| Netgear MR814 802.11b Wireless 4-Port Cable/DSL Router |
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Model: MR814NA
Brand: Netgear
Manufacturer: Netgear
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 715
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b
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| Features: |
Connect to a cable/DSL modem and get wired or wireless Internet access for all your computers
Compatible with most 802.11b wireless networking devices
Firewall, 128-bit Encryption, Parental controls
Smart Wizard automatically detects ISP type, Port Range Forwarding, Exposed Host (DMZ), URL Content Filtering, E-mail Alerts, and Wireless MAC Address Authentication
Compatible with Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, XP, Mac OS, NetWare, UNIX, and Linux |
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| Description: |
| The Model MR814 Wireless Router provides continuous, high-speed 11 Mbps access between your wireless and Ethernet devices. Also, the Model MR814 router enables your entire network to share an Internet connection through a cable modem or DSL modem that otherwise is used by a single PC. With minimum setup, you can install and use the router within minutes.The Model MR814 router provides multiple Web content filtering options, plus e-mail browsing activity reporting and instant alerts. Parents and network administrators can establish restricted access policies based on time-of-day, website addresses and address keywords, and share high-speed cable/DSL Internet access for up to 253 personal computers. Network Address Translation (NAT) protects you from hackers. |
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| User Reviews (715 total): |
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Buy me!,Buy Me! BUY ME!, September 27, 2003
By Timothy Stevens (Port Jefferson Station, NY United States)
Never even knew what wirless was before i bought this. From the time i took it out of the box to the time i had it running the internet on my laptop and desktop was about 15 minutes. It is so easy to use, works flawlessly and the admin setup screen teaches how to secure your connection. Haven't had any experience with any other wireless product but for this price i dont' know why you'd buy anything else. It really is phenomenal.
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very bad compatibility, September 27, 2003
By feathertopmit (Cambridge, MA United States)
There are many people like me who were screwed by this router. When I bought it, installation was not hard, and the signal was ok. But it kept dropping my ftp and ssh connections. Then they published the upgrade version of the firmware, I then upgraded. This time, it is even worse, it continues the have the old problem, and it now goes dead every 30 minutes, you have to unplug the power to restart it before you can use the router again. It happens not only to wireless connections, it happens to the wired connections. I tried different wireless cards, it seems only netgear's own wireless card works ok. The customer support people were not responsive, and they are totally useless, if you receive their mail, they just ask you to upgrade firmware. I found a website with a forum, there were so many people having the similar problems, some solutions are provided, but none of them works for everyone. Eventually, I downgraded the firmware, and decided to suffer only from ftp connection loss rather than having to cold boot the router.
Don't buy it if you don't have their wireless card.
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Huge AC adapter that works only for 120V, September 25, 2003
By unknown
Linksys and D-Link come with an AC adapter that works for 100-120V, but this one's works only with 120V. Also, it is so bulky that it cannot go into the middle of the power strip without wasting a few outlets. Since there are a few routers out there which are pretty much identical in functionalities, I thought somebody may find a point like this help making their decisions.
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Netgear Cable Wireless Router, September 21, 2003
By Christine (Fredonia, NY United States)
This router is connecting three computers in my home to cable internet access and is working flawlessly. It is connecting one with wireless and two with cable. I am very satisfied.
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Device fails with WEP enabled., September 21, 2003
By unknown
Do not buy this device if you want to use WEP. Apparently it is unable to encrypt/decrypt the amount of information necessary. Netgear's solution is to have the device reset itself when it becomes overloaded. This is a terrible way to try and fix the problem, and leaves you with a continually stalling network, which is upsetting if you like to do things like stream internet radio. Also, with WEP enabled, file sharing is incredibly slow, to the point of being useless. If you are content with MAC address filtering and disabling SSID broadcast for your security, then the router works fine. Otherwise, look elsewhere for a more competent device.
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Constantly reboots itself when WEP is enabled -- ick!!, September 21, 2003
By Professional outlier (Sunnyvale, CA USA)
There are several reviews of this product -- the MR814v2 version, which is the newer one -- that recommend fiddling with some obscure Windows settings to get the router to quit rebooting when you use wireless. That's all very well and good, but I am able to make the router reset when there are no Windows devices operating in my home. Hmm. Turning off WEP eliminates the problem. It also turns off your (false sense of) network security. This is NOT an acceptable workaround. I don't have the time or the courage for a lengthy diagnostic session with tech support on what might be going wrong with this thing and the things on my network. Unfortunately, wireless technology still just isn't "plug-and-play." If Netgear releases a firmware update that fixes this, fine, and if they do, I'll come in here and update this review. FWIW, when the router isn't dropping my connection every ten minutes, it is light-years better than my old SMC 7004AWBR, which slowed my DSL connection to a trickle. Yet I'll note that Netgear's last firmware drop was in May, and not a whisper about an update. I'm personally shocked that this isn't already a "frequently asked question" on their support site. Ugh. Looks like I'm 0 for 2 on my router choices. Best wishes on whatever wireless router you choose.
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Causes my cable modem to restart frequently, September 21, 2003
By unknown
I was disappointed after using the Netgear MR814v2 for more than a week to determine it causes my RCA cable modem (supplied by Comcast) to unexpectedly restart, losing my Internet connection, and to degrade the connection speed when it does work. The Netgear firmware upgrade did not resolve the problem. After going back to my non-wireless router, the Netgear MR614, all is fine and my cable modem no longer restarts unexpectedly. Comcast confirmed this is a problem with some routers. I didn't believe it at first, but after a week of troubleshooting I believe it now. I have always been a big fan of Netgear until this situation. I am returning the MR814v2 for a different brand and model of a wireless router.
