| Belkin Wireless-G Router DSL/Cable Gateway |
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Model: F5D7230-4
Brand: Belkin
Manufacturer: Belkin Components
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 244
Operating system: Macintosh
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, FastEthernet, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
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| Features: |
Creates a network in your home or office without cables
Ensures data and network security with wireless 64- and 128-bit WEP encryption
Offers backward-compatibility with all 802.11b devices
Sets up easily with Belkin Easy Install Wizard-automatically detects Internet settings and self-adjusts Router to get you online in under 3 minutes |
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| Description: |
| Belkin F5D7230-4 802.11g Wireless Cable/DSL Router - This device is a must if you have multiple computers and a hi-speed Cable or DSL Internet connection. With a built-in 4-Port Ethernet switch and support for 802.11g technology, you can share files, peripherals, or the Internet - with or without wires! DMZ Hosting Configures easily with any web browser or Easy Install Wizard 64- and 128-bit WEP data encryption Stackable enclosure and vertical stand (included) helps reduce the desktop footprint Includes - power supply, manual, quick install guide, RJ45 networking cable, & software CD |
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| User Reviews (244 total): |
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It works great - and Belkin Support is Good., February 24, 2007
By user (Asia)
The box is small and solid, and it plugs in to play with good wireless performance. Have been using it for close to a year now and all my PC's connected are surfing the Net with good speed anywhere at home.
And must mention that the Belkin Support is good. I asked them many questions when I first bouht this gadget and they served me well, and with professionalism. Excellent support.
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this box rocks, February 22, 2007
By user (Nashville, TN United States)
plug and play, fast as heck, couldn't be easier, better or better priced. a winner!
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works for mac and pc, February 16, 2007
By user (Bellaire, Texas United States)
Just for grins and giggles, I used the router install disk on an iMac G5. Happily, the software ran smoothly and everything works fine. No wasted time. Very glad to see someone at least attempting to support Mac users.
The install disk and routine are not necessary for Windows or Macs and it is faster just to do it through the browser - if you know what you are doing. If you don't, the disk software gets the job done and only takes an extra five minutes.
About the only issue I have is the "auto" setup asking you if you want WEP 64 or WEP 128 enabled. The correct answer often depends on what other hardware and software you are using or are going to use. A note in the setup referencing what 64 and 128 are would be useful. For my G5, 128 WEP was the best choice.
Also, the reset button is almost invisible on the back of the unit. Look to the left of and below where the power cord plugs in. The manual states it is on the bottom, but it is not. I had to find it because there is apparently an eight character limit when setting access passwords to replace the default "blank" password. I used a nine character password, which the unit accepted, but then couldn't get back into the router any other way (I tried). A 30 second press of the reset button returned everything to default settings and it was a quick fix after that.
As far as the other features go, this unit works about as well as any retail unit I have purchased. No complaints about range or anything else. As far as the just noted problems go, I've seen worse on other brands. So far, once up and running this unit does what it should and the price is low-low-low.
I expect, given the low cost and other people's complaints, that this router will die in about a year. My experience has been that this rarely happens if you treat the electronics well, (dust, heat, moisture) and I'd rather have one "just die" someday than given intermittent problems.
Even so, it appears Belkin is good about standing behind their products (tech support was business-like but efficient), which is a very good reason to support this company.
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Unfortunately is useless for me, February 14, 2007
By user (Huntington Beach, CA)
I had really hard time to install this router in my network with 2 desktop & 1 laptop. The problem for me is there are no way to forward port. there is no manual at all, and while installing it asks to add IP address for each compluter> You can enter whatever you want it's never accepted. Anyway I'm still using my old router that drop the WIFI sometime. Can I send it back?
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Cheap Ethernet+Wireless Router - Seems to do the job, February 14, 2007
By user (Washington, DC)
I bought this router to be able to split my incoming cable modem between my Macintosh and a VoIP box. Initially it did not work at all with my Macintosh but I discovered that the problem was in using Belkin's software to do the installation. Belkin means well in writing software to support a Mac but the best way is to get your hands dirty and create your own manual DHCP configuration. Once I did this my wired ethernet, the VoIP box and a wirelessly connected laptop all worked fine. I've previously used a straight feed right from the cable box and with the new setup I've noticed no network slowdown. One good thing about this router is the "DMZ" feature which lets you set up one (and *only* one) of your network devices outside the firewall. My VoIP vendor said that the SPI (Stateful Packet Inspection) option on most routers will cut off their signal. I used the DMZ feature to put my VoIP box outside of the firewall (no choice anyway) and kept my computer inside the firewall. The VoIP box is happy and I'm happy because my computer is more secure. Seems to get a little hot but this hasn't caused a problem so far. Time, of course, will tell but if you're looking for a cheap wireless router with decent security features and don't need more than 54 Mbps rate on wireless then this will work.
