| Netgear RangeMax Wireless Router (WPN824) |
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Model: WPN824
Brand: Netgear
Manufacturer: Netgear
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 170
Operating system: Apple MacOS
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, 802.11 Super G
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| Features: |
Seven internal smart antennas – no need to manually adjust and no risk of breaking
SmartWizard simplifies setup by automatically detecting and configuring your router for virtually all ISP connections
Maintains video quality speeds throughout your home, up to 10 times the speed of standard 802.11g
Improves performance of existing legacy 802.11b and 802.11g wireless devices up to 50%
Data speed of up to 108 Mbps |
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| Description: |
| The WPN824 RangeMax MIMO-G Wireless Broadband Router gives wireless network users better connectivity. As computers become a more integral part of life, you want the best possible home computing environment. When you set up a wireless network you'll find that Internet connections will fade in and out in spots -- or even drops off completely. The RangeMax Router puts an end to that, giving your the freedom to work and play online, anywhere in the house. Time-based usage controls, Web logging, remote management and URL content filtering Auto-sensing RJ-45 10/100 4 port Ethernet switch with half & full duplex support |
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| User Reviews (170 total): |
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Does a great job., March 29, 2007
By Fred Larue (Jackson, MS)
Works very well, much better then the D-Link I had to trash.
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Best Damn Router..., March 10, 2007
By Jo Lambert (Tampa Bay, FL USA)
This is the best damn router that I have found so far for the money. This router has defeated the concrete block walls of my home, the two microwave ovens, and multiple different cordless phones that are used around the house. Without naming them, I went through four other routers before finally getting my Netgear. Having signal problems? Give this router a try, you won't regret it.
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Good range, but went down almost daily, March 6, 2007
By L. Zwoll (Portland, OR USA)
First the good. This router really lives up to its name of RangeMAX. I got a powerful signal all through my house, and even on warm summer days was able to use my laptop outside in my backyard, enjoying the Internet as I heard birds chirping and felt a cool breeze as I sat among my trees.
Another good thing: it's not too difficult to set up wireless security. It is more technical than it needs to be, but I was able to eventually figure it out (and you will too).
Now the bad. Almost every day, the router went down. I would have to reset it by unplugging it, waiting 60 seconds, and then plugging it back in. It became a real pain after awhile, as you may well imagine.
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The worst, March 1, 2007
By Merry D (Knoxville, TN United States)
Although this router was easy to configure I have had a terrible experience with it. At one point I was having to reset it every thirty minutes. Netgear technical support is the worst (India). I finally got them to agree to an RMA and had to pay extra for advanced replacement. The replacement router worked correctly for a couple of weeks and now it is doing the same thing that the original one did. I cannot recommend this model of Netgear router and would not buy anything else from them based on extremely poor tech support.
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Max Range - weak signal - 70 feet maybe, March 1, 2007
By Maui Tim (Maui)
I initially installed a Netgear WGT624 Super G 108 mbps at a clients home. The signal was very weak and would lose it's connection. So I bought the NetGear Rangemax WPN824 since it's signal is supposedly so much better. It's not!! The other computer has a NetGear WG311T installed and is maybe 70 feet away from the router. Now I get low, or very low signal, with or without security on. Also cannot change channel from 6 to any other channel to try to improve performance.
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excellent router for coverage / dead spots / speed, March 1, 2007
By Martin Faltesek (Santa Clara, CA)
I have owned netgear wgt624, and this is a HUGE improvment. At the furtherst points in my house, where I used to experience no connectivity or slow performance, I am now measure 90 to 100% of maximum speed.
Strangely, when I am within a foot or two of the router, the speed drops off to about 60 to 70% of max. Moving the notebook more than a few feet away restores full thoughput.
I currently own version 2 of the router. I had version 1, and it tended to freeze and require frequent power cycles a couple times a month. Usually that happened when the wireless was being utilized. Luckily I have not had that problem with v2.
One annoying aspect I found is that when configuring this device, every single configuration selection require a reset that takes 20 or 30 seconds to complete. If you want to configure more than a couple items, expect to get annoyed. Fortunately this would be an issue for most people only during initial setup.
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Works just fine, February 15, 2007
By D. Davis (Lubbock, TX)
I honestly bought it because it had a nice look. It works much better than my last router which was a D-link. The D-link gave me intermittent connections even when just in the room next to the router. Since installing this unit, I have experienced no such problem, and actually my transfer speeds have gone up a bit. I will probably be purchasing an MIMO adapter to see if that helps even more. Overall, I think its a good router.
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Beware when upgrading, February 11, 2007
By J. Craig
Wireless router technology is in extreme flux. Understandably, reviews vary considerably. The 824 price has fallen from $80 to $30 in a week. (I returned mine, and resumed using an earlier model.)
