| 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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Noticably Faster, September 8, 2005
By Bill Burns
than other routers I have used. Linksys seems to have the corner on high performance in this price range. Very easy to install, much easier than earlier routers they produced.
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liksys router wrt54gs, September 5, 2005
By Mark Maidwell
this router works very well. after reading what others said i took it out of the box and then first went to the linksys site to download the quick router connect.. dont use the enclosed cd. working well so far.
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Great Router, September 1, 2005
By Christopher (Brooklyn, NY USA)
I got this router nearly 2 months ago and I wrote a good review about the router and that isnt going to change but I had to add something so I deleted my original review so I can add this I had a router before this the D-Link DI-604 a great wired router and when I got this router I had tech support walk me through wiring the Wireless Linksys router into my older D-Link DI-604 wired router and I though it would save me alot of re-wiring and changing of settings and I was right for a few hours until I tried to play online video games on one of my computers that was wired into the Linksys router. There was something wrong with the wired D-Link DI-604 firewall and I couldnt adjust it correctly and it still doesnt make sense why after all the years of playing online games over it without problem it would suddenly just start causing me problems. So I called them back up, totally disconnected my D-Link router, wired all my other wired computers into it, set up my laptop to work with it through the router wireless and adjusted the routers settings and it worked. Now I can play video games on any computer thanks to the features on the router and I use my laptop from the basement and other areas that are fairly far from my router. My router being on my top floor. I can even use my PSP on it and its compatible with Xbox live. I also plan to use the WIFI feature even on more things when I get my Xbox 360 which uses WIFI. Anyway I never had a dropped signal or any other problem since I re-wired everything into the Linksys router. Signal loss was my biggest worry when I made the switch from wired to wireless since I had no experience with wireless routers before this one but thankfully this router hasnt let me down. The people that complain probably didn't have the router setup properly, had a defective router, a wireless card that sucked or was defective or due to the distance or materials of their house affected the signal to the point where they kept on getting dropped or had a weak signal or poor distance. But I seen these devices that your suppose to setup inbetween your router and laptop or other devices that extends the range of the router and those people might want to invest in those or those bigger antenna's since that might fix the problem. Anyway great product and in the future I will consider other Linksys products for my networking needs. Also I decided to get this router due to many good reviews found on this website since I review many things before buying them but I wish I got it from the website instead of Best Buy because the prices are better but the thing is I wanted the router right then and there so I could set it up as soon as I got my laptop home. If you consider buying anything this website is a great place for researching and buying the item.
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Dropped signals, August 30, 2005
By L. Chang (California)
After spending 30 minutes to set up, its range was very short and dropped signal in the bedrooms. After setting up a second time, the same problems. I was told Linksys has quality problems out-of-the box since the Cisco acquisition. I returned the unit and bought a Belkin wireless router. It worked the first time and the range was much longer and the singal was twice as strong.
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Much better than-Link. This one works perfectly, August 29, 2005
By auart (Auburn, Alabama USA)
I bought the dlink brand and had trouble with it keeping connections... I exchanged it for this model and it installs easy and works perfectly with two desktops wired to it and one laptop wireless!!
This is the best!
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Works great, but update that firmware!!!, August 26, 2005
By Deborah Brooks (Pittsburgh, PA)
I've had this router for a little while now, and have had no problems. Setup was easy, I get pretty good range in an old brick house, and I like all of the new security features available with it...
On that note, make SURE you go to the linksys website and download the new firmware. There is a serious security issue with the version that is shipped (version 4.50.6) which allows wireless clients that are not using any encryption to access the wireless network even when WPA Personal/TKIP wireless security setting has been enabled. They fixed the issue with firmware version 4.70.6.
(see the documentation that comes with the router for more info on how to update the firmware)
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Good product but......., August 15, 2005
By Dutchman (North Carolina)
Product works well after installation but not easy to install on windows other than XP. They don't mention their install website. www.linksys.com/easy to make non-XP installations. Watch the encription selection and how many letters your pass code has. It makes a difference. Signal from one room to another is low, but does work well.
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Nice product Great Performance, August 12, 2005
By Dr. R. G. Love
Excellent router. Wireless network in the house works nicely using the range expanders.
Still having trouble with the AOL browser on the hardwired machine. The wireless laptops don't seem to have the same hang problem with browsing that the central CPU does.
The Linksys folks tried hard with support to resolve it but they claim it is in the AOL software. This is something the AWOL folks deny again and again and again.
