Belkin Play N600 Wireless Dual Band N Router Review

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(More customer reviews)For Christmas, one of the gifts I presented to my wife was a new laptop computer. She loved it, however, after a few days she starting complaining that she really needed access to the internet via her laptop, especially once her classes started back up in January. I started searching for options and didn't care for the wireless on-the-go route. I thought $50 a month coupled with a 2 year contact was too expensive and wouldn't even know if it would solve my issue. Then, I started looking at dual band routers and narrowed it down to two, the Belkin N600 and the Netgear N600. Both were made in China and had about the same features. I ended up going with the Belkin because it was on sale for $10 less than the Netgear. I also liked the the slim design and built in stand, whereas the Netgear had a separate stand if you wanted the item to stand vertical instead of laying horizontal. Once home, the installation was extremely easy and I was up and running in less than 10 minutes from start to finish. Upon completion of downloading the latest updates for my wife's laptop, I turned it over to her. She was thrilled and spent the next 3-4 hours on the machine. She never encountered an issue with the connection, and loved being able to access her files and folders from our other desktop computer. The speed at which she was accessing (surfing) the internet was very impressive. We live in a very large house and had no problems with the connection, it performed flawlessly. Overall, I'm very happy with my purchase and decision to go with the Belkin. It works exactly as advertised and I sincerely believe it is a great dual band router for the money.

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Belkin Play N600 Wireless Dual Band N Router

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TP-Link TL-WR740N 150Mbps Wireless N Router Review

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(More customer reviews)I was in search of economic router to extend the reach of my wireless network. So I bought the router TpLink wr740n version 2 (the one with the UFO shape) which conforms with this premise, however I did not expect anything special from this wireless router, if it was capable of maintaining a speed of 54Mbps I'd be satisfied.
So being a low-cost device and with the purpose of conducting a performance test, I decided to change the stock firmware with DDWRT firmware and that was an excellent decision, the device provides a super stable signal, wireless speed of 65Mbps at mixed mode BGN, it could reach the 150Mbps at N mode but I have to bear with my old wifi devices, good power (the router wr740n comes with a 5dBi antenna), the wan port (blue) is now an additional switch port, I bought it a month ago and I have not had to reboot it.
Summarizing, this router, as second AP, is just what I needed plus all the improvements and tweaks the DDWRT firmware provides, it was an Excelent purchase.

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TP-Link TL-WR740N 150Mbps Wireless N Router with Fixed 5dBi Antennas

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Cisco-Linksys EZXS16W EtherFast 10/100 16-Port Workgroup Switch Review

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(More customer reviews)After an unfortunate power spike that fried 3 of the 8 ports on my old switch, I felt that as long as I need to replace, I may as well upgrade at the same time.
With the expansion of the wireless market, switches like these are coming down in price. Life is good. If you can accomodate the wiring it's tough to beat the Mbps/cost ratio that wired networking provides.
This switch is just as easy as its little brother. Plug it in, plug in the CAT5 and you are up and running. The LEDs let you know at a glance if there are any collision or speed issues.
This switch provides enough performance to share the DSL connection, play skipless music and video over the network and make the transfer of large files quick and easy.
With 16 ports, I doubt I will be filling out the switch anytime soon and I will probably upgrade to Gigabit networking before then anyways.

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Migrate your network to Fast Ethernet 100Mbps speed with the EtherFast10/100 Workgroup Switches. These new compact switches from Linksys offer a new compact design that perfect for space-sensitive applications. Apply this switching power to your 10BaseT network, and your data traffic efficiency improves several times over. Connect your file server to the Switchs auto-sensing ports, and speed up access time for all your users in just one move. And when youre ready, switch your way to full duplex speeds of up to 200Mbpshe speed is yours. And that not all Every Switch includes a complete suite of advanced data error detection and correction features for surefire communication every time. Auto partitioning, data-collision control, signal regeneration, and incoming frame retiming ensure that not a single bit of data is lost, even during heavy network traffic.