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Wonderful, September 20, 2003
By A. D. Arslan (Chicago, IL, USA)
It is exremely good for these price. I have no problem with this.You should buy
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Does the job well, September 20, 2003
By unknown
Installation took under 10 minutes. Easy if you follow the directions, everything installs itself. Once I set up my network, I noticed there was another network present- someone who lives near me must also be wireless- If I can see them, they can see me- had to read up on wireless security issues- took another 30 min. for that. Rated 4 out 5 instead of 5/5 because signal strength around a corner 10ft away is low, about 70% but everything works fine and I would recommend.
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Excellent Wireless Range & Security, September 20, 2003
By Ronald (San Francisco, CA United States)
Bought this Router from Ebay.com. I have MR814 ver.1.
I like the version 1 better than version 2.
Beware!! MR814v2 has a smaller body and undetachable antenna
while Version 1 is bigger and has detachable antenna.Better Range than Linksys Wireless Router. I place this
Router on the second floor on my house. I got 50% signal
from the first floor. A cousin of mine has the Linksys
version. He similarly places the router on the 2nd floor.
He got no/low signal from the first floor. I like the security: Disable Broadcast, URL address blocking,
Access Filter. Pretty secure for a small office. Keep
updating your Firmware, maybe you can WPA encryption for free. To summarize, low price, excellent range, good security.
I take out1 star because of NETGEAR MR814v2, which I think NETGEAR tried to reduce the quality of Version 1 for the sake
of their profit margin.
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Nice wireless router!, September 20, 2003
By unknown
I bought this in order to share internet service with my laptop, which came with an embedded wireless card. Our desktop is wired to the MR814; set-up was easy and straightforward, took about 10 minutes. Not bad, for someone who'd never set up any kind of network before. The laptop picked up the signal right away and after 6 months have not experienced any problems at all.Signal range is OK. It works just fine within this 2 story "garage/office/storage space." However the signal strength is never better than "Low" right outside the building. I'm sure this has a lot to do with the fact that there are 2 walls made entirely of filing cabinets, as well as walls of metal shelving, within the space. On a "Low" signal, I can still surf at decent speeds.
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Easy to setup, September 19, 2003
By unknown
This is my first experience with setting up a home network. I have a cable internet DSL connected to a desktop computer and wanted to add access to the internet for a laptop. My initial plan was to setup the laptop via a wireless connection. However after receiving the MR814 I decided to try a wired connection first. Setup was easy. I followed the instrucitons in the little four page phamplet that came with the unit. It took a minute or two. It was extremely easy to setup and is working very well.I havent tried its wireless capability yet. I am happy with the MR814 and would recommend it.
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Unrealiable - tech support a hassle, September 16, 2003
By Jean-Pierre Williams (CA)
Judging by the other user comments, I guess some people are lucky and don't have a problem with this router. I am not one of them. It worked great when it actually worked properly, but I found the proformance to be inconsistent and the router often dropped packets. Their tech help is in India so you have to wait about an hour to get through and then the help, although friendly, was difficult to understand. I ended up calling three times and finally felt I had wasted enough time on the phone with them and sent it back for a refund. Life is to short to spend holding on the phone. I can not recommend this product if you need a reliable connection. I guess if you are not online too much then it will suffice, but if you work from home and absolutely need it to work everytime, don't count on it.
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Very easy to set up and use, September 16, 2003
By unknown
I hooked this router up to a cable modem and desktop PC w/ Windows XP. I also got a Netgear MA401 wireless card and put it in my laptop w/ Windows 2K. I was up and running in minutes! It seems to work pretty well for my needs. I am a home user and don't need the 802.11G. I do notice that sometimes when we use our 2.4 Ghz cordless phone, the connection drops when I'm logged on to my company's VPN using IPSEC, but that's not all the time. After rebates, the router and the wireless card cost me [money]. What a value!
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Not a good wireless router!, September 16, 2003
By Nagarajan Surendran (San Jose, CA United States)
This netgear MR814 is a good wired router but not a good wireless router. Major problem is that I need to keep rebooting the adapter every 30 minutes as it drops my laptop connection but it performs well for a wired LAN and its cheap. I guess you get what you pay for.I am going to return this and buy a D-Link.
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Not compatible with DSL Provider modem, September 15, 2003
By bradentondan (Bradenton, FL United States)
Had the router working for about a day then would not work again. NetGear support was unable to resolve issue. Had to return. NetGear said my DSL providers modem (Verizon) was not compatible. Even though more expensive, going to buy a Linksys Wireless router. I have had no issues with before with my existing Linksys Non-Wireless router and the Verizon DSL Modem.
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Just did not work, September 14, 2003
By unknown
The router wireless connection got disconnected every few hours. After Netgear techicain send me a software update the router just stopped work completely.
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Very simple to install and use, September 13, 2003
By Sean McLeod (Northridge, CA USA)
Installation of this product couldn't be easier. WinXP has all the drivers. It's almost a plug and play. I haven't looked into the security options--I suspect those would take a little more time to setup. Literally-10 minutes out of the box I had this product up and running along with Netgear's wireless PCMCIA card (MA401) for my laptop.
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Cheap decent wireless router!, September 13, 2003
By Pat Luu (Oakland, Ca United States)
i order this for $35 after mail-in rebate. i think it's a awesome router. the only downside is that the connection lag every once a while, not a good idea for online gamers. it looks very sleek and sets up very easily. great router overall.
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I was up and running in 5 minutes, September 13, 2003
By Scott Munger (Phoenix, AZ United States)
I've had zero problems with the unit. It's very easy to use. A hint on setting it up, do it all with a direct cat 5 cable first before you try to set up the wireless part (should be obvious from the instructions).I've yet to be out of range through multiple walls the house.
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