Cisco-Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster
by Linksys
Our Price: $159.00
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $14.95 (click here)
Category: CE
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Digital Photo Product Details
Manufacturer: LinksysAudio: English (Original Language)
Format: CD
Platform: Windows
Model: WRT54GS
Color: blue/black
Product features:
- Warranty - 3 years
- Standards - IEEE 802.3, IEEE 802.3u, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11b
- Ports - One 10/100 RJ-45 Port, Four 10/100 RJ-45 Switched Ports
- Button - Power Port, Reset Button
- Cabling Type - UTP CAT 5
- Windows Live OneCare 2.0 (Up to 3 Users)
- Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition with Service Pack 2 - Full Version
- AmazonBasics RJ45 Cat5e Ethernet Patch Cable (50 Feet/15.2 Meters)
- Adobe Photoshop Elements 9 (Win/Mac) [OLD VERSION]
- Microsoft Office Home and Business 2010 (Disc Version)
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Cisco-Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster
Customer Review: G-Force
Summary: 5 Stars
[Personally I paid a little extra to own the Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster model] I used to be hard-line only. I had a very nice Belkin 4-Port Cable/DSL Router that was cheap and fully universally compliant as a 10/100BT Ethernet Router (even supported Australian Bigpond settings in the internal software). It was the backbone of my home network. I also kept in the back of my mind that it was quite possible to add a wireless AP (access point) later if I wanted to go wireless. Sunny days are the reason why I just had to get outdoors with my laptop. When that wireless time came I decided to go with Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router. I was hoping to have 2 network routers, but the research showed that this was not recommended and to go Router + Switches + AP instead. The bottom line here is that although I planned on keeping the Belkin, making the Linksys a wireless AP, the Linksys ended up replacing the Belkin which is now sitting back inside its box again. Having an all-in-one wireless router/switch means everything in one box serving your broadband to any wired or wireless machine on your network. The Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router does not make your network limited to wireless-only devices because the router is built with Ethernet Out connections at the back. Now before you consider buying this router you need to make sure that you have an ADSL modem which absolutely must have an Ethernet connection (sign of a good brand) with USB optional, or without USB. What you do not want is USB-only. If you end up with a USB-only ADSL modem, throw it out, or return it. Just get rid of it. Your ADSL modem with Ethernet out is connected to the WAN Ethernet port of the router. The router then shares your internet Ethernet out to devices on the network and wireless out to devices on the network. If the router is using all of its four Ethernet ports and you need more, then you need to also buy a switch with this router. So again if you are serving to more than four machines via Ethernet then you need a switch. For 8 Ethernet out you can buy an Linksys EZXS88W EtherFast 10/100 8-Port Workgroup Switch or for more ports, such as 16, the Linksys EZXS16W EtherFast 10/100 16-Port Workgroup Switch. The switch is basically an Ethernet port splitter. It uses one Ethernet port of the router and gives you more. For big internet cafes you can keep adding switches so that the network connection looks something like adsl line->adsl modem->router->switch->switch->switch etc. The installation of the Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router was a piece of cake. Before you install it you should get your internet up and running first of all by going directly from the ADSL modem to your PC. Use the information the ISP gave you and try to create a working DHCP type connection. If your ISP can use DHCP then a lot of things become automatic and very easy to setup. You might need information on primary and secondary DNS settings if your ISP has them, ask for them and write them down. Once you have established an internet connections from your ADSL modem to your PC, then it is time to install the router, not before. Never install a router on a system that does not have the modem setup first. You are just begging for problems. If you cant get a working modem with internet connectivity then you are just going to exacerbate the issue by adding in a router. The Linksys WRT54G Wireless-G Router has a straightforward installation program. When you open the box the device has stickers on it and warnings about what you should read first. The installation process involved starting up the CD first, unplugging the Ethernet connection from the ADSL modem to the PC and putting it into the WAN port of the router, completing some tasks on the CD Software, assigning DHCP (makes it very easy), setting up security, writing down and printing out a wireless 128-bit encryption key, running Ethernet out from the router to the PC ( or more than one PC), turning wireless on, plugging in the Router, having Internet on all wired machines working, turn on notebook, detect wireless router, use encryption key, change Workgroup name on notebook, full Internet plus file sharing on network. Sometimes you need update the driver of Wireless NIC on your PC if you want to use WPA2 wireless security. Next up is the big test. Could I actually use my internet outdoors? I took my notebook outside and down the end of the garden approximately 35 feet (10 meters) to a 2 foot concrete house wall and window where there is a room 12 feet (4 meters) to a door, panel walls, and another 12 feet (4 meters) to the router. During the day, depending on weather conditions, my signal will read very strong to low, but never gone. It is my understanding however that this router can not penetrate all types of barriers like lead or metal walls. So unless you have this router inside a vault, you are going to be pretty much not just serving your internet all around your home, but to other homes also and probably places where you didn't think you would be serving at all. This is where you need to think strongly about making sure you activate some form of encryption on setup (don't skip it) and also change the name of your router and password. Make sure to keep the password or else you are locked out of your own router. The big bonus is that you can turn off wireless and still have a wired router with internet. The router has all the standard software functions that come with most routers. If anything new appears, the router has an easy firmware update function. Now if you really want to just add this router as an AP on your network, and not a router, just connect the LAN of the wireless router to the LAN of the hardwired router and do not use the WAN of the wireless router. Disable DHCP on the wireless router and make sure that you set up a non-conflicting IP address for the router. This should turn the wireless router into a wireless access point. There are software settings in the router to help prevent various malicious attacks. I have never had any spam ads or anything like that from this router. It does have two little shortcomings though. The power cord is about 3 feet (1 meter), a little short, so you might need to buy another power adaptor. It also has no off switch. I do not think this is for security reasons. You can unplug it at the rear just as easily. Apart from these two little problems this is a very cool piece of equipment. I would highly recommend it. Celebrate your new Wireless 54 Mbs!
Some notes on security: Use WPA2 Encryption (either WPA2 personal or WPA2 enterprise). If you have trouble connecting to a WPA2 wireless network then you probably need to update your wireless network card drivers. For WPA ALGORITHMS use TKIP+AES. In setting use Wireless MAC filter - enable and permit only. Update MAC list for Wireless devices. For your wireless MAC address Windows users should open Command Prompt and type ipconfig -all and the MAC address is the physical address on the wireless network adaptor. After you do this make sure that Wireless SSID Broadcast is DISABLED.
Description of Cisco-Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster
The Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster is really three devices in one box. First, theres the Wireless Access Point, which lets you connect Wireless-G, Wireless-B, and other performance-enhanced SpeedBooster devices to the network. Theres also a built-in 4-port full-duplex 10/100 Switch to connect your wired-Ethernet devices together. Finally, the Router function ties it all together and lets your whole network share a high-speed cable or DSL Internet connection. The Wireless-G Broadband Router with SpeedBooster incorporates the next generation of Wireless-G (802.11g) networking. SpeedBooster technology is a compatible add-on to standard Wireless-G, which increases real-world wireless network performance by up to 35. Unlike other speed-enhancing technologies, SpeedBooster is fully 802.11 compliant, and a good neighbor to other wireless devices and technologies, using a single 2.4GHz channel as specified by the official wireless standard. And, unlike other technologies, with SpeedBooster youll see an overall speed improvement even when running a mixed network of SpeedBooster and regular Wireless-G devices.Digital Cameras & Photo Categories
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