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Belkin Surf N300 Wireless N Router Review

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(More customer reviews)A lot of people have complained about the Belkin Surf F7D230 - the older version of this router sold in a blue/white box. I got the revised version F7D6301, which seems to work just fine for me.
I am replacing my good-ole Linksys WRT54G v1.0 with the Belkin Surf N300 F7D6301. Here are my comments:
* I bought it for $29 at Walmart on Black Friday, otherwise it sells for about $45.
* I did not use the Setup CD that would install a 95MB setup/monitoring program.
* If you have Windows 7, the setup is easy enough, just connect the power cable, hook up the router to the modem and you are set. The only other thing you need to do is to enter the preset password located on a small card on the side of the router. You can later access the router settings by entering http://192.168.2.1/ in your browser and set up a more convenient WPA/WPA2 under "Security" located in the left hand side navigation area.
* If you are not tech savvy, run the setup CD, it pretty much does it all for you.
I then ran a network test on speedtest.net and Belkin Surf outperformed my old router in download speeds Linksys 12 Mbps vs. Belkin Surf 20 Mbps. Upload speeds were exactly the same 1.85 Mbps. Please note that speeds will vary due to your provider and what type of plan you have.
Then I tested the range performance. I walked outside with my laptop, about 150 feet and after connecting to one and the other, I noticed that the signal strength was "fair" for my old router and "good" for the Belkin. Also, the speeds have dropped significantly for both routers, but the Belkin still outperformed the old Linksys; 2-4 Mbps for the Linksys vs. 6-8 Mbps for the Belkin.
Pros:
+ Over all, the router is a great choice for the $price$.
+ No dropped connection issues, signal strength is good all over the house.
+ I can surf the web even 150 ft. away from the router.
+ The internet speed is improved.
Cons:
- Not that it matters, but the router feels like it is made out of cheap plastic. For those who like good looking/feeling things, this is definitely not the best choice. However, if you don't care about visual appeal, tuck this thing away from the view and let it do it's job.
The rest is up to you...


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Belkin Surf N300 Wireless N Router

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External Antenna USB WiFi Wireless IEEE 802.11G/B WLAN 54Mbps Network Adapter USB2.0 Wireless Lan USB Adapter for Laptop Noteook Desktop PC Suport Vista/Windows 7(32bit & 64bit)/Linux Review

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(More customer reviews)I purchased two of these for my wife and myself because we like to sit out back on nicer evenings and wear down our laptop batteries together.
I have installed the drivers on XP, Vista, Windows 7 and tonight on Ubuntu 10.10. In order of ease-of-install I go with Win7, Vista, Ubuntu and XP. Win7 and Vista both installed the drivers without the disk, Ubuntu seemed trickier but not really. I plugged it in, ran update manager and rebooted (Ubuntu does a full reboot on my netbook in under a minute and a half.) XP was a nightmare of picking through the mis-labeled folders on the disk, giving up and finding the drivers online.
As far as performance is concerned, I saw little signal boost on XP (went from 1 bar without to 2 bars with.) Win7 and Vista both showed a steady two bar increase (1 without to 3 with) but the most impressive was Ubuntu. On Ubuntu I went from barely 1 bar without the dongle to full signal with a rare fluctuation down to 3 bars if someone stands directly in the signal path.
I've read the other reviews and they seem pretty mixed but my opinion is that this is hands-down the best purchase under $20 I've ever made.
I'm writing this review from my back patio with my Ubuntu powered Ideapad s10-3t and wireless dongle.
"A computer is like an air conditioner, it works great until you open Windows."

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For the driver, please install from the CD disk, if the CD cannot work,please go to http://www.ralinktech.com/support.php?s=1. Please choose the operation system on the left nevigation and the correct Chipset model (this one is RT2070)

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D-Link 4-Port Wireless-G 108Mbps Router Review

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(More customer reviews)Like everyone else, when I first installed the router I was having difficulties. I was having dropped connections, sometimes the SSID was not broadcasting, and a bunch of other stuff. I was about to re-box the thing and send it back, but I decided to fool around with the settings thinking I could not make the situation any worse. I remembered when I activated my DSL modem there was something called PPPoE. The PPPoE could either be hosted on the modem, the router, or the computer. Since the DLink WBR-2310 has PPPoE built-in I decided to turn off the PPPoE on the modem and host it on the router. Low and behold, all my connection problems went away. I was still a little apprehensive that I had found the problem, so I started a large file transfer from my notebook to desktop over the wireless connection and had two other notebooks pulling large downloads from the internet. Not once did the connections drop. Things got slow but nothing ever stopped. So, for anyone having connection troubles and they are using DSL try my example. It may work for you, it may not. I took away a star because I had to "luck-up" on finding the solution. DLink does not provide support for my modem and AT&T does provide support for the router. Terrible situation to put a customer in.

