| Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster |
 enlarge
|
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
|
|
|
| |
| 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 |
| |
| 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 |
| |
| User Reviews (556 total): |
|
mostly excellent, March 5, 2006
By technut (Holley, NY United States)
Impressive performance gives me full range, very fast wireless connections, easy set up on all machines. One thing i do not like is the inability of the setup connection to maintain and hold the Wep key, it has to be retyped every time on my new laptop. I dont know if that is a linksys problem or Compaq settings, am looking into it
|
Great Router---but beware if you have a static IP, March 1, 2006
By Diane Burket (San Francisco, CA USA)
I have a static IP. With a static IP, you can't use the enclosed CD ROM to load and configure this machine. I spent over 4 hours talking with the Linksys rep in India...trying to get this router working. I'm pretty technical...so this was very frustrating. The Linksys 1st tier support person was clueless and told me it was not possible to use this machine with a static IP. She said the machine was faulty. I insisted on being transfered to a 2nd tier support person. He was finally able to assist me.
Now that I'm up and running, I love it. It's fast and reliable. I would not say that the range is great....but it's OK.
I'd highly recommend purchasing the router is you have a dynamic IP.
|
Be careful - version 5, March 1, 2006
By Saspus (Plantation, FL)
Unfortunately I had to return this item because it appeared to be hardware version 5 (which means it is based on VxWorks operationg system, not linux), so is is not compatible with the alternative firmwares. That's why only four stars.
The bottom line: highly expandable, very reliable router, but if you plan to use alternative firmware make sure you are not buying version 5.
|
WRT54GX is good in range but Access Restrictions not work, February 28, 2006
By Bhatti (LHR, PK)
I have purchased WRT54GC to increase my Wireless Range and Security, But only range better than older WRT54G and Access Restriction doesn't work at all. All traffic block when I enforce any policy. I am going to use LINUX IPTABLES with this router for my needs
|
Works great with a mix of devices, February 27, 2006
By Yep That Is Me (San Diego, CA USA)
This device worked right out of the box. With 2 desktop PCs, a laptop with 802.11B wireless, a Palm Tungsten C wireless PDA with 802.11b, and an XBox 360 with a 802.11b wireless adapter, I was able to get all of these devices working flawlessly in under an hour. Security was easy to setup and the overall throughput for the wireless devices is more than acceptable. I'd recommend this unit to others with a mix of wired and wireless devices.
|
Highly Reommanded and Better than Belkin Pre-N, February 27, 2006
By Shulin Chu (Valley Stream, NY United States)
After I struggled with Belkin Pre-N Router one month, I am still not able to go online. I changed to Linksys WRT54GS and all of the problems are solved. It's no wonder why everybody said linksys is the best router brand.
|
A fast and stable wireless router., February 27, 2006
By serbiaNem (NJ)
I've been using this router for well over a year and have to say that it is one of the best, if not the best wireless router on the market. I first bought a D-link DI-624, but after using it for a few day, I realized it was more trouble than it was worth, the signal would cut off every now and again, and it was a headache to setup. I returned the D-link and got my WRT54GS. It worked right off bat and was a breeze to customize. Linksys is owned by Cisco Systems (a huge networking giant which is used in many big business networks), I was surprised to find that their consumer brand was just reliable.
Since then I have had the router turned on for more than a year (not all at once), and have yet to have it drop a connection or annoy me. I keep the firmware updated (something everyone should learn to do), and keep my network WPA secured (another thing everyone should learn to do).
Now that I have my desktop connected through the ethernet, and my laptop wireless connected, it is still as stable as ever. I have a netgear router (not wireless) at home which needs to be rebooted every week or so due to slow performance, and tends to stop working from time to time, requiring a short break. Needless to say I bring my linksys while I'm home to use in its place.
I recently added on a high gain antenna and it increased the range slighly (there are also alternative firmwares which boost power output). Getting a signal now in my library from my room, I couldn't be more happy.