Here are some facts learned the hard way. RangeMax et al. utilize 802.11n, i.e., "draft n" technology with rates of 108Mbps--and more recently at 300Mbps. Rarely mentioned is the need to have computer network adaptors consistent with the router. This invariably means additional hardware costs, as firmware upgrades my not suffice. It gets worse. The PowerBook G4, for example, has a built in 54Mbps, 802.11g adaptor that cannot be upgraded to draft n.
Also, given a wireless network of computerS and an 802.11n router, the overall network transfer rate will fall to the lowest common denominator among the various network adaptors. That is, the presence of a 802.11b or g will reduce the network rate to the slowest speed.
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Installed like a breeze, February 11, 2007
By L. Hanson (North Carolina)
This will be my first online product review. I have no special technical training with computers, home networking, etc., but I am a well experienced user who has built a couple computers of my own. I purchased the Netgear WPN824 (and a couple WPN311 wireless PCI adpapters to use with it) yesterday to replace a Linksys wireless "B" home network. I was starting to experience weak wireless signals, and I had wanted to upgrade my security options. Of course, my operational experience with this equipment is less than 24 hours, but I can tell you these items were almost "plug and play". The instructions were clear and simple, the installation wizards did their little magic and I am up and running in less than an hour with very strong signal strength at both remote computers (one in the next room and one in an upstairs bedroom). And setting up WPA incryption was very easy. Hey, I'm a happy consumer! I will update this review later if I have any issues with ongoing operation.
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Be prepared to shell out $$ if using with vpn, February 10, 2007
By Ross A. Gombiner
This is my third router in life. I was experiencing lots of dead zones w/ my Linksys wrt54g and so I was interested in trying something w/ MIMO technology. And I admit, I was both frustrated w/ cust service at Linksys (who seemed very interested in blaming the network adapter on my wireless card for connectivity problems) as well as seduced by the flashing blue lights on the netgear.
Well, setup was fine -- although the "wizard" did some funky things that I had to undo. And for routine connections, it seems quite nice. In fact, my dead zones were gone. However, both myself and my wife connect to secure office networks via VPN. Previous router (the Linksys as well as a D link I used previously) just had to click "IPSEC Passthrough" or something along those lines from a configuration menu. This router? NO such luck. Customer service at Netgear advised me to contact my vpn software comp to find out what ports specifically needed to be forwarded!! So I did, but still no go. Customer service then politely suggested that such support was beyond the scope of what they provided, but that for an additional $30+ dollars, I could get a case-by-case premium support (good for 30 minutes w/ no assurance of success and no refund in the event of failure) for more assistance in the more rarified realm of VPN configuration. I think this is inexcusable and I am surprised Netgear feels in can get away with this. The box clearly states that the router supports VPN passthrough . . .I guess it should say that it supports it with the understanding that there would be a $30 surcharge for the privilege.
So, if you just need a router that addresses spotty coverage in your home, I think this delivers. But, if you have VPN needs, look elsewhere. Needless to say, I will be looking into another MiMO router -- although I'll miss the flashing blue lights.
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20x Faster -- Great router for apartments, February 7, 2007
By P. Keenan
I bought this router to replace a Netgear WGR614 router (standard "wireless g"). I found the setup very simple (instructions were clearer than for the WGR614). Nothing was wrong with my WGR614, but I live in an apartment and get interference from about 5-10 other wireless networks, not to mention cordless phones, etc. I hoped that the WPN824 would be an improvement (with 7 antennas, etc.) Netgear advertises speeds up to 10x faster (at long distances) than regular wireless g (when paired with the matching wireless card, which I also got) -- I actually get speeds averaging 15-20x faster (measured by various benchmarking websites) than what I had been getting (at short distance... just one room away), so I'm very satisfied. Now I keep all my pictures and mp3's on a shared network drive and I can access them without any problem from anywhere in the apartment on my laptop (used to be virtually impossible). I can even backup my laptop HD over the network.
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NOT ONLY IS THE SETUP A BEAST, PLENTY OF THESE DOOHICKEYS ARE LEMONS, February 3, 2007
By Shashank Tripathi (Gadabout)
Short story: save your time and money and start looking through the pages of other brands, such as Linksys or D-Link.
Long story: Spent three hours with the call-center trying to make it work. The "Smart Setup Wizard" is anything but. We rebooted both the modem (ISP-provided Motorola, as common) and this router about eight times before giving up. Finally, was told that the device may be a lemon and I could get a full refund. Well, I paid by credit card, so after the charge and refund expenses, apart of the commute back to the store, it isn't quite a FULL refund is it?