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RangeBooster G Wireless Router, 4-Port Switch, 802.11g, 108Mbps

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D-Link DIR-855 Xtreme N Duo Dual Band Draft 802.11n Media Router Review

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(More customer reviews)D-Link DIR-855 Xtreme N Duo Dualband Draft 802.11n Media Router
Per another customer, here's the differences in the Extremes:
The following will likely save you a couple of hours of research...
The DIR-655 is single-band (2.4GHz).
The DGL-4500 is dual-band (2.4GHz and 5GHz), however it only uses one band at a time. You choose which band, manually, in the configuration. It doesn't choose the best band in real-time, or anything like that.
The DIR-855 is dual-band (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and uses both bands at the same time.

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D-Link DIR-855 Xtreme N Duo Dual Band Draft 802.11n Media Router

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Xbox 360 Wireless Network Adapter Review

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(More customer reviews)360 is in the basement, router is on the 2nd floor. My main reason for upgrading was because while watching streaming netflix movies, it would stop and downgrade the quality to keep up with the streaming movie. This doesn't happen on my pc or when I moved the 360 one floor closer to the router.
The package comes with an instruction manual, installation cd and the adapter. The CD sleeve tells you to put it in first before connecting the adapter. I put it into my 360 and it just stared at me. Probably because I had already downloaded the latest 360 update through Live. The instructions were not clear on this but I feel it is for people that have never updated their 360 and need the WPA2 configuration installed to run wireless n. To clarify, to use wireless N you must use WPA or WPA2. You cannot use WEP encryption. If you do not change it on your router configuration, this adapter will run in ABG only. NOT N. You must also have a wireless N compatible router to run at wireless n speeds (duh).
I already had the older MS ABG adapter wirelessly connected to my 360 and linked to my router, so I just shut it down, unplugged the usb cable and plugged this one in instead. Rebooted and ran "test connection" and it kept the old configuration memory of the connection settings (MAC and ip addresses, passwords, WPA2, etc), except it connected full "4 bars" strong and stated the connection type was n instead of g. I checked this on the router as well through my pc. Connection speeds had varied from 28 to 54 mb/s but now jumped to 52 to 108 mb/s. Tested the unit thoroughly with MW2. No hiccups in voice or connection problems with server during multiplayer or spec ops. Also tested netflix streaming. No problems here either. Watched a full movie with no recalibration/interuption. This has never happened before even on a good day.
The adapter comes with little fold out feet on the bottom so you can stand it remotely if you buy a usb extension cable. Very handy feature if your 360 is buried in an entertainment rack.
Offnote complaint: Router is DLink DGL4500 GamerLounge ABGN, non-firmware updated (which has been known to cause problems). People have complained that this router is not simultaneous dual band. I was on xbox live playing a game in wireless n and using my iphone (wireless g only) to look up info on the net at the same time. I believe the "simultaneous" complaint refers to wireless n devices not being able to see wireless g devices on the same server. Does not affect my configuration.
Conclusion:
Does everyone need this? No. But if you don't want or can't run cable through your house and want the fastest connection speed possible, this is a great trouble free solution. When choosing between the older version and the newer one, the price differences between the two MS supplied adapters is minimal enough that this should be your purchase choice unless you NEVER plan to upgrade past g or your 360 is pretty much in line of site of your router.
I do not work for MS, own a PS3, have red ringed my 360, and still recommend this product.
Pro's: speed, pain free installation, speed, remotely locatable, speed, 2 antennae, did I mention speed???
Con's: clamshell packing, price, vague installation instructions, fragile antennae only pivot left/right, not forward/back or rotateable, same with old one. But since it can be located remotely, not really an issue.
GT: Jinx32

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Designed for versatility and ease, the Xbox 360 Wireless Networking Adapter ‘N' enhances your Xbox 360 experience in the digital home, seamlessly synchronizing with the Xbox 360 system with the newest Wireless N standard. Wireless N offers increased speed, coverage and reliability and can easily stream media-intensive applications such as ‘Games on Demand', HD movies, videos and music to your Xbox 360 system from Xbox LIVE or your Media Center PC.

