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Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router

Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router

List Price: $69.99
Your Price: $49.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Cheap, easy to use, reliable, A+ support, best product ever
Review: I've owned this Lynksys router with 802.11b wireless AP for about six months now and everything about the product is excellent. Great for home or business because of its price and reliability. This is quite simply one of the most easy to use networking solutions out there. For near-by computers it offers a 4-port 10/100 switch while the 802.11b signal reaches well, nearly as far as the manufacturer suggests (which is very god by my book). Home users see great advantages too such as avoiding running wires as well as not having to pay the extra $5 per extra computer connected to DSL or CABLE (the router lets all computers behind it use the same ip#) This allows the router to pay for itself in just 14 months with only a two-computer network. If you have three computers, make that seven months; five? Make that three and a half months. You literally don't have to adjust a single setting to use this product. The set-up cd literally does everything for you and unles you want to encript your wireless signal, all computers with wireless cards (as well as ones with 10/100 cables attached) will immideatly be on the network. Some users may have a few troubles when wishing to use some advanced internet features and protocalls behind this router, but with a single call to lynksys tech support, these can be resolved quickly. Tech support also receives my A+ with fast and helpful service. Phone waits are very short compared to competition and e-mail is returned within a day. I've never been more satisfied with a networking product. The only complaint that I have with this product is the price of the matching linksys 802.11b adapters ($50-60+). Keep in mind these are not nessary as most any 802.11b wireless adapter (even USB starts around $25 a piece) will work fine with this product. If you're looking to network two or more computers with Cable or DSL access, this is definately your answer. Rumors about 802.11b being too slow for cable or DSL access are untrue. The speed is roughly 20 times faster than standard 512k service or roughly 200 times faster than 56k. Our home connection peaks around three megabit just fine even through wireless. My final advice to everyone is don't wait to buy this product. Many important rating companies rated this last year's product of the year for a reason. Now they are available for half of last year's price.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: So far so good
Review: Set up my home network with this Linksys router last weekend. After reading the negative comments, I was concerned about the ability to set it up out of the box. In my case, however, I had no problems and had it set up to network two computers in my home in no time, with AOL cable broadband, without having to call either Linksys or AOL support.

My best advice is to follow the instructions carefully, and don't forget to do things like reset your modem after configuration, etc. Also the firmware should be updated if you want to run AOL correctly.

Note this Linksys router befw11s4 has two versions, the original and version 2. You want version 2, which has been out a few months now. Amazon sent me the original version, which I promptly returned for version 2 after talking with linksys support, which said version 2 is much improved, both in the hardware and software. Many of the problems encountered by others with this router have been with the original version of this router, so save yourself some headaches and get version 2. You'll see version 2 printed on the box.

I used this Linksys router along with the Linksys wireless ethernet bridge (wet11) to network two desktops in my home in two different rooms. I was not able to use the Linksys wireless USB adapter because my second computer runs Windows 98 (original version and not 98SE). The latest version 2.6 of the Linksys USB adapter requires 98SE or later. The Linksys bridge, however, does not depend on the type of computer operating system being run and can connect any ethernet device into a wireless network. It worked great for me to hook my second computer into the wireness network created with my Linksys router.

