Home > Consumer Reviews > D-Link DWL-900AP USB Wireless Access Point w/ SNMP

I bought the 900AP to use as a client and bridge, but found out after many hours that the client and bridging functions only work
with the DLink DWL-900AP and DWL-1000AP (See the FAQ on the DLink website). Unless you have one of those products already, this product only works as an limited access point. If you want an access point, the SMC 7004AWBR is much better. It alos has a router, webserver for configuration, switch, mac address filtering, better range, etc.

The software included with this device is terrible. There were bugs everywhere, mispellings in the interface, etc. I downloaded the latest version from their website, which had improvements. After playing with it for a while, I got it working. However, some of the features of it don't work (like Mac address filtering) because the software is horrible. Also, the device just stops working periodically, and you need to mess with the configuration for a while until it'll start working again.

I've been updating the firmware and Windows software for the past week (bought it last week), and it seems like they put up a new version of the firmware every 2 days. This is probably a fair indicator that the device was released with immature software, and that they're struggling to get the thing to a point where it actually works for their customers.

I do not recommend this product to anyone.

I'm in agreement with the review from September 30. The software included with the DWL900AP is sorely lacking. There were times where my hitting the 'Apply' button had no discernable impact on the Access Point's operation. Only after I hit 'OK' and re-loaded would the Access Point change its behavior.

In addition, if you install the USB drivers for the access point on a computer, despite USB's hot-swap ability, make sure you reboot prior to trying to modify configurations.

But you can get mac address filtering to work. The file needs to be in a specific format. Each address must be on it's own line, and the last line in the file should be empty (i.e. hit Enter after you're done entering the last entry).

This is a "cheap access point", in all possible interpretations of the phrase. Sure it's very inexpensive, but it has its quirks. None that can't be overcome, of course.

#1 - Setup
The physical installation is a snap. Plug in the cables and you're done. Installing and configuring with the USB configuration program was easy. But then you have to switch to the SNMP configuration tool if you want to use any of the more useful features like MAC authentication. Only problem: you need to assign it an IP address, which is hard for those of us that use public IP addresses, since you either waste a public IP or set up a private IP on a different mask and alias the configuring computer's interface to communicate with the private netmask. It's manageable for someone that does networking for a living, but certainly not for a typical consumer.

#2 - Signal Strength and Latency
I don't think this is as strong as most AP's. I can AdHoc between two cards across my apartment complex, but I only get very weak intermittent signals using the AP from the same location. While playing games such as WarCraft 3 over the WLAN, I often times get timeouts and lag, for something that only averages 20ms in ping times even if the cards are in good range with 80-90% signal.

#3 - SNMP
For a product that claims to be SNMP manageable, it certainly isn't SNMP compliant. It uses its own proprietary SNMP OID's and can't be used with typical management programs. On the good side, there's a Perl filter online for those interested in running MRTG for bandwidth usage graphs over this AP. VERY useful.

Overall, I would recommend this AP as it is very cheap and still useful for all my needs.

I bought this for a great price from [on line company]. I just received it today and I have to say, it works well. The instructions were clearly written and the setup was a snap. It took a little more work to get my PCMCIA Adapter (purchased separately) connected (Problems unrelated to the DLINK), but, everything works well together.

PRO's: Low Price; Easy Setup; Configurable as either a Wireless Access Point or a Gateway (to bridge Wireless networks together); Detachable Antennae (can potentially connect aftermarket antennae to allow for greater coverage); Compatible with any Ethernet Router that has an extra ethernet port.

CON's: USB Connection Required for Setup (but drivers available for current OS's including XP)--afterwards can be managed via SNMP software included with the router; USB Cable Included, but, No Ethernet Cable Included.

NOTES: This product is only a Wireless Access Point -- It does not function as a ROUTER--so if you want/need to share a Cable Modem or other network connection wirelessly you'll need a separate router,...