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Cisco-Linksys WUSB54GC Compact Wireless-G USB Adapter Review

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(More customer reviews)First off, the good. The stick gets pretty good reception, IMO.
Next the neither here nor there: if you follow the advice of the sticker and run the install CD, it will replace the standard Windows wi-fi zeroconf with Linksys's own utility. Zeroconf is not really all that great, but it would be decent of them to ask you first. If you are used to doing things the Windows way, you'd probably prefer to keep doing so. The Monitor software is not bad, but it has its own faults. You might prefer it to Windows, but don't expect any help from your resident Windows expert if you have problems with it.
Next the truly bad: the softwarte mucks around with windows settings (e.g. the notorious GTGINA.dll/logon problem) without asking permission, informing you, or giving you a clue as to who is responsible.
It is utterly amazing this thing earned a Windows compatibility sticker given this. When you buy something with the sticker, you should at least be confident you aren't going to be sucker punched by the software installing unasked for and unwanted "improvements".
This is why this software is not just BAD, it is GRATUITOUSLY bad. It's one thing to make software that is dreadful at what you buy it for (which indeed the Linksys drivers are not), it's another to spread dreadfulness around to completely unrelated functions (which the Linksys drivers do). There is no reason at all for Linksys to do this.
YOU might not have a problem right now, but in the future you may end up with mysterious and uninformative error messages which will have you digging through the Windows registry to track down.
For this reason, I strongly recommend that non-experts avoid this device. I understand that the changes this driver installs are intended to make life easier for non-experts. It may even succeed at this for some. But if you run into problems (particularly later), you are going to have to handle your resident Windows support guy getting very cranky. The problems the included software create are not only completely unrelated to the functions this device performs, they persist even if you don't have the device plugged in.
It is incumbent on a vendor, when replacing standard ways of doing things with a way that is supposed to be "better", to achieve 100% success. Otherwise they leave the poor user high and dry with no viable support. Better obvious flaws that everyone knows about than mysterious, untraceable flaws.
For Linux users, the device works flawlessly, but you have to do the following:
(1) compile the RT73 driver source and install the package.
(2) obtain the RT73 firmware deb or RPM (From the same soruce as the driver) and install it.
Once you do this, when you plug the device in the system should recognize it as a wifi network adapter and give it the device name "rausb0". You then use the method normal for your Linux distro to configure it, either iwconfig on the command line, or the KWifi program for KDE users (also Ubuntu Gnome users).
If you have never compiled a kernel module before, have no fear. Just google for "wusb54gc rt73 compile" and you'll find directions. Follow them step by step and you'll have success.

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Are you tired of running wires through your house to keep your computers networked and connected to the Internet? Have you recently purchased a wireless data card only to discover that you have to open up your computer to install it? Don't worry, help has arrived. With the Linksys WUSB54GC Compact Wireless-G USB Adapter, you won't need power drills or screwdrivers to connect to the Web anymore.All you'll need is an available USB slot. You simply plug the adapter into your USB port, and immediately you'll be connected to your wireless network. It can't get much simpler than this. By incorporating USB 2.0 and Wireless-G protocols, the Linksys WUSB54GC can immediately begin delivering data rates up to 54 Mbps (five times as fast as 802.11b) without the trouble of running wires or opening up the case of your desktop computer. To install the adapter, you simply plug it into any available USB port. (It's compatible with both USB 1.1 and 2.0 ports, but 2.0 will yield the fastest speeds.) You can plug it directly into your PC, or you can use the included USB extension cord to put the adapter anywhere you'd like, up to five feet away. Because the adapter gets its power through the USB connection, no power cord is necessary. The included setup wizard walks you through configuring the adapter to your wireless network settings, step by step. The Linksys WUSB54GC lets you put your computer almost anywhere in the building, as long as you have a wireless signal to connect to.Once you're connected, you can keep in touch via e-mail, access the Internet, use instant messaging to chat with friends, and share files and other resources such as printers and hard disk storage space with other computers on the network. You'll also be able to connect with any of the growing number of public hotspots springing up in coffee shops, airport lounges, hotels, and convention centers. The new push-button setup feature makes it easy to configure your wireless devices. Just push the button on the access point and on your other enabled wireless device to automatically create a safe connection, protected by the industrial-strength security of Wireless Protected Access (WPA) and 128-bit encryption. This means that your data stays secure. What's in the Box WUSB54GC USB adapter, USB extension cable, setup wizard CD-ROM, user's guide on CD-ROM, and quick installation guide.