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Belkin Wireless G Router, February 14, 2007
By user
Although the device works as advertised, the install wizzard didn't (Mac OS X). It required a call to Belkin support to get the thing going.
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slows down browsing to dialup speeds, February 12, 2007
By user (Boulder, CO USA)
I bought this router after a little research. Setup was easy, but the router slows down all web browsing on wired and wireless computers. There does not appear to be a fix. Returned.
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Previous Version 4 router replaced with version 6, February 12, 2007
By user (Long Island NY)
Had the version 4 router for over a year and went fine until it started dropping net connection, Called the service number and I'm sure I was routed to a foreign country where it was hard to understand girl trying to help me but eventually gave me a number to call which was here in the usa. Long & short of it a tech called from New JJersey and from what I remember, he guide me to installing firmware (I've seen much about this in in reviews) and it solved the problem for a few months before it went completely dead with no power. It was over a year but this item has lifetime guarantee so I got an exchange sent to me right away which I notiiced was version 6 rather than version 4 which must need the firmware update, Tech man said no firmware update needed on new router and it has meen working fine. Belkin will send the replacement right away but put a $49 hold on your credit card until they receive the old unit.
I run two machines running OS X & OS 9.1 or 9.2 and I notice in my travels around supply sites that OS 9.1 is being left behind and it may be harder to get stuff like routers , printers, scanners and the like suitable for OS 9.1 in combo with OS X. When looking around at other router unitts I see less of the 9.1's and in one case was a blurb of no support for appls to apple router transfer and I guess this Apple Intel business is just going to make things trickier
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Great Router, February 11, 2007
By user (Fort Collins, CO USA)
Plug and play! Works great. Easy to set up for first time user(took me 15 minutes). Works perfect on my sons Mac with airport and my daughters PC notebook with USB adapter anywhere in the house. Mine is the 1 antenna model.
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Worked for a while, February 8, 2007
By user (Westfield, IN)
I've had this router for about a year. It worked decently for a time. Recently, I noticed the numbers for the wired connections had turned orange. That's odd, I'm pretty sure they had been green. Yes, after checking my dad's identical model, they were green. So I figured it had something to do with how hot the unit was getting. I had read others talking about overheating issues. I unplugged it and didn't use it for awhile. After plugging it back in, the numbers were back to green and everything appeared to be fine.
Then came yesterday. The unit suddenly powered off, and I have not gotten it to turn back on since. I would open it up and tinker with it, but I'm pretty sure it's not worth my time.
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EASY EASY setup, small size, nice throughput, February 1, 2007
By user (Palo Alto, CA United States)
For the low price you're not going to get huge range and bells and whistles...
But the thing WORKS. Thats what matters to me... I struggled with a Linksys router for a LONG time. to the point of assigning new IP addresses, cloning the MAC address in the WAN port, going from WPA to WEP to no security...and constantly got the network connected but NO internet. Do a web search for "Linksys network connected but no internet" and you'll see why I wish I had researched more before buying Linksys.
The Belkin is tiny, a adults hand would cover the whole thing. Having my laptop in the same room has consistintly been connected at "Excellent" a full 54mps and next room connection is constantly "very good" at 48mps or so.
Keep in mind I live in a condo, which means I have neighbors WiFi coming in all over the place, wires, pipes and neighbors cordless phones etc that could interfere--but its working great.
VERY VERY easy security/firewall setup compared to Linksys. And it is easy to access the user manual from the Belkin setup CD. On the Linksys CD I had to go to "explore" and manually search for it.
The Belkin box said "setup in 3 mins." Which was partially true. It was a matter of swapping one wire, adding one wire and plugging in the power. My laptop picked up the new Belkin signal within 10 seconds of me plugging in the power.
After the setup of the equipment, software and security, I'd say I spent a total of 10 mins to go from unwrapping to wireless surfing.
