Networking & wireless forum: Wireless G - Linksys vs Netgear vs DLink

Tech support is OK. Wireless performance is the same as competing products from Linksys & NetGear. General experience is good. The part that won me over was the detailed firewall logs. It was also nice to have some basic cable/ ping test utilities built in.

Linksys & NetGear products have one advantage - wireless MAC address filtering. DLink has MAC address filtering, but you can not specifically control access for WLAN clients. Also, NetGear appears to be the only brand that offers 256-bit WEP security in their routers.

Always remember to implement some form of wireless security. It is a necessary pain/ evil.

Ben, your entry piqued my interest since I am about to spring for all the hardware to make a wireless network work hopefully over 250' or so between my home and workshop.

When you say you now have great range what distance are you talking?

Thanks for any help, I want to spend my money wisely!...Joe W...

I have a linksys wireless G router, which is great! I can use my laptop form 2 floors up. It requires just a lil configuring, but otherwise a great product.

On the Netgear 108 mbps wireless router I'm considering for purchase, I did not find the designation you're talking about, or am I just not finding it? The one I'm pricing is labeled a "storage router." Is that dfferent? Can I use it as I intend to or not? (Please see my post above titled "Help: My dog ate...") THANKS.

allows one to store files on it from the home computer and then retrieve those files remotely from the web when away from home. I got on the Netgear page and finally found this info. Anyway, since that is not anything I would ever need to do, and since I also read that this unit (the storage router) gets pretty hot, I've decided against it after all. As I have researched further, I'm not convinced it is a good idea for me to get a router and use the card I already have with it and fret about how they work together when I can get a set ("kit") comprised of router and card that is made to work together. There's also a current sale offering a $40 rebate, so I think I'm going with a Netgear kit = the WGTB511T (which also supposedly reaches 108 mbps when in "turbo mode" whatever that is.) Thanks for your input.

I have read all the posts and am still confused as to
which one to buy.
I have read though that Linksys have upgraded the firmware to v. 3.1 and
it has a one touch buttton SES to configure the router. Has anyone out
there used this new Linksys WRT 54g with SES?
Its the configuring part that has stopped me so far in buying a wireless
router.

I have a US Robotics router connected to a satellite modem with 1 wired connection, 1 desktop wireless connection and a laptop wireless connection.

The setup was extremely simple, speed is 125mbps and the only problem I have is the satellite connection. I have never had to call for technical support as the network works flawlessly. I am only working on one floor with a maximum distance of 50 feet.

The USRobotics pcmcia card in my laptop also functions flawlessly with every other WiFi network I have encountered at motels across the country.

If you have multiple computers, and routinely copy very large files between them, then 802.11g is probably a good investment.

It's important to keep in mind, however, that if you're only using it to access the internet, chances are your internet connection is going to be slow enough that you won't notice a difference between B and G.

From my experience, if you don't absolutely need G, disabling it and sticking with B often results in a more reliable connection (and a cheaper one if you just buy B equipment).

I use B at home (for reliability and range). I rarely need to copy large files between my desktop and my laptop, and when I do, my laptop is usually in its dock, where it has a wired connection.

As for brands... I do think it matters. I've found Linksys acceptable for home use, but for offices (or serious home users with multiple computers) I've found that the configuration options offered on many of the Linksys routers leave something to be desired, especially if you have 3 or 4 different computers that you want to be able to access via Remote Desktop while you are out. I'm also not to keen on the way the antennas are connected to the Linksys PCI cards... they screw on, but the connector they screw on to is just press-fit into the card, and pulls right out with even a tiny bit of leverage (and the antenna provides quite a bit of leverage).

My best experience to date has been with D-Link equipment. I'm using a DI-614+ (802.11b) at home, and I recently set up an office with the 802.11g equivalent. So far I have never had any problems, and I am happy with the configuration options that the D-Link firmware supports.

One thing I will say, however, is regardless of what brand you purchase, the firmware on almost all of them is out of date right out of the box, so the first thing you should do is get on-line and update the firmware.

Also, it's a good idea to back up the settings after you get the wireless router configured -- I know a number of people who lost the password and had to reset their router, which not only resets the password but also all of the settings. It's handy to have a backup file on hand that you can restore, so you don't have to re-do all of the settings if you have to reset the router.

Hope this helps!

If range is your issue, there is one thing you MUST look for - an antenna that you can unscrew and replace with something bigger and better. These are not as common as one would hope, though. I know Hawking routers use them. (Hawking also makes good high-gain antennas.)