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Cisco-Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I am not sure what all the others had problems with but my Linksys worked great out of the box. Setting it up I had an issue that was easily fixed by calling tech support,(only 5 min wait and worth it, the technician was very good). My laptop which will be connecting wirelessly was not connecting no matter what I tried. It turns out that you can't run wireless cards and ethernet cards (mine was built in} at the same time because the machine will always default to the ethernet card. Which is exactly what was happening. We removed the driver for the ethernet card and it began to work great right away. Everything else about the setup was fairly simple and went very smooth the directions were easy to understand. I especially liked the quick installation sheet which is what I used to setup with.
I highly recommend this product and would buy it again if I had to do it all over. The distance of the wireless machine is really dependent on terrain. But for my two story house it was great. The only weak spot being downstairs in the opposite direction of the linksys base as far as I could go. However it still worked and was quite able to handle downloads even at the weakest point. You just can't go wrong till they come out with a new beakthrough in technology. But even then the prices will be to high in the beginning. For instance the new 802.11a is several hundred dollars more expensive then this machine. And for what you get I just don't need it.
This is a winner. The newest version of the product is BEF11S4 VER 2. Many of the reviews done in this section were about the
BEF11S4 its the same model number but lacking the ver.2 after the BEF11S4.
The newest version has fixed most of the bugs of the previous version. Good Luck!!! A very satisfied consumer

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The Linksys BEFW11S4 is your all-in-one networking device This wireless router features support for the 802.11b protocol, which lets you wirelessly access your network and the Internet from up to 800 feet (outside), or 300 feet (inside) away

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SMC Barricade N Wireless Broadband Router SMCWBR14S-N4 - Wireless router - 4-port switch - 802.11b/g/n - desktop Review

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(More customer reviews)Great little router, I run it in a mixed wired/wireless N environment and use it to share the Internet between two desktops, a laptop, a netbook, two Nintendo DS, one Nintendo DSI, Xbox 360 and a Wii. I bought it to replace the old SMC G router which I had for years (love the brand, so I stuck with them). Not much else to say, the set up was easy, and I haven't had to do anything else since the initial setup - it just works. Forgot to mention - didnt have to install any software, just like with SMC's other router, just logged into the web server menu and it was ready to go. Like I said, its a no brainer.

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The Barricade N 150Mbps Wireless Broadband Router (SMCWBR14S-N4) is the perfect all-in-one networking solution for connecting and sharing your high speed cable/xDSL internet connection. Designed for the home, this platform independent multi-functional router combines a 4-port 10/100 LAN switch, 150Mbps Wireless-N access point, NAT firewall with Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) and User friendly web-based management interface in one convenient device.The SMCWBR14S-N4 provides better performance than existing 802.11g technology and is fully backwards compatible with existing 802.11b/g products. It supports the latest WPA and WPA2 wireless encryption standards, which prevent unauthorized access to wireless networks and ensure data is secure. Wireless security can also be set up easily using Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) that enables push button (PBC) or PIN configuration.The integrated NAT firewall with SPI provides protection from hackers and Denial of Service attacks by analyzing individual data packets, to ensure that only authorized packets are allowed access to the network. Using the Access Control feature parents or network administrators can block certain websites, limit web access based on time or dates, and/or block internet access for applications like P2P utilities or games. Finally, configuration of your internet connection and advanced router functions is made simple and straightforward with the EZ Installation Wizard and intuitive web-based management interface.