If you're looking for a router which does exactly what it says, I don't see how this linksys wouldn't fit your needs.
|
Linksys Broadband Router w/speed booster, February 25, 2006
By Jim Lay
This product like many offered a plug and play which in my case assures that it won't work that way. I did call for customer assistance and after waiting about 40 minutes the customer service assistant walked me through about 15 minutes of changes to resolve my problems. After the initial frustration which is largely due to my rookie status. I have been pleased with the products performance.
|
slow speed, February 25, 2006
By driver (usa)
netgear 624 will download 450kb sec wireless
linksys with speedbooster only will do 250kb net gear with card cast 54.99 with card
|
My experience with the one Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster, February 24, 2006
By DJ Chatman
Excellent Router, I use it to connect my Destock PC and Noteboock DELL Inspirom 9300 simultaneously. I recommend this product to people that want to share internet to high speed. Great reach since connects myself with my Noteboock DELL Inspirom 9300 at a distance of 80 feet with a very good sign. To all the friends I recommend them to him. Francisco Peinado (Barcelona-Venezuela)
|
|
|
Good product, if you get a version 4 or below, February 20, 2006
By Conan Ford
This is a great product, so long as you can get version 4 or below. Linksys/Cisco have gone to a new system as of version 5 (same for the WRT54G) which does not have all the bugs ironed out yet. CGN7 serial numbers and up are version 5, CGN6 is 4, CGN5 is version 3. The versions below Version 5 will also allow you to run third-party firmware if you so desire. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WRT54G for more info.
|
No Problems, February 18, 2006
By sirrahs (Huntington Beach, Ca United States)
I bought this one because my last Linksys stopped working. I like this one even better. My original Linksys always seemed to be dropping the signal and finally, stopped working. So far this one hasn't. It was also very easy to set up, only a cable and a push of a button.
After many months of service, I can honestly say that this was one of the best investments I have made in my computer networking hardware.
|
DO NOT BUY - Faulty advertising and faulty product, February 13, 2006
By trw (Kansas City, MO United States)
After 6 calls to tech support, they finally concluded the router software was bad. They asked that I go to their website to download the appropriate Firmware and when I went to their website, I found that version 5, which is what was required, wasn't available yet. I called back & let them know this, they checked and agreed that they had a product on the market that was not supported by the correct software. Their own tech people told me to take the product back and look for an older version. Not very comforting for a company the size of Cisco. Faulty product and untruthful advertising. Not a good combination. The entire attempt to get this setup was a miserable experience. DO NOT BELIEVE their packaging. There is no such thing as an easy setup...I have a day invested to prove it. Pass on Linksys and go with another well known product!!!
|
Very poor wireless work, February 7, 2006
By J. Flegg
The wireless drops regularly, and the technical support to resolve it (to get a replacement) is very very very poor. I would not purchase another linksys product: I have had many similar bad experiences.
|
version Differences and DO YOU CARE??..., February 1, 2006
By M. Bendall (potomac, MD)
[previous reviewer]- you are absolutely correct that the new version (5) of this router is downgraded compared to others. the "original" router shipped with 32mb ram and 8mb flash, and version 5 shipped with 16mb ram, 2mb flash. you should also take note that you implied that v.4 was a fully featured product; it only has 16mb of ram and a 4mb flash (a downgrade from v.3). but you are correct, the most crippling thing that linksys did to this router was switch the operating system from the open source linux to VxWorks.
So i guess the real question is: DO I CARE?
for most people the answer is no. if you hook this router into your network, it will run smoothly, no problems for the average consumer. the reason so many people are criticizing the router and its new release is because the old wrt54g and wrt54gs were big items in hacker communities, and they afforded people who wanted to modify their router's firmware great flexibility to do so. the added ram fueled the power and speed that people were able to gain from their router.
so if you are !NOT! looking to modify this router, i would give it five stars.
if you !ARE! looking to modify this router, i would give it -1 stars, just because the old product was so good compared to the new one.
