Home > Consumer Reviews > Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router

The router as a basic platform for browsing the web and recieving email works allright. If thats all you want to do and you want both the wireless and hardwired abilities in one package.. this is an acceptable product.

Its hardware offers pretty much every feature you could imagine would be packaged into a device like this save one, which is QoS (quality of serivce) i.e. the ability to limit specific users to specific speeds.. but as this is not found in any comparable competitors products its not a big loss...

The problem comes in with their firmware. To put it simply you could consider this device to be in beta testing at the firmware level... at BEST

While the problems won't be seen with simple mail, web and messaging software.. it gets alot stickier with persistent connections... i.e. chatrooms, conferencing, and games. If the wireless module is enabled, it will 'hang' roughly 2-3 seconds after each minute. It only does this when wireless is active. Its a firmware issue dealing with the searching for new clients that they haven't ironed out (and who knows if they ever will, its already been through 12 firmware revisions)

similarly, the current firmware lacks the ability to set the MTU (packet size) which again while it won't interfere with your email will cause a game to crash out eventually as the packet size is nonstandard (i.e. not 1500) and eventually persistant connections will die with packet fragmentation. Again their customer support acknowledges this is a problem with their firmware but cannot say when it will be fixed.

In the end, on their customer support's own reccomendation, i had to take the device back and am using their normal 4 port router (no problems) with their seperate wireless access point (no problems)... its a shame they can't get their act together and successfully combine two of their own products into one box

I purchased the Linksys router (V2) along with the WPC11 card (V3) just last week, and am pleased to report that both are running exceptionally well, especially considering that I live in NYC. Many negative reviews have been posted about this suite of products, and perhaps some are valid, but most are backlash from earlier versions of each component working (or not) with each other. Linksys seems to operate on the belief that getting a product out into the marketplace with a few kinks is better than getting it out there perfectly (and therefore with a significant time delay to market), and I respect that rationale (think of how many service pack updates you've had to do with any of your Windows operating systems over the years! ) Below describes my experience thus far with this suite of products; your experience will likely be different if you have a different OS, have lots of 2.4GHz phones in your house, your house is make mostly of steel, etc. But we'll get to that....

BACKGROUND:
Those of you who are looking to get into the wonderful world of wireless networking should freshen up on the good, the bad, and the ugly of what the 802.11 standards are. A good resource is 80211-planet. This site has several articles (search for "Jim Geier" or "Minimizing 802.11 Interference Issues") to help explain why you can potentially expect interference depending on the location and conditions around either your router or your network card. Bottom line = there are many variables that can affect performance of any 802.11 product, but you won't know unless you dive in and give it a go.

INSTALLATION:
I'm running a Thinkpad T21 laptop with W2K, and have RoadRunner for cable modem service (Toshiba modem). I popped open the box for the Linksys router, briefly skimmed through the long booklet directions, and then carefully followed each step of the 1-pager quick-installation instructions. The router connected to the cable modem without a hitch (note that RoadRunner uses DHCP...what's DHCP you ask? Go to webopedia and do a search on DHCP for details). Please note that I used all of the default settings. Time to connect cable modem to router and router to laptop = 11 minutes.

I then popped open the box for the network card, and again followed the directions line-by-line on the quick instruction sheet that came supplied with the card. Once again, I used all of the default settings, and lo and behold, the card began communicating with the router without a hitch. Time to connect the card to the laptop and the now 'networked' laptop to the router = 7 minutes (including software installation).

PERFORMANCE:
I live in a duplex in lower Manhattan, and so at first I was skeptical in light of the reviews I had read before about performance relative to distance from the router, etc. However, I am able to move anywhere on either floor and get a consistently good signal (the router is upstairs and I'm writing this downstairs, whilst streaming music...no lags). I have downloaded hundreds of MBs worth of data thus far without any problems, streamed music and videos, emailed, surfed the web, uploaded files, etc. I've connected another wired computer to the router and it connected without a hitch (again, make sure you're familiar with DHCP...makes things a lot easier). The signal did fade to a whisper when I went outside, but I'm not entirely surprised, given that the router was 3 floors away, and trying to communicate through several walls of brick, wood, and steel. I'll probably toy with the position of the router in the house to see if I can boost my response outside. I haven't tried a network game yet, but then again, I'm not using the laptop for that purpose. I also haven't attempted to update the firmware of the card (as it prompts me ever so often to do) yet, as it is working now. Instead, I have placed an email to Linksys for their recommendation, and will post an update to this review when I have an answer.

RECOMMENDATIONS:
If you're ready for the wireless world, the Linksys set of products work very well, especially now that they (and Amazon) ship the latest version of each. Some helpful tips:
- Don't install the router next to a 2.4GHz phone or a microwave
- Placement and positioning of the router and antenna are key. Just as Rome wasn't built in a day, getting your wireless network up and running smoothly may take a bit of fine-tuning.
- If you find unbearable interference, change the channels. Just like on your portable phone, you can potentially see dramatic improvement.
- Make sure you have an extra CAT5 cable around for the installation. You'll need one to connect your DSL/cable modem to the router and then another to initially connect the router to your computer.
- Tinkering can get you into trouble! If you don't know what a configuration is, then don't tinker with it...a classic way to burn your fingers on the hot stove of curiosity.
- READ THE DIRECTIONS! Following each step slowly but surely in the short-run can significantly reduce your headaches in the long-run.

