Cisco-Linksys WRT350N Wireless-N Gigabit Router with Storage Link
by Linksys
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List Price: Our Price: $125.00 You Save: $108.66 (47%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cisco-Linksys WRT350N Wireless-N Gigabit Router with Storage Link
Customer Review: Drops signal, loses ISP connection
Summary: 1 Stars
My intentions when purchasing this router was to upgrade my junk wireless G router from Radio Shack and get increased range and speed with the N signal. I was let down by Linksys right from the start. As soon as I opened the box I noticed the large antennas and was excited to see how much range I could get out of this router. I set up the router in place of my wired Linksys BEFSR, hoping this router would replace my whole network nightmare. I attempted to run the install cd that came with the router, the EasyLink. It failed, several times. Finally I decided to just manually set up the router, which worked, for about a day. When I moved about my house I noticed no difference between my internal G wireless adapter on my laptop, and my shiny new wireless N PCI card. Bummer. As with the signal, I noticed NO increase in wireless speed between laptops as well as my Xbox 360. Bummer, again. I decided to keep the router because it was Linksys. I figuered it had to be better than my junk Radio Shack router. Well, once again, bummer. The router was stable, for the first 24 hours. After that, the router would drop wireless signal and require a restart of the router. Once I called Linksys and dealt with their tech support for 3 hours, they decided the problem was the IP address of the router. WHAT?! Their solution to my problem was to change the router from 192.168.1.1 to 192.168.2.1 Wow! It worked. My router stays stable, but now it loses connection with my ISP. Having it Release and Renew does nothing. The only way to fix the problem is to restart the ENTIRE network. I have not tried the USB storage device, as I cannot get the router to work for basic internet activity for longer than 48 hours. I have called tech support several times, and each time there is nothing they can do. The firmware has been changed by Linksys' request several times. I've even gone as far as having my ISP replace my modem 3 times, each time the results are the same. Unfortunately I did not use Amazon to purchase the router, and the retailer where I purchased this router will not take it back.
The result is I now have a very expensive wired router, with the old BEFSR picking up some slack as an access point working in parallel to feed the 6 connections in the house. Running everything with wires, the router works great. I have to reboot the whole network once every 6 months, as the high network traffic eventually gets the best of the router.
If you want a router that drops signal when it feels necessary, or want to talk to a tech support person, then this router is for you. If you want something reliable with great support, choose a different router or company all together.
Customer Review: Worst router I've ever owned.
Summary: 1 Stars
The WRT350N is about the 10th router I've owned and the 8th Linksys brand. I purchased it to get Wireless-N draft 2.0 as I upgrade all my wireless devices slowly to Wireless-N. I live in an apartment where about 8 or so other wireless networks will pop up on my list when searching.
I've had the classic WRT54G which is a classic, bulletproof, and totally reliable. It worked well in my environment full of competing routers. I wanted to go to N level, though, to get the higher throughput and better range. I'm sorry I chose to go with this WRT350N model.
Even with the latest firmware installed (1.03.7 9/27/2007), this router is garbage. It drops the wireless connection about once every 5-10 minutes (though sometimes can go an hour without doing so). It spontaneously resets itself about 4 times per day (almost as if I had power cycled it), so even my wired connections get dropped regularly.
The "Storage Link" is a joke. The router is so unstable that if you try to copy a file larger than a couple of megabytes, it'll drop the whole connection/drive mapping. I lost the ability to map to the USB hard drive plugged in the back for a good week once b/c the router mysteriously didn't want to cooperate.
I've tried everything I can think of. I updated to the latest firmware, which seemed to make everything worse. I slowed the connection down to Wireless-G (802.11g) connection only, and it still dropped connections just as frequently. I've done a complete reset several times, to no avail.
I should have known it was going to be a problem when I first tried to run the installation software that came with it. Normally, on most routers, you can set them up simply by opening up your internet browser and typing in the default IP address of the router (Linksys is usually 192.168.1.1, password admin, no user name). Well, this unit refused to work even when set up properly this way, so I had to go through the pain of installing the included software (which, by the way, is also poorly thought out and nearly impossible to use). Then it magically started to work. Well, sort of (see above).
It gets one star because, frankly, Amazon doesn't allow you to give negative stars. It'll make a fine doorstop, though.
Customer Review: Flashing the POS commonly known as the WRT350N
Summary: 1 Stars
Since this router came out I have found myself flashing more and more of them. People are fed up with the constant unstable connections, and constant default setting resets needed to keep this thing going. I myself have one and will soon be selling it to my friend to get a new router.