This is not the first time. Netgear's products have disappointed me in the past and I am given to becoming loyal to products that work, and vocal about those that don't. I have owned three Linksys routers in the past, one D-Link, and one Thomson (branded by Be There networks in London) and have never had so much difficulty. They have somewhat different configurations but they all just worked. The 24-hour support of NetGear is useful, but heck, for a backdrop product such as this, one shouldn't have to require any support!
Still reading? Stop. Look for other brands. Linksys Wireless-G is ten bucks cheaper and a hundred times more reliable/hassle-free, and is pretty much the market standard for a very good reason.
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Just What We Were Looking For, January 21, 2007
By MJ Wood (Tucson, AZ USA)
Situation: Modest size house (about 2300 sq ft) with a Dell Windows XP desktop, Mac G5 (desktop) and two laptops (one PC, one iBook). The old wireless router was hardwire connected to the Dell desktop and all others were connected to the network wirelessly. The Mac G5 is on the opposite side of the house from the wireless router and would intermittently lose the wireless signal.
Since the old (Microsoft) router had been in place and working for a few years, we were apprehensive about making a change. Our experience setting up the old router was not easy or pleasant. However, we determined (by moving the whole Mac G5 temporarily to a location closer to the wireless router) that the intermittent signal was definitely caused by a router range issue. We considered a range extender product (although one of us had tried setting up this type of product for someone else without success). Then we realized the old router was an older 802.11b version! Clearly, it was time to upgrade the router.
We selected the Netgear Mimo because of its claim of greater range and reliability using multiple antennas. When we received the Netgear, we decided to try installation using the wizard, figuring if it worked, it would be easier, but we had confidence we could set it up without the wizard if needed. SET UP COULD NOT HAVE BEEN EASIER. We unplugged the old router and plugged the Dell desktop directly into the cable modem. Made sure the we could bring up the internet after this change (Note that the instructions assume you have no router installed, so this first step of removing the old router from the setup and making sure you can still connect to the internet is not covered in the instructions. I believe we had to reboot the desktop after making this switch). Then, we followed the instructions for inserting the new Netgear Mimo between the cable modem and the computer and followed the setup wizard to complete the installation. The wizard gives you the option to name your network and setup security, we chose a new network name and the WEP option and re-used the WEP code we had in the old network (copy and paste to a text file so you don't have to retype it). Since we named the new network with a new name, we had to go back to all the other computers in the house and associate the old WEP password with the new network. This all took less than 30 minutes.
The Mac G5 on the far side of the house has never lost connection yet and the other laptops show a much higher signal strength to the new network. We should also mention that we quickly noticed the difference in speed between the 10Mbps on the old network and the 54Mbps on the new one (that's probably just the difference of going from 802.11b to 802.11g, but it's nice all the same).
We are very happy with how easy this product was to set up and it solved our issues perfectly! This was a much better, and cheaper, solution than going with the range extender.
As for the blinking blue light... one of us thinks it's cool, the other thinks it's rather dorky (but not really annoying).
We hope this helps others who are in our situation.
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GREAT Router, especially for the price., January 15, 2007
By Impeach Bush !! (Colorado Springs, CO United States)
First I have to say, this router, especially for the price has been fantastic for me. I have a large house and have four PCs on two different floors at different ends of the house. NO PROBLEMS WHATSOEVER with all wireless PCs, getting in at a consistent 108 Mbps. Extremely consistent at holding the wireless connection s stable. What is essential is to use the appropriate Netgear Rangemax wireless adapters so that one can take advantage of the increased range and speed that this router offers (like the Netgear WG311T internal adapter). It can be used with a standard G adapter, but it will also work like a standard G. Meaning that standard G does not have the intelligence to take advantage of the Super G, RangeMax and Mimo technology.
Here are some comments from some confused people using this router and giving it lower than deserved marks due to "user issues".
1. This one is amazing. If someone doesn't like the cool flashing light on the top of the Router, then press the BIG BLACK BUTTON that is on the back, right next to the plug. It is by far the largest button on it and extremely obvious. The router is also feature packed and is easy if you need to do port forwarding, using the one of the four ethernet slots or setting UPND.
2. READ THE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST. It is essential to read the instructions first, so that you know what you are doing. That same is true before installing that network adapters. The adapters need to have the software installed first before installing the cards.
3. UNDERSTAND that RangeMax is proprietary technology. The reason is that THE COMMUNICATION COMPANIES HAVE NOT DECIDED ON A EXTENTION OF THE G TECHNOLOGY. To take advantage of the best that the router has to offer, make sure that, the purchase is thought through and coordinated. Don't get a Linksys adapter and expect the PC that it is on to run as fast or have a range as far as the associated Netgear WPN311 Wireless Adapter. No need for an extender to get the signal to real long distances and go through floors and walls.