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Cisco-Linksys WRVS4400N Wireless-N Gigabit Security Router - VPN v2.0 Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I should have known better. I'm a geek (I've owned more than 20 computers/servers in my >10 years as a software engineer and I've setup >10 wired/wireless networks for friends and family), so when I read all of the bad reviews on this product, I just figured it was people who couldn't figure out what they're doing. I was wrong, so wrong. The WRVS4400N is totally worthless - don't make the same mistake as I - BUY A DIFFERENT ROUTER.
The problem is that every 24 hours or 36 hours (on the exact second) this router stops sharing the internet connections to all computers on the network. It must them be unplugged or rebooted via the web interface and then the problem goes away. So far their tech support has been unable to resolve the problem they keep sending me new routers. After this last one, they told me there is nothing more they can do and it will have to be reported as an issue to their product development team. My internet connection is fine as evidenced by plugging in a laptop when the router fails and they have reported no compatibility issues with my cable modem. And furthermore other people are experiencing the exact same problem.
This router does offer a great set of features for the price, but be careful - they're implemented poorly. So you'll likely turn them off.
The IPS (special security features that this router offers) features are worthless - if you want to FTP anything, you'll need to turn them off. And even with them off, I still can't connect to several of the FTP servers that I routinely connect to, which I could with my last router - for example Google Base FTP servers and Yahoo's webhosting accounts.
The QoS (quality of service) features are extremely hard to configure and there is NO documentation on line, include with the product or in the help section of the administration tool, which explains how to actually configure it.
The range of the N wireless network isn't very impressive. It's only slightly better than the G router from Linksys that it replaced. Both routers were placed in the same spot in my basement.
I haven't tried the VPN connectivity yet, but you're only limited to 5 clients connecting, which is a limitation that's not published on this product description, nor easy to find on Linksys's site.
Now, I've been a long time buyer and recommender of Linksys products, but in the last two years their product quality has plummeted as evidenced by the ratings they get her on Amazon. They keep sending me these survey's every time I contact their tech support and I share these same complaints, but they don't get any better. If anything they're getting worse.
Linksys's phone technical support is horrible. This unit isn't serviced by the "home" area of Linksys's tech-support staff, you must go through the "business" area and their level 1 support staff aren't even trained, so you go right to their level 2 support, which you'd think would mean you'd get good support, but not from Linksys. They have no idea how to solve problems with this router. Several of the tech support people have given up and made excuses to get off the phone - my favorite was to reapply the same version of the router's firmware, waste an hour reconfiguring it, and then wait 24-36 hours to see if the problem came back; and sure enough it did.
Linksys's phone customer support is horrible. After my last tech support tech's manager determined that I have yet another defective router and I should get a new one, I was transferred to their customer service department so that they could process an RMA. It took them 43 minutes to process the RMA. The customer service person, who could barely speak english, said he had to read everyone of the case notes in order to process an RMA. Then it took 24 minutes to get transferred to his supervisor to complain about him.
So to reiterate my review: While this router looks like a great set of features for great price, you'll need to turn off much of those features to be able to FTP, and you'll need to reboot your router every 24-36 hours if you want it to router internet service to other computers on your network. And if you have to call tech support or customer support, you'll be in for some horrible experience. So don't make the same mistake as I did. Don't buy this router.

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The Cisco WRVS4400N Wireless-N Gigabit VPN Security Router, formerly part of the Linksys Business Series, is designed and built for small businesses. It combines wired and wireless network access with switching capabilities in a single affordable device to keep your employees safely connected to the resources they need to be productive. Strong security features include a proven firewall with intrusion prevention, VPN capabilities, and an optional service that scans email to help fight spam, viruses, and other threats. An integrated 4-port Gigabit Ethernet switch allows up to four devices to share high speed connectivity in the office.

