsoft about the ins and outs of setting up a wireless network--you won't need them. The Linksys CD setup program is very sophisticated and it automates the execution of what is actually a fairly complex set of algorithms, with very little user input needed. It is a most impressive bit of hardware, and a no-brainer to set up. It took me all of 20 minutes to set up my network and connect three computers in the house to it. I can't comment definitively on the strength of the signal, since the distances covered in my house are small, but over those small distances (30 feet and three walls at most), the signal strength is excellent. This is one of the best computer purchases I have ever made. The key is, again, to follow the CD setup directions carefully. . .
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Has worked well, but not user friendly, November 26, 2006
By Steven A. Peterson (Hershey, PA (Born in Kewanee, IL))
This system has worked very well for me. My family has four computers (three laptops), and the network provided by Linksys is a life saver. I can access the system from the basement (the router is on the second floor). Seldom is there an interruption in access to the Internet. Before, we used dial up, and that was a real pain. First, people had a hard time getting their phone calls through to us. Second, it was soooooooooooo slow.
Thus, I am a very satisfied customer now that the system is running.
However, getting it to run was a challenge, including the dreaded call to outsourced expertise who helped me to get it going, with considerable difficulty in communication involved. Once that was taken care of, the system has worked well. The provider would be well advised to make it simpler to get the system up and running.
Nonetheless, in the long run, this was a good investment for my family and I am quite pleased with the system's performance.
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Very dependable product, very poor documentation, November 25, 2006
By ComputerNovice
No problems whatsoever since I installed the router several months ago. The only problem is installing the router and getting it working with your modem. Don't bother with the sparse Linksys documentation. Just contact your ISP for information on how to "bridge" your modem because this is what you have to do to get your wireless router to work with you modem.
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Overall satisfied, November 22, 2006
By patricktx21
Installation was a breeze and configuration was easy. One thing I would like to see is a stronger signal from the router as I have experienced problems with consistency of the signal strength. This issue would most likely be solved by changing the location of my router in my home to a more centralized point but currently that is not possible. I have read other user reviews of this router and they too have complained about the relatively small signal radius.
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Mac is not well supported, November 22, 2006
By H. CHUNG (PA USA)
I think maybe I'm having a bad experience with WRT54GS because I'm using both XP and OS X. Every other day, the router stop responding, then I can't even connect to the router until I reset it.
I upgraded the firmware to the latest, 1.50.9 released 10/1/06. It worked fine for a couple of weeks, then my mac mini couldn't get any DHCP assigned, even it was connected with Ethernet. This is a known problem, but Linksys hasn't been updated their firmware, and the user can't download older version of firmware from their site.
I didn't see Apple OS X as one of supported OS, so I guess it's not a Linksys' fault. But if you're using an OS X, you should avoid this router.
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Excellent, November 13, 2006
By Fletch
This wireless router does exactly what it is supposed to do and installation/setup was a snap. Highly recommended.
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Works Well (I'm using it right now), November 11, 2006
By Aspiring Photographer (MI United States)
I am using this as both a wired and wireless router without any problems. It was easy to set up and seems to be very secure with many features to help you make sure that no one breaks into your network. It also seems to have a great range, I have used it in every room of the house and outside with full signal. It is a little slow to transfer large files over the wireless compared to wired, but when using the Internet it is more than fast enough.
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not bad, November 10, 2006
By winddriver (Minnesota)
the installation is not hassle free, but after everything is done, it is pretty stable and fast.
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Difficult to set up, November 10, 2006
By Rupert Gilroy
While I will admit to very good assistance from LINKSYS, it still was a most difficult product to set up. It took hours of trying even with assistance from someone who already had a similar product. It is just not for the average user to undertake.
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Easy setup, yet bumpy service, November 10, 2006
By M. Yu
The router can be set up very easily, in fact it sets itself up. Worked really good for the first few days, but I've been having slow service as of late, (Becomes fast again when I reset the router).
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Linksys Router is Better than Netgear, November 6, 2006
By Dale E. Homuth (Mounds View, MN)
I had been using a Netgear WGB111 wireless router in our home for several months, but the connection speed was extremely unreliable and variable. By resetting the router frequently, speed improved. However, it was driving us crazy, so we decided to shop for a new router.
After reading lots of reviews we decided to buy the Linksys WRT54GS. What a difference! This router really rocks.
We have had to reset it a couple of times in the 2 months we've been using it, but when it has happened it is obvious (unlike the Netgear) and the connection is immediately restored.
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Linksys WRT54GS wireless router, November 5, 2006
By C. Maly (Wisconsin)
I'm very happy with the performance of my wireless router. After buying two others in the past that I could not get to work I was ecstatic when this one worked on the first try. My son installed it with little problem or frustration. Thanks!
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Installed Flawlessly in less than 30 minutes!, October 25, 2006
By Wolf (Southern California)
I had an existing Router and Wireless access point from Linksys, the router started acting up so I decided to replace both of them with this wireless router.
The key is to get an Internet connection from your DSL modem directly to your computer, once you can get online the rest is cake.
I unplugged my main computer from the old router and plugged it directly into the Verizon DSL modem. Turned on my computer and was able to get online immediately. Once you can, insert the CD that comes with this router and follow the instructions. It checks for the Internet connection, and instructs you to then plug in the router. It took few seconds for it to recognize and configure the new router, it then installed some basic security setting for me.
It automatically let my computers that are hardwired to the router access the Internet also. The wireless devices that I have had to be changed to the new security settings, unless you use your old security settings again.