4. Understand how the Internet works and how Internal Networking works. What I mean is that a PC can connect via Wireless to the Router at 108mps, on another floor and another side of the house, like mine does. That would be the speed for all Internal networking. Very fast.
BUT, NO ONE can get the Internet throughput to connect to the Internet at 108mps. NO ONE. Therefore, you will see one speed for the connection to the Network/Router and another speed for Internet Browsing. The Internet limit is a limit of the Internet when connected via Broadband. When I do testing through the web on my Comcast Cable connection, I usually get the fastest connection to my ISP that can be had. 768mps. That is the limit for my cable moden connection.
READ THE DIRECTIONS and look at the big black button to turn off the lights,
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Netgear RangeMax, January 12, 2007
By Sue (NC)
I find I have better luck with the B and first G routers. The rangemax (I've tried 2 different ones) both drop the connection constantly. Other routers in the area are a problem but changing the channel did not work either. I usually have to go reset the rangemax to pick it back up. I've gone back to the old G now.
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Works well...very impressive range, January 9, 2007
By Joel Dauteuil (Bethlehem, NH USA)
It's small, light, has incredible range and at the time of purchase (18 months ago) was the best value and most highly rated of it's kind out there. I'll be honest, I like Netgear - I usually buy Netgear. I've never, ever had any problems with their equipment. This is my third router. Plug it in, configure it, and stick it in the closet - you're all set. I really find the range to be impressive - you can pick it up like a block away and it's lightning fast.
Cons: the blue lights are ridiculous. An obvious "what were you thinking" moment once you see these. But, it shouldn't be a deal breaker. It comes with a little black cap you can cover the blue lights with, and then you never have to give them a second thought.
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works great...once I figured out the dropped connection problem, January 5, 2007
By somewhere (US)
Installed easily, worked great for a couple of months, but then I couldn't connect from my notebook anymore. After reading similar situations where users had great connections, but then suddenly lost em, I did lots of trial an error testing in fixing the problem. My best guess is that the RangeMax auto sensing/optimizing connection capability gets confused over time. The solution to the problem was that I had to change the channel configuration to a fixed channel (11 in my case) that matched my notebook's wireless configuration channel, instead of the using the auto selection. Now I have no problems connecting or any dropped connections...been running this way for months now.
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Avoid this router and be careful with any other Netgear products, January 5, 2007
By fygar (hermosa beach, ca)
This router is defective -- according to Netgear -- but unless you figure it out before your 1 year warranty expires they will not replace it and they have no intention of fixing it.
I purchased this router over a year ago. At first, I was satisfied with its performance but after a while I noticed that the "random" network failures (or "disconnects") had a pattern to them. I figured out how to recreate the error consistently by using an ssh shell (like "telnet" if you aren't familiar) and scrolling over a large amount of text. (More recently, I have noticed that other conditions can cause failures, such as downloading a lot of small files at once -- such as the case when reading a blog or a myspace profile). These conditions cause failures due to regular usage and the only way to resume usage of the product is to physically walk over and unplug it and then plug it in again (to reboot it).
Once I figured it out that the defect wasn't just my usage or something about my setup, I contacted Netgear support. After discussing it with a tech support representative he confirmed that the router was defective, that Netgear had no intention of fixing their defective product, and that because I was past the 1-year warranty period that they could not replace my product or provide any further assistance.
I have purchased Netgear routers, bridges, and switches at work and at home for over 6 years. Considering this experience, I will avoid their products in the future.
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It stopped working...just like for everyone else., December 17, 2006
By L. Brown (Baltimore, MD, USA)
I loved this router for about a year. Easy to set up and use, and range and strength seemed good. Now, after a year or so, it just drops the connection at random intervals...I have to unplug it and let it sit for a minute...then it comes back up fine for a while...then stops working again. Judging by all the other similar reviews this is a genuine problem with this product. I so don't feel like spending the money on another router either...sigh...nothing else to do...now my wife and I both have wireless-enabled laptops and I don't know how to get by without it.
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5 Stars for what I use it for, December 12, 2006
By http://homeimprovement.engineeringpros.com (Austin, TX)
This is my second wireless router for my home network. The first one (not a rangemax) was ditched due to frequent reboots and weak signals. I purchased the Rangemax about 16 months ago and it is GREAT for what I use it for. I have two computers and a network printer set up on the wired lan and I have two wireless notebooks. I've only had to reboot this router about once every three months. The range incredible, reaching far out into the back yard and thru two floors without problem
Negatives
-It's pricy and so are the cards
-The blue lights are cheesy.
I highly recommend this router.
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