Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Original Review (December 7, 2010):
I decided to give this NIC a try, since there several reviews indicating it works right out of the box on Windows 7. I received the package today and installed it in my computer. Sure enough, after my Windows 7 came up, it recognized the NIC (Realtek RTL8169/8110 Family PCI Gigabit Ethernet NIC (NDIS 6.20)). However, there's no connection because Windows 7 thinks the ethernet (media) cable is "unplugged". I made sure both ends of the cable are securely connected to the NIC and router port. On the NIC, I can see the LED is lit on the "DATA", but the 1000 LED is not lit. Ran the ipconfig /renew in an attempt to reconnect the NIC and even rebooted the computer again, but the same problem persisted. I googled for updated driver (even from Netgear.com) but none is available. I decided to run the driver setup from the accompanied resource CD. The driver installation complained that Windows 7 is not supported and terminates.
I've used many product from Netgear in the past and have very good experiences until this one. Windows 7 has been out for a while now, but netgear has yet to update this driver to work with Windows 7. I'm contacting J&R to returning this product.
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This is an update of my review above (Feb 21, 2011).
I did contact J&R to return this product, which J&R authorized the return. However, I never got around to returning this item because I had to go on business trip and vacation one after the other. I forgot afterward until having to deal with VPN connection brought me back. I decided to give it second try. I plugged it back into the PCI slot 1 and powered up the computer. After the login to the Win 7 64-bit OS, Windows immediately detected new hardware and started to install the driver all on it's own. I remembered reading about Windows installing it's own driver for this and worked for someone, so I just let it finished. There was a small message indicating the install was complete and device ready for use. I immediately brought up a DOS box and typed in ipconfig /all and the devices was listed with IP address. I pinged www.yahoo.com and they were successful. I was blown away at what just happened. Now it's working great, and it is detected as being Gbit interface as well. I have VirtualBox with Ubuntu running on Windows 7, so I reconfigured the network to use this new nic as bridged network. Tried my VPN connections and that worked as well. So now I'm a happy camper. This is what should have happened the first time around. I would have given this product a 5 stars, but because of the original troublesome installation, I'm now giving it 4 stars.
Click Here to see more reviews about: NETGEAR GA311 - Network adapter - PCI - Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet - 10Base-T, 100Base-TX, 1000Base-T
NETGEAR's Gigabit PCI Adapter injects dynamic force into your home or small office desktop PC so you can transfer huge files at astonishing speeds. Whether they're video files at home, or the largest CAD or database files at work, this powerful 1000 Mbps adapter moves them up to 10 times faster than Fast Ethernet and 100 times faster than 802.11b wireless! It's designed for easy operation as it instantly connects you to other networked computers, printers, routers, network storage, and the Internet. NETGEAR's unique Smart Wizard performance dashboard lets you monitor actual speed, while 10/100/1000 Mbps auto-sensing ports speed up performance and eliminate any need for manual switching. Wide compatibility with all major operating systems, other Ethernet products, and both 3.3-volt and 5-volt PCI systems does away with potential user hassles. What's more, installation is simple in fewer than five clicks, Smart Wizard install assistant has you up and running full speed ahead.
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