| Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless-B Cable/DSL Router |
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Model: BEFW11S4
Brand: Linksys
Manufacturer: Linksys
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 1079
Platforms: Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows NT 3.5, Windows NT 4, Windows NT 5, Windows Me, Windows XP, Windows 2000 Server, Windows
Operating system: None
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, IEEE 802.11b
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| Features: |
Connects to a broadband modem, a 10/100 Ethernet backbone, or wireless network
Long wireless operating range supports 300 feet indoors and 1,500 feet outdoors
Provides roaming, best access-point selection, load balancing, and network traffic filtering
Configurable through your networked PC's Web browser
Can act as a DHCP server for your existing network |
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| Description: |
| The Linksys BEFW11S4 is your all-in-one networking device This wireless router features support for the 802.11b protocol, which lets you wirelessly access your network and the Internet from up to 800 feet (outside), or 300 feet (inside) away |
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| User Reviews (1079 total): |
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Great with a Rebate, September 13, 2005
By user (New York)
Overall, I am very pleased with my recent Linksys Wireless-B purchase. It came with a $30 rebate, which covered more than half of the selling price. It was easy to install and works excellently in every room of my apartment. However, if you are not able to obtain a similar rebate, go for the Wireless-G router.
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Constantly Dropping Internet Connections-Do Not BUY, September 10, 2005
By user
Do your own research, google "linksys sucks", or go to any number of geek forums. This router can not hold a internet connection up for any length of time. It drops the connect spradically as well as constantly when trying to download music or music videos. Tech support is clueless. Basically you get what you pay for, crap!!!!!
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Simple to install and integrate with modem, September 9, 2005
By user (Boston, MA)
Very easy to install and integrate. Has great coverage throughout structure.
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works then doesn't work, September 2, 2005
By user
i just go this router yesterday and i am already having problems with it. it works for 2 minutes then locks up. I can't watch music videos or do anything like that because it locks up constantly. i would definitely not recommend this router to anyone. Anytime that i want the router to unlock i have to go to the setup screen, click on status and then release and renew the DHCP everytime. I do that about 20 times in a matter of 20 minutes.. thats ridiculous if you ask me. anyone know how to fix the problem let me know and i might change my mind about this thing. I couldn't even send in this review without having to release and renew. dang this sux.
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Unreliable piece of junk that locks up frequently, August 31, 2005
By user (Orlando, FL USA)
Title says it all. This piece of junk has locked up a minimum of twice a week since I bought it a year ago. Have to unplug it and re-plug it in every time to reset it. Downloading the most recent firmware update made it even worse. Now the thing locks up if you try to view any video on [...]
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Easy to setup, you should flash it right away, August 31, 2005
By user (San Francisco, CA USA)
My previous 802.11b router finally failed after 4 years of constant use, and I was dreading buying a replacement. I hadn't been keeping pace with the drastic drop in price for 802.11b devices! Talk about a pleasant surprise. I figured that since my wireless PC Card investment is still in (b) technology, and this router was so cheap, I'd stick with 802.11b and give the BEFW11S4 a shot.
I did notice as soon as I connected to the admin interface for the router that it was running an old version of the Linksys OS. I suspect that all of the 802.11b routers you'd find today will have been sitting on a shelf for quite some time... So I wasn't bothered by a quick visit to the Linksys web site where I pulled down the current firmware (under 400kb), and updated the router with it (under 2min process from start to finish).
It runs great. I get at least 30% higher throughput than my previous router (I think it's tied to having a faster processor in the router itself) when it's under load - like when I have two wireless clients downloading large files from the internet at the same time.
It's range is also better than my older unit. I now get reliable links (through two walls and a floor) at about 75' from the router. My older device range was about 50' - and I used to get dropped connections from time to time. I haven't gotten a dropped connection once in the month that I've been using the BEFW11S4.