The thing that bugs me is that it doesn't tell you how to log into your router from the web browser. I know from experience so I did it automatically. This is important because you should always change the default password, or anyone could log into your router and change it. Becuase the default is widely known. To change it, go to your web browser, type in 192.168.1.1 in the address field (without the http://), when a box pops up the log in is: admin and the password is admin. CHANGE THE PASSWORD. Even if you do not set up wireless security, you should, but if you don't at the very least change the password and write it down so you don't forget it.
When you are logged in it is a good idea to set up the security settings for wirelss access. You can find some good intructions on the Linksys website. If you don't do this anyone in your neighborhood may be able to log in and use your Internet connection. A friend of mine had this problem and someone had also changed the default password.
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Idiot Proof!, October 19, 2006
By Grandma (Houston, Texas)
Great product. Dead easy to install - less than 10 minutes start to finish. Works well and great range.
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I found the winner, October 14, 2006
By Kwok Ng (San Jose, CA United States)
I have tired many routers and done lots of researches. WRT54GS is my finally choice. I selected WRT54GS because it meets all my criterias.
The things I like:
1) It has 32MB of RAM which is so much faster than D-Link DI-624.
2) You can set the Qos to the MAC addresses, ports, or applications.
3) It has very good wireless range coverage with any b or g cards.
4) It does not reboot like my old DI-624.
5) So far, the best router I have used with VOIP is the SonicWall TZ170W. It was a super fast and stable router, but I couldn't use it because it had a networking issue with my network camera. My old DI-624 was too slow and dropped connection all the time. The Belkin Pre-N router was dropping VOIP packets. Only the WRT54GS works pretty well with the VOIP.
6) It supports 3rd party firmware for special needs.
The things I dislike:
1) You can only select either High or Low priority in port Qos
2) Some connected devices do not show in the client table
Last but not least, you have to be very careful when you pick up this router because it has too many versions. You'd better to get the version 3 or earlier. After the version 3, linksys decreased the RAM to 16MB. That's why you see very different comments on this router. If you see the SN prefix starts with CG6 or higher, the router may not get the same performace as mine. Sometimes, your home 2.4GHz cordless phone will interfere with the wireless signal too. The problem has been fixed after I changed to 5.8GHz phone.
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Not professional, but good for having at home., October 13, 2006
By Haroldo Oliveira
This is a good router. I've been testing routers for a long time. I already had LinkSys, D-Link, Netgear, and again Linksys routers.
My first linksys was a WRT54G - I replaced it because I was having problems trying to setup it to update my DynDns account.
Had really bad experience with Netgear and D-Link routers. I have a kind of well visited website that runs in my home computer, and both Netgear and D-link were getting stuck, needing to be restarted sometimes. Really a bad thing for a router.
I went back to linksys - it seems to be better. As soon I received the router, I noticed that the pictures from my website were being downloaded really slow... so I updated the firmware and the problem was solved.
This new firmware works well with the DynDns, the router is not getting stuck with my traffic, the wireless has a acceptable range. The SpeedBooster - what makes this router more expensive, unfortunately only can be used with speedbooster clients... really useless for me.
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Solid Product for 2-3 years, October 7, 2006
By DB (RTP, NC)
Bought this WRT54GS v6 to replace my Linksys WRT55AG v1 (dual band A/B/G) which ran reasonably well for almost three years before flaking out. Had another Linksys before that; same story: about three years worth of life.
My biggest frustration with Linksys is their lack of continued firmware development and product support - I would have loved to have WPA/WPA2 support on my old WRT55AG, but there has been no new firmware released in 3 years. Get the newest firmware you can find on their site and load it -- it may be the last update/bug fix you ever get.
Big plus with this WRT54GS: removable antennas - I still had a boost antenna from my first AP, I had not been able to use it on the WRT55AG (those antennas could not be removed), but this new WRT54GS went back to the older connectors and I was able to hook up the bigger antenna I had purchased from fab-corp.com -- this makes me very happy.
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garbage, September 30, 2006
By bloodnok (east finchley)
only got a year and change service outta this junk. the radio appears to have packed it in. it's only two or three feet in direct line-of-sight from my laptop and i get no signal from it.
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No Problems, Smooth Sailing., September 30, 2006
By Johnny Danger (Kalamazoo, MI)
I was able to get this plugged in and on with no bumps in the road whatsoever. The key though, I think, is to not use the installation cd. You don't really need it. Just look at the user guides online if you ahve any difficulty.
Some tips:
Change your router's password immediately, and make sure that you write it down.
After you have gotten a connection to your broadband, or ethernet, look at the "Status" page in the router setup pages. Find the addresses listed next to "DNS 1" and "DNS 2", write them down, and then click the "Setup" page. Type the two addresses into the corresponding fields under the "Network Setup" heading on the "Setup" page. This just makes things run really smoothly, I guess. It was a tip that was given to me, and it worked like a charm.
If you want to be able to change settings in the router more easily, make sure to click "Enable" under the "Remote Router Access" heading on the "Administration" page. This will allow you to change settings from a computer that isn't connected by wire to the router. Make sure that you change the password from the default though, otherwise anyone will be able to get in and change settings.
High gain antennae make a bit of difference in signal strength too.
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Works Great, September 27, 2006
By A. R. III (Tustin CA)
Originally I was told to stay away from Linksys by someone I had spoken to about using wireless routers. Because of the price, I did not take their advice and bought it any way. It works great and love it.
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