You can set up guest controls/permissions with this router. Your "Main" computers and "guest" passwords will be different. Also this does have parental controls, adjustable through the gateway IP address.
Couple of tips...this router, like ALL routers will store the password for your internet service. So it will be in an "always on" state.
this router (like most of them) has its own firewall. You will need to disable the windows firewall *on the computer that the router is directly connected to,* or the wireless computers will not be able to log in.
So make sure when you run the setup CD, you unclick "connect automatically" in your internet settings in windows or it will conflict with the router trying to sign in. Even with this little hiccup, it took only 10 mins total to get wireless connected, passworded and firewalled... after installing this or any other router, you wont have to sign in with your internet companies password anymore, unless you want to and set it up that way.
Also...belkin has 24/7 phone tech support... most others have bankers hours and the calls go overseas!
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Spotty Performance; Parental Control Cancelled, January 31, 2007
By user (Tallahassee, FL USA)
I have to reboot this router once every other day to keep my signal. I also had to purchase a signal booster to get it to work throughout my house - and it's not that big.
The worst thing is that I bought Belkin products because of their router-based Parental Control features. Thet have since cancelled their contract with Cerberian, and now provide NO ROUTER BASED PARENTAL CONTROL WHATSOEVER. They tell you to go buy Zone Alarm. With 4 children in the house, I now have 7 Belkin products that are absolutely worthless. EBay, here they come.
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Complete Waste of Money, January 26, 2007
By user (Maryland)
I've had my belkin G router for about a year now and this thing is the worse. It drops the internet signal daily and sometimes two or three times daily. Then I have to unplug it wait for it to reset, plug it up again, and let my computer pick up the signal. Its such a big hassle. I hate the Belkin G router. I would get a linksys instead, which I plan to do soon.
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trash!, January 22, 2007
By user (USA)
Worked fine for 2 months then it strated droping the wireless conection as other mentioned. first twice a week now it is every 20 minutes!! look for something else! Several people seem to be having the same problem.
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First one had problems, but Belkin took care of it., January 22, 2007
By user
After working for a month, the ethernet ports went bad. I called Belkin and after convincing them that I had already tried everything possible to get it working, they sent me a new one. Other than that, it works great and is easy to set up.
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Run Like the Wind Bullseye, January 18, 2007
By user (Chicago)
I noticed that some reviewers love the product and some hate it. I wonder if Belkin has a quality control problem. My router worked for about 30 minutes though I did to have turn off security for wireless to connect. Figured I would do my own security via MAC filtering. MAC filtering worked for 10 minutes and then it died. When I called Belkin I noticed that: 1) This model router has an option (#1) on their technical support line (that should tell you something), no other product has an option. 2) It took less than 10 minutes for me to establish that the products was dead with their techs but 30 minutes on hold with their returns department before I spoke to a human. As noted by other reviewers you have to pay for the shipping the dead router back to Belkin. This was an educational experience for me. Next time I'm going with another product.
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Junk, January 17, 2007
By user (WI)
I've been trying for over a month to get some help getting this thing to work. Customer support is no help whatsoever. I have a brand new laptop and it won't connect to the internet. There's an icon that says I'm connected but when I open internet explorer, I'm told there isn't an internet connection.
I'm definitely going with the recommendations of other users to get a D-Link or a Lynksys.
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Belkin 54g router, January 14, 2007
By user
The router has been functioning for me for the past month or so without any problems and provides a number of useful features that one would expect from a router. This was the third Belkin addition to my network, and all perform quite well despite simultaneous gaming and browsing traffic.
Update: After a firmware update this router has become even stronger not needing a reset in many months - provides a fairly good range in a brick and wood building. It's a decent router with good features - if you aren't looking for something over the top, just something that'll let you get YouTube in the family room or the like, this router is great.
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solid performer, January 12, 2007
By user
Has worked great overall with the exception of a few power resets; sometimes my wireless network doesn't "find" the router, othertimes it sees it but cannot connect. When it works it's fast and reliable. The low price of $30 makes it mostly irresitable. The G router works great with my G network adapater in my laptop, desktop, and also my IPAQ handheld PC. Recommended!
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Belkin Wireless G Router DSL, January 12, 2007
By user (Roseau, Mn USA)
I got this product so i could transfer files from my laptop to my computer at home and am very happy with the results. I would recommend this Belkin Wireless G Router to anyone.
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