Cisco-Linksys WET54G Wireless-G Ethernet Bridge
by Linksys
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List Price: Our Price: $69.99 You Save: $30.00 (30%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Buy Used: from $39.95 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cisco-Linksys WET54G Wireless-G Ethernet Bridge
Customer Review: The Bridge to Nowhere
Summary: 1 Stars
I spent about 6 hours trying to get this bridge to work and still was not successful.
The installation CD assumes that you have a Linksys default network, which my DSL router is not. So, the setup program cannot "find" the Bridge. I had to reconfigure my home network to access the IP address of the Bridge just to configure it. The online help at the Linksys website gave the typical useless information if the setup program could not find the Bridge; e.g., "disable firewalls".
After gaining access to the configuration page, I programmed in the wireless security configuration. The Bridge was never able to make a wireless connection to my DSL router. (My laptop has no problem.)
I disabled all security and the device locked up my router. All activity lights on the router lit up and connected computers gave warning messages that another device on the network had the same IP address. This lockup was repeatable.
I wanted to use this device to connect my satellite receiver wirelessly to the internet via my DSL router. I'll opt for a HomePlug solution and one NOT from Linksys.
Customer Review: Still a work in progress
Summary: 1 Stars
The setup of this access point is very straight forward and the web interface is fairly easy to use (although some advanced settings don't seem to be explained anywhere). However, the signal from this device seems to be very poor. If I put the access point next to the wireless router, I get around a 1.1Mbs transfer speed (same as my PCMCIA 54G card). At 15 feet (in direct sight), it drops down to between 500K-700Kbs. Put it around a corner (in my case, seven inches from being in direct sight) and you might as well give up. With a wall between the bridge and the router I would get about 6Kbs [six kilobits/second] (when it would work or not drop the line, etc). My PCMCIA card is still holding up at 800-900Kbs at this point. If you are not in direct sight and close to your router, you can expect your downloads to take tens of minutes rather than a handful of seconds. In all fairness, there could be something terribly wrong with my unit, but when I searched the web, I found similar complaints (other than here on Amazon). Also, we are running a G only network so the bridge cannot fall back to 802.11b speeds.Customer Review: This was easy to setup.
Summary: 5 Stars
I really don't get why so many people are complaining about how hard this bridge is to setup, I got it working in a couple of minutes. I am going to guess that the windows software that comes with it is must be really bad.
I have a rule on all networking products : If you can configure it over its web server do so ( telnet or ssh are good also ). I plugged it in hooked up the ethernet cable then used the static ip that was printed on the only printed manual that came with it ( 192.168.1.226 ). At that point I clicked on the site survey and picked the network, if it is a secure network you have to enter a passphrase/key and you are done. Most linksys web interfaces are pretty simple.
There is WPA support but only TKIP encryption ( no AES ). From what I read before I bought this, the only way to access WPA settings is over its web iterface.
I run a mixed network with windows, linux, and game consoles, so this was a great solution. I even plugged my WET54G into the lan port on my WRT54G ( changed its subnet ) and then hooked my machines into it and it all works great.
Customer Review: Hack your own!
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had this product up and running connecting my DVR to the internet without running wires all over my house. This
product does work as stated but, If I had known then what I know now I would of saved about sixty dollars or so by
ordering the linksys wrt54g router and downloading DD-WRT firmware and wala after about 5 minutes, you'll have a
four port bridge for a fraction of the cost, so simple a cave man can do it! Linksys won't tell you this, Amazon wont tell you this, so I will. You don't need a masters degree in computer science. The firware download is free!
all you need as about 10 minutes of your time, Manually insert the SSID and WPA key and Channel your current router
is using and the router will do the rest, Tested this with my xbox 360 and and it thinks its hard wired to the Internet! Yes you can run up to four different wired devices off your new router converted to a wireless bridge.
you can purchase a wrt54g router off of amazon for about 25-30 dollars, or you could purchase a 5 port linksys bridge for about 160.00 or a single port for about 90.00.
Customer Review: So Easy to Use
Summary: 5 Stars
I have a PC running linux which I wanted to connect to my wireless home network. I tried using a USB adapter but because there is no available driver for linux I could not get it to work. So I ordered this ethernet bridge hoping that it will work since in the description say "no drivers needed." When I got the unit I followed the instructions on the quick set-up guide ( I used a windows laptop ). Then I connected it to my linux PC. It started working as soon as the PC had boot-up. It was the easiest set up I ever experienced. I hope manufacturers make more stuff that are as easy to set-up as this one. I am not a techie yet I had no problem at all. Another plus is that now I have another PC connected to it using a hub, (maybe this is why the manufactorers do not want you to know about this, so they could sell more of those USB adapters where you could only hook up only one PC or laptop) and I get better speeds than with the other PC's at home connected through a USB adapter! I am planning to buy another one of these great item!