Linksys WRT54G 54 Mbps 4-Port 10/100 Wireless G Router (WRT54G-EU)

Leave it to Cisco to make a secure, fast, durable and easy to install router. Ours came across country very poorly packaged but survived without a scratch. It was just tossed in a box & literally rode on top of the power supply naked. The setup disk lets you install the router and set up a secure, encrypted, wireless network in less than 20 minutes. Be sure to get the complete package not just the router alone (router, power supply, Ethernet patch cable and installation disk). While not the latest greatest fastest router available, it is certainly more than capable of supplying all the security and speed required to run an internet heavy business LAN/WAN connection. This router is one of the best values on the market. Cisco's world renowned reliability, security & speed at an affordable price for any home based business up to a medium sized business LAN. You won't believe you can get this kind of commercial computing power in your home without refinancing your car.

First of all, lets be clear. This is 'old school', using the so called 'G' band for wireless. If you have newer computers whose wireless cards can handle 'N' band, then there are probably better (or at least faster) choices out there. For people like me, who have predominantly 'G' band wireless computers, this is pretty much the 'gold standard'.

From everything I read, the WRT54G was pretty much the Rolls Royce of G wireless routers. Not only was it a good, reliable, functional unit in its own right, but was set up in a way which just begged to be 'enhanced' by aftermarket people. So the choice was not whether to get the WRT54G, but what WRT54G to get. There were 8 of them, plus a couple of offshoots.

At first, I assumed that the latest (version 8) would be the best (I did not consider the offshoots, because they did not have external antennas). Not so, or at least not so for my uses. It is claimed that version 8 removed the antenna connectors and just run a wire up inside 'fake' antennas on the the back. From my ham radio days, I know that many transmission (and reception) problems can be corrected by using better antennas or different antenna placement, so removable antennas was a 'must have'. Version 7, right? No, apparently in version 5 they cut the memory in half, resulting in less special programming being able to be loaded. Thus I settled on version 4.

As a standard 4 port ethernet router with wireless, it works quite well indeed. Easy to set up, the manual and software is available for download, and setup is pretty self explanatory anyway. It supports much more secure encryption than 'WEP'. And so far it has worked very well.

This particular unit actually consists of 3 separate elements, the router, the enhanced antenna, and the enhanced 'code'. We've discussed the router, next is the antenna. This is a '7dbi' antenna, which means that it is much more effective than the stock antenna (which would be '0dbi'). Since I don't have the stock antenna, I can't compare them, but this one looks good and works quite well. With my old DSL transmitter, I could just barely get from one end of the house to the other, but with this one, the far end of the house gets a full strength signal.

The final aspect is the 'DD-WRT' code. This is a replacement for the factory 'firmware' or 'microcode', which allows the option of enhanced functions to be provided. One source claims it provides the network with 'intelligence'. The function I was most interested in was 'QoS' (Quality of Service) which can ensure that all users can get a specified percentage of the bandwidth, so that one user does not hog all the bandwidth (unless it is set up to allow that).

There are a number of other functions available, such as setting it up to act as a 'repeater' or as a 'wired distribution router' (basically a wired network which has a wireless segment in it). And dozens of other functions, many of which are just a meaningless (to me) sequence of letters.

The version of DD-WRT in this unit was a little down level, with a known security hole and a serious problem in the QoS function, but I'm sure I can download the latest code to correct these.

DD-WRT does not appear to have a 'manual' but rather a 'wiki'. This seems to be great if you know what function you want to do, but may not be the most effective methodology to figure out which functions to use.

All in all, I doubt there is any product which would suit my needs better.

This is an easy to use router (if there is such a thing). The default configuration will work for most home applications. The only thing a person should (but does not have to) do is name their router (SSDI) and change the default channel. This is easy to do once connected to the router. Since Linksys has chosen to use a standard IP address for the units it is easy to configure with your internet browser. Also if you get the unit used, a simple "reset" will clear the unit back to it's default configuration so no password hassles.
This is a wireless "G" unit with four (4) 10/100 ethernet ports. This gives a max link speed of 54 Mbits (wireless) and 100 Mbits (direct connect). This works for most home and small business applications (except video streaming).
That's it. If you don't have wifi or are using a wireless A or A/B, I suggest you get one it is a great upgrade.
Thanks for your time. TEM

This router works great as a wireless repeater/bridge in my entertainment center. Use the instructions found @ http://www.dd-wrt.com to flash the firmware and set things up.

More settings, control, and power compared to stock Linksys/Cisco firmware.

Very easy to configure and use the access point. Linksys WRT54G Wireless Router I was attracted by the fact that in addition to easy setup WiFi lets you connect via an additional port is usually a network. Good product for use in small office, and just a great product for the home. Very convenient access point that can also work as a repeater. Configuration interface has a number of languages, which still makes its setting.