I'd get this router for any of my network designs. Good luck
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Weak sign, August 12, 2005
By Antonio Grassano
Excellent equipment, but the sign it is necessary to improve her with an additional antenna
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Best wireless router for the price, August 11, 2005
By eau (USA)
I have the Linksys WRT54GS router for a year now and it's been working very well. It offers a wealth of security features such as WEP, WPA-PSK using TKIP or AES, MAC address filtering and the ability to disable SSID broadcast. It's been running solid without the need to reset it for any reason and it recovers itself even after a power failure.
Setup is a breeze. Just make sure to follow the security guideline that comes in the box - changing the admin password, SSID, WEP or WPA, etc. The newer versions of the firmware allow the configuration to be saved in the file, which can be loaded later to restore the saved settings. It is a good idea to go to linksys website and check for the latest firmware.
I'm very glad that bought the WRT54GS router and I am using WPC54GS and WUSB54GS with it with very good results.
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Reliable router., August 9, 2005
By A. Steinman
I replaced a D-Link DI-524 with this one to improve distance and reliability. The Linksys did both. The Parent Control feature would not allow Tivo to access the internet via wireless adapter.
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Linksys WRT54gs wireless router, August 9, 2005
By Not a techie (California)
I am not a "techie" so I don't know the range of choices on the market but I would research a more powerful router before buying this one again. If there is a wireless phone, a microwave, etc. in the vacinity it doesn't work. The tech support is extremely spotty and it took approximately 8 calls to set up the system for two computers. Only one support person realized that my Windows system was in conflict with their software and helped me circumvent the problem. This was after multiple calls and several hours of frustration. Yuk!
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Linksys rocks, August 6, 2005
By Erik G. Peterson
Now that is powered with cisco it is a very good product and cheap
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Average, August 6, 2005
By Leo Jereissati (New York, NY USA)
Signal is excellent and then goes to no signal and then returns to excellent in 1 minute.
should have a better performance. Maybe the wrt54gx is better......
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Satisfied Customer, August 4, 2005
By Red In CT
I am very happy with the product. The service was great! I will definately order again. Thank you for a great buying experience.
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This router is not compatible with AOL Broadband, July 30, 2005
By L. Beebe
According to both Linksys and AOL this router is not compatible with AOL broadband. Of course, I only found this out after hours and hours of talking to people who apparently did not know.
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Speed, July 29, 2005
By thetoltec (Tucson, AZ United States)
I purchased this product about a week ago and have to say that I've had absolutely no problems with either installation nor performance. I have a cable broadband connection and at a 20' distance (and through a wall and a door)the performance seems to be identical to a direct cable connection. Great product in my book!
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Major disapointment., July 28, 2005
By Celt (Arkansas)
I had high hopes for this router. I purchased mine from Radio Shack, but found that at least with Windows XP, the included software is unusable. Linksys, apparently aware that the software was problematic, offers an online "check" that would at least let you use the router, however without any benefit of encryption or protection of the included utilities. If the disc fails to load the software as mine did, you cannot access the other utilities that make using a wireless router safe. The other disapointment came when I discovered that even with the router positioned up high on a bookshelf and away from reflective walls, that it's ability to transmit and receive was at best poor to mediocre. Linksys (Link-sucks if you ask me) wants $50 more for a "+7dB Gain antenna system", which I also tried. It had absolutely NO EFFECT on improving performance.
Several calls and e-mails to Linksys yielded no solutions to the problems from their clearly inferior product and at one point I had a customer rep on the phone who could barely speak english.
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Wireless Router, July 28, 2005
By J Roach (Detroit, MI)
The router works as expected and was easy to install with the exception of an inconsistency between the Linksys installation instructions and those supplied by the computer manufacturer. One call to Linksys resolved the problem. The Linksys set-up disc, distributed with the hardware, could easily be modified to provide the instructions supplied over the telephone.
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Mediocre, July 27, 2005
By Matthieu Hausig (Brooklyn, NY)
I purchased this router along with the associated NIC cards so that I could take advantage of SpeedBooster. I had three computers sharing a wired connection in one studio but was about to move to a larger apartment where wiring would be a pain. Even in the studio the signal strength was inadequate. The computer furthest away from the router would default to my neighbor's WAP because it had a stronger signal. I also had problems in connecting between a computer that was wired into the router and a computer that connected wirelessly. Ultimately, after moving, the signal strength was simply too insufficient to create a reliable connection and I opted to run wires. As a side note, the software for the recommended NICs is very clunky especially for WEP using XP SP2. I am now using the router as a wired router only and it works fine and is very easy to configure.
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