/*if you are deciding between the wrt54g and the wrt54gs, you need to have speed booster adapters to gain speed. those adapters will cost 20 bucks over the price of the regular ones (can get pricey if you have many computers) the older versions (1.0-4.0) of the wrt54g can be enabled for speed booster, but you won't have the hardware advantages provided by the wrt54gs.*/
|
Its Awesome router, February 1, 2006
By Yazan A. K. Mhamed
Its Awesome router
I had the older ver of this router the one without the SpeedBooster and it was giving me lots of probs, I had it installed at the first floor, and wen I take my laptop downstairs which is less then 20 meters away the signal gets really week and indicates " Low" and the internet get slow as well, I though of buying this router, I did , I have it installed at the same place where I had the old one installed, and I didn't believe it I take my laptop anywhere in the house and the signal is good, I recommend it to yo guy to use it specially its affordable. Thank you
|
Works Gr8!!!, January 29, 2006
By Divya Ranganathan (Basking Ridge, NJ USA)
I have absolutely no issues wid wireless connection now. Installation n setup was easy too. Signal Strength is excellent n dere r no reboots / diconnects, ne more! Its juz workin fine wid me.
|
No complaints, January 23, 2006
By I. Hwang (Neah Bay, WA)
I was using a D-Link DI-614 with other 802.11b hardware with my DSL in a rural location with no other wi-fi in the neighborhood and was getting spotty coverage on the other side of my small house (50feet, 3 walls), so I decided to upgrade. I had a WPC54GS card on my laptop from a year ago, when SpeedBooster first came out, so I decided to go with the WRT54GS, to avoid having to upgrade everything. I got a decent deal on a new one on eBay for $48 shipped. Installation was straightforward. I'm a little better than a novice, having installed a Netgear system in the past in my home and for my dad, as well as my previous D-link. The Linksys software is as straightforward or more so than the previously mentioned. The WPA encryption set up without a problem. Connection strength has been fine, able to use my DSL bandwidth of 1.5Mbps without problems. I decided to go with a WUSB54GS to network my wife's desktop, also without problems. I intentionally have an older 900Mhz cordless and 5.8Ghz cordless to avoid interference with 802.11g and have not experienced any problems. I know Speedbooster is no longer state of the art, but it has worked out just fine for me.
|
Latest v5 is inferior!, January 23, 2006
By Vincent (Atlanta, GA USA)
DO NOT BUY THE CURRENT VERSION OF THIS *FORMERLY* EXCELLENT PRODUCT!
Linksys WRT54GS v1 through v4 were terrific products and the reason for the reviews with so many stars prior to this one.
Recently Cisco/Linksys changed internals completely, cut flash memory to 2 megs and switched OS to something called VxWorks. I don't understand why they did this. Or at least could have called it by new model number? To know if you have the dreaded v5 unit you can look on the box for serial number CGN7. Easy to do in a retail store, but you cannot do this by mail-order can you? So you will probably get the new one.
As it is the old customer reviews for this product do not reflect the current product which looks same externally. But new GS v5 unit does not work nearly as well if you try to do BitTorrent or anything beyond basic usage. Also complaints of connection speeds being way slow unless you upgrade firmware. Is Joe Consumer now expected to upgrade firmware on a device just to get it basically working? How did this get out of the factory with so many bugs?
|
Very satisfied-- works great!, January 22, 2006
By Eric Pi (New Jersey, USA)
I've had a few wireless access points in the past, and they were never easy to set up. The WRT54GS, however, works extremely well. Their setup utility was very friendly & automatically detected that my modem needed PPPoE. I love the security of having WPA & AES encryption.
The only issue was that I originally chose a WPA passphrase that had spaces in it. This seemed to confuse the router, such that nothing could see it. Removing the spaces from the password got everything working.
All in all, I'm very satisfied.
|
|
|
| Copyright 2001-2007 WiFiReview.com |
|