Rating: 
Summary: OK device, needs a little work
Review: 1. High price should be about $30 (my guess is that the price is higher because of the very nice, compact, switching power supply)
2. MUST upgrade to 2.0 software to cure instability (would lock-up all the time before upgrade, now it's very stable)
3. Would be great if someone sold a small bridge like this with an integrated hub ...
4. Setup is OK ... SNMP based custom application requireing a static IP for the device ... needs a little work, how about DHCP and web setup?I bought this to connect a small lab in my basement to the rest of the house network ... house has no cabling and I got tired of dragging a 100 foot cable down the hall from the office. Out of the box it had firmware version 1.0 on it ... it would lock up after about 20 minutes and need to be power cycled ... Netgear's web site has a 2.0 firmware load available ... Once I did the upgrade it has been rock solid and does the trick for me.
Rating: 
Summary: Difficult to Configure
Review: After three hours battling with the so-call "easy to configure" device, I finally got it to work. However, I still don't have a clue what I had done to make it work. Unlike, the WET11, it doesn't have a switch to let you switch to x-over mode. So if you want to plug it onto your PC and configure it, you need to get yourself a x-over cable. Also the new firmware can only be upgrade through the Windows based Utility. So if you are using OS other than Windows, you may have problem to upgrade your ME101. In addition, the web configuration page is slow and buggy. If you access it through the wired port, you are okay. But if you try to open it wirelessly, it is like lottory. You can open it sometimes, and can't others. Bottom line is, if you can affort a bit more, the WET11 seems like a better solution.
Rating: 
Summary: Do yourself a favor and get the Linksys WET11 instead...
Review: As with the other posters, I have little good to say about my experience with this device. I spent way too many hours trying to set this thing up. To no avail. How badly does the ME101 suck? Let me count the ways:
1) The instructions are terrible - and in my case they were plain wrong. I spent way too much time trying to access the bridge via the web console only to later discover that the enclosed instructions were OUTDATED. Sure enough, there on the Netgear site was an updated version of the user guide with a completely different set of information (specifically the defaul IP address was different). Gee, thanks Netgear.
2) I bought this device because I already have a Netgear wireless router. You'd like to think that they'd make the devices easy to use out of the box given the same make. Of course not -- the stupid IP address doesn't even conform to the standard Netgear router IP. Not a big deal, but it's little details like this that are so annoying.
3) Netgear's tech support. AWOL. The first night I tried to call these guys I got the phone tree of death. Had to go through 5-6 levels of menu to get to the right queue. By the time I did, I got a message saying my call is important to them, blah blah blah, followed by a prompt that indicated a 30 minute waiting period. 30 minutes later after Vivaldi's Four Seasons, I hear a ring. Yes - help is on the way! Only to hear my line be disconnected. I call back - now the voice says 40 minutes. I try again an hour later -- now we're at 80 minutes.
4) Second night of Netgear tech support I call back. After another 30 minute wait, the tech tells me I'm in teh wrong queue. Before I can respond, he transfers me - ring followed by nothing (I'm cut off AGAIN). So now I'm mad. I call back yet again (glutton for punishment). After another interminable wait I get a live human. From the start he tells me that since I have a Mac I can't use the ME101, I need an ME102 OR, get this, I need to configure the ME101 with a Windows machine and THEN use it with my Mac. He then insists that I need "drivers" for the device which arent' compatible with the Mac and when I press him on why this information is not present in any of the user guide materials, he patronizingly tells me "you wouldn't understand". In any event, a short argument ensues in which I ask the tech if he's ever read the manual they've packaged with the unit, because everything he's tell me is constradicting the friggin manual. After hanging up on the guy, I later manage to access the web console which only furthers my assertion that Netgear tech support folk are morons (turns out I had to reset to the factory settings b/c for some reason the thing wasn't even set to the factory defaults to begin with!!!)
5) The range - the range on this thing stinks. I had it literally NEXT to the router and the signal strength was at 50%. 15 feet away? Nada...nothing. On top of that the unit couldn't even keep a consistent connection and kept dropping out. In any event, I bought a Linksys WET11 to boost my flagging spirit (and for the need to convince myself that I wasn't a moron). As with the other reviewer, the Linksys was easily configured, worked almost immediately and had great range. Let me end by saying I was in the local Fry's yesterday and noticed they had a bunch of ME101 boxes on display. On closer inspection I noticed that almost ALL of the boxes had been previously opened and then returned. A couple of them clearly had been returned not once, but MULTIPLE TIMES. All this tells me that I'm not the only that has had problems with this piece o' garbaggio. In the future, I'm sticking with Linksys. Forget Netgear. Save the tylenol for a better headache.
Rating:
Summary: Do yourself a favor and get the Linksys WET11 instead...
Review: As with the other posters, I have little good to say about my experience with this device. I spent way too many hours trying to set this thing up. To no avail. How badly does the ME101 [stink]? Let me count the ways:
1) The instructions are terrible - and in my case they were plain wrong. I spent way too much time trying to access the bridge via the web console only to later discover that the enclosed instructions were OUTDATED. Sure enough, there on the Netgear site was an updated version of the user guide with a completely different set of information (specifically the defaul IP address was different). Gee, thanks Netgear.
2) I bought this device because I already have a Netgear wireless router. You'd like to think that they'd make the devices easy to use out of the box given the same make. Of course not -- the stupid IP address doesn't even conform to the standard Netgear router IP. Not a big deal, but it's little details like this that are so annoying.