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TP-Link TL-WN722N 150Mbps High Gain Wireless USB Adapter Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Installed and running well since 01-14-11. Here's my take on it:
POSITIVES:
----------------
** It really, really works like mad. **
- It's very cheap cost-wise for the great performance it gives you
- It's small(ish), though it will look big connected to your laptop
- Comes with a 3' USB extension cable which I definitely recommend using. It helps position the device, and keeps it from crowding your laptop or from being destroyed by being knocked out of your PC's front USB port.
- Has a diffused green LED under the white plastic to let you know it's working, instead of the blinding blue LEDs that everyone uses these days. The light turns off when it's not powered (like when you hit Standby on your PC)
- The software is relatively simple to install and use, and allows you to use other products to manage your WiFi instead.
- The current driver, software, and documents come on a mini CD and are all up to date with what's available on TP-Link's web site
- The documentation is good, even though it could use some more detail.
- For those who use Win7, it appears to now be compatible. The software and doc reference it.MINOR NEGATIVES:
----------------
- The TP-LINK Wireless Client Utility is very functional but could be a little better, a little more intuitive. A configuration "wizard" would be a good improvement for manual configs.
- Manual configuration (which you need if your network is securely hidden and requires a pass code) isn't fantastically documented, though you will be able to get it to work with the document, and maybe a little trial and error. If your setup is totally open security-wise (this would be BAD), you will have no problem with the software.
- Even if the driver is installed incorrectly, the client utility may report enough information to make you think it is installed. When in doubt, do a complete removal of the software and drivers and re-install.
- It's a minor thing, but the QSS software that comes with the device is ONLY usable with other TP-Link products. Don't bother installing it unless you have a TP-Link Router/Access Point that has QSS built in.
-------------------
You can stop here unless you want to read my experience with it.
-------------------
A friend of mine needed a WiFi adapter since she moved to a location that wasn't wired, so I recommended this to her based on the great reviews it's received. She successfully and easily installed this device on her work laptop, and was extremely impressed with it's ability to drag a much better signal out of the almost inaccessible 802.11n WiFi router located down stairs, the signal of which is blocked by many walls and turns.
She also needed to install the device on her personal PC. Unfortunately we spent hours over chat trying to get it installed and working, and FINALLY got it done after completely removing the software and drivers that she had installed, and then reinstalling those drivers with my guidance. It was only at this point that she said, "Oh yeah, I kind of passed over that part" where XP asks for confirmation to install an unsigned driver. AHHHHHHH! Well, now it works. :) The signal is not fantastic, but it's 4 times better than it used to be (for her laptop) and is good enough for her PC. It definitely works. So one lesson for you is: Please do yourself a favor, and let your operating system install the driver properly. ;)
The night I helped my friend with her WiFi, I received and installed my own TL-WN722N adapter, to help her through the install process and to replace the D-Link 4300 router I was using as a WiFi receiver (firmware v1.8 has bridging).
After installing this little thing and adjusting the antenna, I got download speeds almost twice as fast as before to the aging Linksys 802.11b-only wifi router downstairs. I then spent some time replacing that Linksys device with the D-Link 4300, turned on Super-G, and got almost 13Mbit down and 1.7Mbit up, which is more than four times what I was getting before on download and upload. The download speed varies between 8Mb-12Mb - it probably hits 12mb because of Super-G infringing on other people's signal space :P - but the upload speed has been really constant at 1.7Mb or so since I installed it, even to the Linksys router. The download speed is almost as good as I can get by plugging in a 75' network cable directly to the router.
So this little thing really rocks!
FYI, DSL Reports has an excellent set of speed reporting tools, as well as info on increasing network equipment and WiFi performance. Check it out! I'd enter a link, but Amazon would probably only delete it.
That's it, another novel for my reviews. I'll update this over time if anything new happens...