I've got a pretty large collection of wireless routers - Belkin, Netgear, Motorola, Hawking - and they are all pretty much the same. Move 2 or 3 rooms away from the router, and you start to have trouble with the signal. But put a high-gain desktop antenna on the Hawking, and those troubles are over.

One thing you might look into, since you have so many computers, is a bridge (I posted this question on CNET a while back). Belkin's G and G-plus routers/access points are cheap, and they have a simple, built-in bridging function (using 2 Belkin products), allowing you to wirelessly bridge 2 wired networks together. For some reason known only to marketers, buying two routers is often cheaper than buying one "gaming adapter" (bridge) that would do the same thing.

I have the G 108 wireless router and desktop adapters...and I think you should go for the 108 mpbs, I think you will need it..I have 3 computers and sometimes the one at the far end of the house can get a weak signal, but then if it were moved closer to the door it would probably have a better signal...This doesnt happen all the time, just occasionally, but still I would suggest the 108mbps...By the way, mine is a dlink..G108...

Whether you choose Linksys, Netgear or any other brand, the best advice is to buy both the router and the adapter from the same brand and series.

Also on my opinion I shall go with Linksys or Netgear, I have a Linksys router at home and It's awesome, eventhough I've heard that Netgear has an slightly better signal so that can be seen as farther range.

So choose the flavor brand you like the most but if you really want long range try using a G router with replaceable anntenas and replace 1 of the original antennas with an external omni-directional, that would increase a lot the signal reach.

Also check other brands even as someone mentioned in here i've heard that Hawking sells adapters and routers that can beat any other brand on long distances.
http://www.hawkingtech.com/products/index.php

Hopes that this might help.

Regards
Jorge R.
Mexico City

Lots of answers in this forum. Friendly tip: you will have better results if you create a new discussion, rather than burying it within an old one.

BTW, congratulations on the new notebook!

Netgear or Bellsouth,HERE http://help.bellsouth.net/bellsouth/asp/contentview.asp?fromshortcut=true&sprt_cid=4e6a9b2d-0b7b-4a12-94c6-5e8c583aba24&sprt_version=13&sprt_ct=7b21698e-dfa0-468b-9ec2-e3d59b543e1f&sprt_fid=af7f3f6c-aa20-4e6e-9aef-3ae1565412cf&sprt_status=pu&sprt_keywords=Powerline%20Networking,%20Power%20Line,%20Powerline&sprt_desc=Powerline%20networking%20uses%20the%20existing%20electrical%20wires%20of%20a%20home%20or%20building%20as%20the%20means%20to%20network%20DSL%20and%20computers.&sprt_owner=mjones&sprt_author=lcarlock&sprt_exptype=none&sprt_lang=en&sprt_retired=0&sprt_audience=uk&sprt_uinfo_inserted=true&sprt_qsession=7da2a605-0f79-449e-9fb2-23e9a0efc6e3&sprt_lastmod=2005-10-07T03:19:53.117+00:00&sprt_dispstatus=Published&sprt_dispct=How%20To&sprt_ctattr=0

i have worked with both Linksys and Netgear routers.
honestly, they both work the same.
i really don't see or notice any performance differences.

but if you get either brand, make sure the wireless router and wireless card are the same brand.

i have a 3 computers in my house.

i have a netgear firewall router, on my laptop, i have linksys wireless card

for some reason, when i use wep encryption, the laptop can connect to the access point, but can connect to the internet, so i have to turn off the encryption.

but i use acl to prevent my neighbors jumping on my wireless network.

as far as is if 108mpbs is neccessary, it's not neccessary neccessary, but if you like speed and don't like waiting, then you should got with the G router.

Linksys is probably the best brand, but will also probably cost the most as compared to routers from the other brands with similar feature sets.

Also, from my experiences and the experiences of many I've talked to and read about, DLink routers appear to have some unresolved issues with stability -- nothing major, but the little bumps and burps you start to notice in them over time start to get annoying after a while. However, the flip side is that they also usually sell for less than their Linksys counterparts -- so at the end of the day, I guess you get what you pay for.

As for the N-type network, let's first remember that the N specification has not yet been completed by IEEE and the N routers are actually N-draft, meaning the final specification is subject to change, and if it changes enough, it could render the draft-spec routers obsolete. Also, its my understanding that unless you transfer large amounts of information over a short range (we're talking gigabytes at a time within line of sight to maybe 50 feet), you really don't notice much of an improvement between an N connection and a G connection. The bottom line: if you have to ask why go N, you don't need it. The G network will do fine.