I have had problems with it dropping my connections usually every 10-15 minutes. I too voided the warranty on this product by flashing it to use "DD-WRT" (WARNING: flashing your router WILL void your warranty and Linksys will not give any support once they find out you have done it. So do it at your own descretion. You will also lose the ability to use the network USB storage feature.)
Once i installed DD-WRT mini on the router it restarted and yes everything seemed just fine. Next i upgraded DD-WRT mini to DD-WRT v.24 and uh oh... No access to the web GUI to edit the settings. Simple work around... NO I DID NOT BRICK the router. Anyways... i used TELNET to connect to the router using the standard login: ROOT and password: ADMIN and TURNED ON web GUI access by entering the following command "httpd -h /www" (This seems to happen every now and then when i am installing it on a new router for the first time.) If you cant TELNET into it try SSH using "PuTTy".
For all the info you need and more or access to download the files used above just google the UPPERCASE words above ;)
In the end... after flashing it you may have voided the warranty but i guarantee you will have a MUCH BETTER router in the end. DO NOT ATTEMPT FLASHING IF YOU ARE NOT TECHY!!! TAKE IT TO A TECH TO HAVE IT DONE. If you dont know anyone then take it to GEEK SQUAD or FIREDOG and bring the disks with the files for DDWRT and have them do it... (but no clue what they may charge for it... nor guarantee that the techs there will even accept the job since it voids product warranty. GOODLUCK)
Video of another guy who did what i do on a weekly basis:
[...]
What i usually charge people is around [...] (The price changes depending on how far i have to travel to do the work... with gas prices so high these days i might need to start charging [...] just to make the trips worth it.)
Customer Review: Complete Dissatisfaction
Summary: 1 Stars
I am writing this review because of my COMPLETE DISSATISFACTION with Linksys's customer service. (and the fact that the router doesn't work)
I spent over 2 hours on the phone with 2 different technicians plus an additional 1 hour on the phone with Verizon.
After all of this we were not able to get the Linksys router working. I could connect to the internet but no matter which way we configured the DSL modem and router the Linksys will not work.
The Linksys did work for about a week then suddenly stopped working and we starting having this problem.
It was determined that a new router should be sent. A Linksys technical rep. contacted a supervisor and got the replacement approved. The tech. rep told me to call customer service the following day when they open and request a replacement.
I did that but was told by customer service rep. that the replacement wasn't authorized. They wanted me to continue to troubleshoot which I refuse to do. After 3 hours of troubleshooting I feel that I did my job as a customer and it is time that they did their job. They offered to call the store and try to get it replaced. They told me that Linksys wouldn't replace the router but I would have to go back to the store with it.
Then another customer service representative called me back and told me that they can't contact the store with the information that I supplied, (which I got off my VISA bill), I bought the router on line from Circuit City. I am feed up with Linksys and just wanted a replacement router sent. But Linksys feels that 3 hours of my time on a Sunday afternoon is not good enough for a replacement.
I will be sending this piece of electronic plastic back to circuit city and purchasing another router from another manufacturer. I will NEVER purchase a Linksys product again.
A VERY UNHAPPY FORMER CUSTOMER
Customer Review: Storage Link is not ready for prime time.
Summary: 3 Stars
This router has a nice setup process. It appears to have better range, especially from one floor of my home to the next. And I'm seeing excellent transfer rates across gigabyte NICs that are wired directly to the router.
But it hardly makes up for two big issues: First, the Storage Link is not ready from prime time. Yes, there are some users that understand routers, group policies, and all of the other settings required to make this thing work. Mapping a Network drive is not beyond all users. Linksys does a lousy job describing how to setup and use this feature.
Yes, I read the manual. Yes, I surfed several forums for tips. And, yes, I did finally get it to connect. But the hassle factor is really high. And, for some reason the process to reconnect to the mapped drive is problematic. Eventually I unplugged the USB drive and returned it to its' base computer. I wanted a single repository of music and images, but Storage Link does not appear to be the solution.
A second issue is the preference for "wireless" connections. Where my wireless devices connected without a problem, I am still working to configure wired devices and my ethernet/network enabled printer. The setup wizard that makes everything seem so smooth and easy - also hides the ability to manually intervene. Renaming workgroups, users and computers is not my idea of a fun time.
I gave this router a 3-star rating based on the basic speed improvements (within my LAN) and simple wireless setup. You can find other products, even from Linksys, for $50-$60 less that will give you most of the same functionality, speed and range. If they would let someone dedicate a few hours to improve the User Manual this product could be a real winner.