3) Netgear's tech support. AWOL. The first night I tried to call these guys I got the phone tree of death. Had to go through 5-6 levels of menu to get to the right queue. By the time I did, I got a message saying my call is important to them, blah blah blah, followed by a prompt that indicated a 30 minute waiting period. 30 minutes later after Vivaldi's Four Seasons, I hear a ring. Yes - help is on the way! Only to hear my line be disconnected. I call back - now the voice says 40 minutes. I try again an hour later -- now we're at 80 minutes.
4) Second night of Netgear tech support I call back. After another 30 minute wait, the tech tells me I'm in teh wrong queue. Before I can respond, he transfers me - ring followed by nothing (I'm cut off AGAIN). So now I'm [ticked]. I call back yet again (glutton for punishment). After another interminable wait I get a live human. From the start he tells me that since I have a Mac I can't use the ME101, I need an ME102 OR, get this, I need to configure the ME101 with a Windows machine and THEN use it with my Mac. He then insists that I need "drivers" for the device which arent' compatible with the Mac and when I press him on why this information is not present in any of the user guide materials, he patronizingly tells me "you wouldn't understand". In any event, a short argument ensues in which I ask the tech if he's ever read the manual they've packaged with the unit, because everything he's tell me is constradicting the friggin manual. After hanging up on the guy, I later manage to access the web console which only furthers my assertion that Netgear tech support folk are morons (turns out I had to reset to the factory settings b/c for some reason the thing wasn't even set to the factory defaults to begin with!!!)
5) The range - the range on this thing stinks. I had it literally NEXT to the router and the signal strength was at 50%. 15 feet away? Nada...nothing. On top of that the unit couldn't even keep a consistent connection and kept dropping out. In any event, I bought a Linksys WET11 to boost my flagging spirit (and for the need to convince myself that I wasn't a moron). As with the other reviewer, the Linksys was easily configured, worked almost immediately and had great range. Let me end by saying I was in the local Fry's yesterday and noticed they had a bunch of ME101 boxes on display. On closer inspection I noticed that almost ALL of the boxes had been previously opened and then returned. A couple of them clearly had been returned not once, but MULTIPLE TIMES. All this tells me that I'm not the only that has had problems with this piece o' garbaggio. In the future, I'm sticking with Linksys. Forget Netgear. Save the tylenol for a better headache.
Rating:
Summary: BAD BAD BAD
Review: I also own a Netgear wireless router. Configuring ME101 to work with my Netgear router wasn't an issue. However, the wireless bridge only works for several hours and hang. Sometimes it only works for mintues. I've updated the firmware and it's not helping at all. It's a piece of crap.
Rating:
Summary: Happy-meal network hardware
Review: I am in total agreement with the poor reviews of the ME101. It is a clunker of a product. I returned it after a week of fiddling and well-meaning but useless support from Netgear's phone support temps. In my case, it would only work if WEP was disabled and I used static IP addresses on client PCs behind the bridge. If the ME101 was a product released into a older, well-established market, it would be recalled immediately. It is only because consumer wireless networking is relatively new that Netgear can get away with selling this junk with a straight face. The ME101 is not worth your money.
Rating: 
Summary: Over 450 feet with 49% signal strength
Review: I am using the me101 with a netgear bridge over 450 feet with a wall and several trees in between. We consistantly have %49 signal strength. I am very pleased with the performance. Hard to beat a 5dbi antenna right off the shelf.
Rating:
Summary: Flawless performance under the right conditions
Review: I bought the ME101 after hours of frustration with trying to get my Linux OSs to recognize the wireless network card already in my laptop. I've been using the ME101 bridge for a few weeks with 2 laptops running Windows XP and various Linux distributions, and I've also used it successfully with my Playstation 2.
So far the performance has been excellent, but only when the antenna is directly up in the air. If it's at a slight angle, the performance starts to degrade. The closer the antenna gets to the base, the worse the reception becomes. I have my wireless router on 1 floor and the bridge on another floor.
When setting up the bridge with my Netgear MR814 router's configuration, I added the MAC address of the bridge to my router's access list, which I knew I had to do, but I found out from reading reviews here that you also have to add the MAC address of the device *connected to* the ME101 (my thanks goes to the person who mentioned this). This is assuming you want to limit the MAC addresses that can connect to your wireless LAN. If you allow any and all devices to connect, then you don't need to worry about access control lists.
The configuration program included with the ME101 is simple to use assuming your wireless network is already configured correctly. I had to allow/enable broadcast of my SSID for the ME101 configuration program to detect the LAN, which I didn't really want to do.
Overall I've been very happy with this bridge and would recommend it to others. But if you don't know how to set up a wireless lan, read up on the subject first. The documentation included with the ME101 is VERY limited, and despite already having experience with my wireless LAN I had to do a bit of googling to get info on this bridge's setup.
Rating:
Summary: Great...if it would work more than a few hours
Review: I bought this little bridge to connect to my D-Link 614+ access point. During setup, it immediately found the D-Link and I was connected without issue. Unfortunately, this would only last for a random amount of time, usually a few hours, but could go for a day before disconnecting. The only solution was to power cycle the bridge. I returned it and bought a D-Link 900+ AP and it works flawlessly. My advice: Use the same vendor for all of your wireless equipment if you can. So far, if I don't, I usually have irritating problems like this.
Rating:
Summary: Not sure about all the fuss here
Review: I bought this product despite the negative reviews seen here. I also purchased a Netgear router at the same time. This product is a breeze to set up, just plug it in and go. I control access to my rounter via mac address screening, and had no problems setting that up. I have had absolutely no connection problems, this thing stays connected.
I highly reccomend this product-it's an affordable solution for sharing a network connection between computers, video game consoles, etc. Similar adapters exist for Video Game units specifically labeled for video game consoles but cost twice as much and are exactly the same product as this one.
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