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TP-Link TL-WN722N 150Mbps High Gain Wireless USB Adapter

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Belkin Play N600 HD Wireless Dual Band N Router Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Our router bit the dust and my son had taken to connecting to the neighbor's access point, while I chose to tether to my mobile phone. Meanwhile, it was only a matter of time before other family members found dissatisfaction in either of these contingencies. What is a skinflint like me to do?
I wanted, well, everything...
* 802.11 b/g/n
* at least 4 gigabit Ethernet ports
* dual-band
* ability to connect an external drive as a simple NAS
* a 2-yr warranty would be nice
Costco had these on sale for $89.99. I couldn't say 'no'.
Setup was a breeze. The Belkin Router Monitor app sits in the System Tray and makes configuration easy. Most configuration parameters have help files that can be called up by clicking on the parameter's title and help files are quite good.
Performance is very good. Gigabit Ethernet ports are fast (as they should be). Wireless is predictable (so far) and reaches 150-ft (54Mb). Configuring remote devices is easy.
Only thing is, when I connected my 1TB WD MyBook drive, the router would not recognize it. I finally called tech support and learned that the router ONLY supports SELF-POWERED portable USB drives or thumb drives. I tested this with a 320GB Seagate FreeAgent Go drive, which I had on hand, and the router detected it instantly and network access was very quick. I'm glad I didn't buy an externally powered drive.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Belkin Play N600 HD Wireless Dual Band N Router

Belkin Play N600 HD Wireless Dual Band N Router

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Buffalo Technology Nfiniti Wireless-N Router and Access Point WHR-G300N Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)A rock solid router after firmware is updated to DD-WRT and hence the 4-star. It is basically unusable with the stock firmware, especially with Comcast, where it could not find the DHCP server most of the time.

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Buffalo Technology Nfiniti Wireless-N Router and Access Point WHR-G300N

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TP-LINK TL-WR1043ND Ultimate Wireless N Gigabit Router 802.11 n / g / b Built-in 4-port Gigabit Switch w 3 detachable antennas Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)i was looking to buy a 2.4 ghz router with usb and a fast cpu with wireless n capabilities. this router was a great price for its bang. cpu= 400 mhz, ram= 32 mb, flash= 8 mb. its stock firmware is great and the ability to use a usb hard drive makes it even useful for my home network. i haven't had any issues so far. it is performing even better than expected. i am anxiously waiting for tp link to come out with a true dual band wireless router which i will be eager to buy. great product and performance. the detachable anthenas are a plus if i ever need to upgrade them for better signal...

Click Here to see more reviews about: TP-LINK TL-WR1043ND Ultimate Wireless N Gigabit Router 802.11 n / g / b Built-in 4-port Gigabit Switch w 3 detachable antennas

The TP-LINK Wireless N Gigabit Router TL-WR1043ND is a combined wired/wireless network connection device integrated with internet-sharing router and 4-port Gigabit switch. Adopting advanced MIMO? (Multi Input Multi Output) and SST? technologies, it provides incredibly high wireless speeds of up to 300Mbps. The TL-WR1043ND also features four Gigabit Ethernet ports for wired connections. This robust guaranteed wired/wireless throughput ensures that you are freer to simultaneously enjoy multiple high-bandwidth consuming and interruption sensitive applications such as streaming HD video, making VoIP calls, sharing large files and playing online games. The TL-WR1043ND is specially equipped with a USB storage port on the back of the router for connecting USB storage devices, for convenient access for everyone on the network.

* Gigabit Ethernet ports enabling ultimate transfer speed * Centrally storing and content sharing by connecting USB storage drives * SST? dramatically increases link robustness and stability * CCA? improves wireless performance while automatically avoiding channel conflicts * Wireless N speed up to 300Mbps makes it ideal for bandwidth consuming or interruption sensitive applications like video streaming, online gaming and VoIP * For home and?office use, supports PPPoE, Dynamic IP, and static IP broadband access and various kind of dialing requirements * Supports UPnP, DDNS, static routing, VPN pass-through, and data forwarding * Features IP, MAC, URL filtering which flexibly controls online access and time * Supports SPI firewall and access control management * Supports QSS (Quick Secure Setup), provides 64/128/152-bit WEP encryption, WPA/WPA2, WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK authentication * User interface supports free web software updates * 3 detachable antennas (reverse SMA connector)

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Actiontec 300 Mbps Wireless-N DSL Modem Router (GT784WN) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Was using a Westell router provided by Verizon a few years ago and it kept dropping the wifi connection on my laptop even though it was only 35-40 feet away from the router. I purchased this one and it was pretty much plug-n-play using Frontier DSL and I haven't lost a connection since...so I'm a happy camper again. It works well with Nettalk voip to so that's another plus.

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