If you've done your research, you should know by now that no 802.11 product is a panacea for every possible wireless situation. It simply may not work for your home or office, given the variables in play. But like the intrepid explorers who found the new world, you too can find happiness--and new working freedom--with a wireless network....

For home networks, this wireless router is unparalelled. Linksys overall makes decent "prosumer" products for the home (when compared to NetGear or D-Link products, Linksys is much more reliable and easier to configure.) I read many of the reviews on here before I decided to write one myself. I do not understand alot of the trouble that people are having with this router.

I almost exclusively use linksys equipment. I have found it to be the easiest and the most reliable to set up. If you are using this product, you will not need a router/bridge as one is built in.

I recommend that you connect it to the linksys adsl/cable modem/router for maximum ease in administration and compatability. Otherwise, the WAN out of your ADSL or Cable box to the WAN in on your wireless is all you should need to do. Initially, the WAP will broadcast the station ID (SSID) as linksys. You'll obviously want to change that... as the one reviewer noted, Linksys is easily hackable if you do not change the default settings. I must admit I "see" and sometimes browse unprotected linksys routers around town (and even in my neighborhood). An unprotected WAP is not a good idea.

You should definitely shut off the SSID broadcast once you get things established. I also recommend the WEP encryption. Be sure to write down the keys.... otherwise, you'll probably be unable to connect and have a hard time.

I also recommend you allow the MAC filters. This will prohibit anyone other than your hardware from accessing the router/WAP. Even if someone hacks the WEP or finds/figures your SSID, they cannot tell the router to do anything unless they also clone your MAC address... something not easily done "blind."

All in all this is a good product... worth the 60 bucks... most definitely. Personally, unless you have some compelling reason to set up 802.11g (like you are doing video conferencing over it) - 802.11b is fast enough for home environments.... especially since the FASTEST ADSL/CABLE lines usually go 3MB TOPS (and that's virtually never seen - even inside the given network).

BTW - I also use my Linksys with Mac and PC's. The PC's are a bit easier to configure to use with the Linksys... but once you plug in the WEP keys into the Airport card configuration, Mac's work just fine. Linksys' is much easier to administer than Airport Base station... I'll tell you that much... and a Linksys base station is 60 versus Apple's $200 (or 100 bucks on eBay for an old Snow 2 version - 200 bucks for the Apple Extreme=802.11g standard).

If you are a total novice - I recommend you stay away from wireless. Wireless products expose your PC to both the "net" and people who are wandering/close by to your physical location. If you don't know what you are doing - it is easy to "eavesdrop" on your system and hack your way in... however, if you stop broadcasting your SSID, edit your MAC filters, and enable WEP - it's going to be pretty tough to hack the way into your network.

I figured a product based on two other working Linksys products (WAP11 and BEFSR41) would be stable...wrong. Keep in mind that the BEFW11S4 has just been released. It is a first generation product, and these units are the first off the production line. I spent four nights trying to configure it. Now, I'm a Network Administrator for a medium-size enterprise, and I'm no stranger to routers and wireless bridges.

I could get the unit to run for wired connnections, but with lock-ups after it had sat idle. But forget about wireless. I tried with a WPC11 card in a Win2k laptop and a WUSB11 on a Win98SE PC. No go. I could get the NICs to link at various strengths, but any attempt to pass data would send the BEFW11S4 into fits. It would loop through its diagnostics, and finally stop all wireless communications. In fact, the WLAN light would go out, even though its interface page still said that wireless was enabled. I tried factory default settings and several custom configurations.

I was able to find both a WAP11 and a BEFSR41 on sale locally, and with Linksys rebates, they were only $40 more than the single BEFW11S4. I got the seperate units working perfectly within a hour.

If your thinking of buying this unit, forget it for now. Look for deals on the seperate units (after all, the BEFSR41 is already in its second generation, it says "v.2" on the box). If you already have the BEFW11S4 and are having problems, you could wait for a firmware upgrade--who knows when that might come out. But, obviously, many poeple are having the same trouble so Linksys "should" be aware. Let me say, Linksys may blame Compaq, but it's the BEFW11S4 that is buggy.

The set-up was incredibly simple...just plug in and follow a few easy directions. They tell you exactly what information you need from your IP. I have an IBM thinkpad I bought with the wireless card and windows XP. I didn't have to do a thing to it after I set up the router and my desktop. It was ready right away! The whole thing took about 1 hour (most of which was talking to the cable people to get the IP adress. I'm having no problems with signal. The router is on the first floor study and I take my laptop up to my bedroom.