So far so good (knock on wood)!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Easy set up - great product
Review: I am (you may say) a computer dummy, but I got the wireless Intel ... and after 4 days of trying to get this up and running I took it back to the store and got the Linksys wireless AP Router and PC card. I am usin windows 98 on my desktop and winows xp home on my laptop and the laptop is the wireless. Let me tell you I got this set up and running in about 1 hour. I is very easy and the instructions are very simple so anyone can follow. I am very happy with this product, I am moving around the house with my laptop and signal is very good, I have not gone out in the back yard yet since is freezing cold right now but I will soon just so I can see how far I can go from the base - it says up to 1500'. I just love it..good buy.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good product, but setup and range can sometimes be a problem
Review: Although the Linksys Wireless 4-Port Cable/DSL Router works well when it works, setup and configuration was somewhat of a hassle, and sometimes feels only shakily configured. Range goes to about 100 feet maximum, but this could be a limitation with the matching Linksys Wireless 802.11b cards, and not necessarily this Wireless Access Point itself.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Seamless and Effortless
Review: Being somewhat computer savvy, I was still nervous about setting up my wireless network. After hearing some horror stories about tech support and hours of frustration, I was expecting some difficulties. I had none. It was the easiest thing I have ever done! I had more trouble getting my DSL to cooperate than the router. I installed the router and a linksys wireless card to my laptop in less than 20 min without ANY issues whatsoever. I don't know if that is the quality and ease-of-use of linksys products or the efficient set-up now available in networking products. Whatever the reason, I am ecstatic at how easy and effortless it was. As far as wireless performance, I have found no problems in a spacious two bedroom apartment in LA. Granted, this isn't the newest fastest technology, but it is relatively inexpensive to start and really, really cool to have. Running wires all over the house was time consuming and looked ridiculous. Now my problem is solved!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Works GREAT!
Review: I did have to call customer service for some help. They were very friendly, professional and my the router was up and running in less than 30 minutes. I have recommended to friends as well as I recommend to you.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Easy installation -- but set up your security!
Review: This (the version 2 model) installs quickly and easily. If you're using it as a stand-alone router, you shouldn't have any problems. But, if you're going to install this behind a hardware firewall, such as the Linksys BEFSX41 Firewall Router, you've got to tweak several settings. The manual won't help you there, so contact the Linksys customer service folks and they'll send you the info you need. They are fast, sharp, and courteous -- far ahead of the industry average!

After you install this, you MUST change some settings for basic security. Remember, this is a radio transmitter, and anybody living in, or driving through, your neighbourhood can easily log on to your network if you leave the default settings alone. They may also gain access to the computers on your network. Unfortunately, the manual doesn't do a very good job of explaining the changes you need to make to the SSID, password, WEP, and MAC filters. But Linksys has an excellent article in their knowledge base that explains everything.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Dead after a year
Review: Never had much of a problem with my router. Once I had to update the firmware, but that was it. Yesterday, I noticed that the WLAN link light was off and my wireless connections were no longer working. Called Linksys support and told them all of my troubleshooting procedures. They had me reset the router again and it still didn't function. Then they asked me how long I had the router. I said that I had purchased it around 1/15/02. They told me, "We're sorry but that's more than a year. We won't be able to help you." Apparently, the wireless part of the router burns out (I can still use the switch ports to connect via cable). I paid around [$$$] for this last year. I would have expected it to last for more than a year - or at least have been given some assistance in fixing it. Beware - you may have to replace this annually.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great product backed up by great tech support :o)
Review: Having recently gone through the frustrating process of purchasing DSL (I won't name any names) I may be prejudiced by the relative ease and positive tech-support experience I have had so far with the wireless router and adapter.

I have been up and running for about 3 weeks with only one glitch that has required me to call tech support for help. Wait times are not long at all and the tech support people are patient, knowledgeable, and ultimately very helpful.

Happy and satisfied with my purchase thus far :o)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best of the lot
Review: I must begin by admitting that I am a novice as far as networking is concerned. All I wanted was to setup a wireless connection to my laptop with my cable modem brodband connection. I began with D-Link (AirPlus 2.4Ghz Base and wireless adaptor). Installation was not a problem, but performance was. I could have lived with it, but there was another hassle which required to hard-reboot my laptop everytime it went into standby. I have Windows XP, and although D-Link specifies that it's product works with XP, it doesn't. I exchanged both router and adaptor and this time got the Microsoft base station and wireless adaptor. Life was great - easy setup and excellent performance... but only for two days. Third day the base station died. It just wouldn't power up. I called microsoft tech support and after half an hour, he advised me to return the base station. Apparently, there was this well known problem of base station resetting itself every now and then and in that process it could get stuck for good (as mine did). As a final trial, I bought the Linksys router and the Linksys wireless card for notebook. Installation was a snap. It's been 10 days since I last saw my router (which is in my basement). It's doing it's job without getting itself much attention. I guess that's how these things are supposed to be.


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