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Run away run far away, August 30, 2005
By user (Charleston, South Carolina, USA)
I should have known things were bad when they sent me a broken router to begin with. I have nothing positive to say about the Linksys company and will never buy another Linksys product. When I got my brand new modem and router and plugged everything in, none of the house laptops received any signal. After calling Linksys about the problem they initally blamed me and it was only after days of fighting that they agreed for me to send my router to them where they would evaluate the problem. It was over two weeks before they returned my brand new router and when I got it back it was no longer a brand new router, it was a refurbished one. It worked well for just over a year. Then the warranty expired and the router began to experience severe failures. Tech support was called and after hours (no exaggeration) of arguing they would finally patch the problem and it would work again for a few months only to crash again and start the headache over.
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I love Linksys products, August 28, 2005
By user
This router is awesome. It is easy to install. It is like Install once and forget about it. No troubles till now.
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very good!, August 27, 2005
By user (NY, USA)
The quality of linksys is good and the price is affordable. Don't install it by its CDs. Just unplug the modem and router and connect them well to the pc. Power on modem first then plug router. You'll find it's easy to access to internet. If you want to change some settings of linksys, open your IE and enter 192.168.1.1 in address bar. The original user name is blank and password is "admin". If you want to reset your router, press the bottom behind it. Have a nice try with this amazing product!
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Great product, August 25, 2005
By user (San Francisco, CA)
I've had this router for about 2 years now and so far, its been great and worth every penny. I had cable for a year, then when I moved got DSL. I've never had any problems with it and its very simple to use.
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Routers wih rebates are always buggy, August 22, 2005
By user (San Jose, CA, USA)
Till now I've bought 3 routers (D-Link, Netgear and now Linksys). I've always got them when they have rebates offered on them. Now I know that they are refurbished and not worth the money.
This router required restarts every 2-3 days and its quite irritating.
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Don't waste your money on this product., August 12, 2005
By user
I bought this wireless-B broadband router about 2 years ago. It was price convenient and provided a pcmcia wireless ethernet card.
The first impresion you get is WOW, this is very simple. You get carried away with how simple it is to get it to run the first time. Well, that's about it, I have nothing else nice to say about this P.O.S. product.
The Quality of Service is terrible. Once the router is fully configured to match your home network needs (I mention this because you spend some time customizing ports but the problem shows up with or without customization), it is just unreliable.
The connections drop all the time, you are browsing just fine at good speed (with cable modem have an average speed of 5Mbps) and all of the sudden the next click (or any other action over the network) never gets resolved.
You can no longer resolve any domain names nor ping anywhere else. I did problem determination just to ensure it was the router and nothing else. Initially I thought it was just the wireless, so I focused on that. Today I can tell that this problem is mainly on the wireless but still you have problems with the wired connections. The relation is about 10 to 1.
I have updated the firmware several times where Linksys tech reviews for those updates were mentioning that "some users" had similar problems and those problems should be fixed in the new firmware update. Well, I have read that more than 3 times so far. I no longer believe them.
Sometimes you can recover your connectivity by just powering the router off/on. It has become common task to pull the plug up to 10 times a day. Some other times you have to be more drastic and do a hard reset loosing all your customizations.
This product is a piece of junk. If you like to waste some money, give it a try, you may be one of those lucky ones that get one that actually works.
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This product is garbage, August 11, 2005
By user (Richmond, VA)
Rarely a week goes by that this thing doesn't lock up for no apparent reason and have to be rebooted. I've called tech support and the best they could do was guide me through a firmware upgrade or two, which did not fix the problem. After my experiences with this hunk o'junk, I do not recommend purchasing anything with the name "Linksys" on it.
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review, August 10, 2005
By user
It works very well for me. Keep in mind, i live in 1 bedroom apartment!
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Excellent for the Home User, August 5, 2005
By user (Iowa , USA)
I had this router installed and running within 20 minutes. It works great with my desktop pc plugged directly into it, and I as well as my neighbors utilize the wireless connectivity it offers as well. No down time. Easy to configure. An awesome buy!
I love this item! Not sure why everyone else had issues with it. I'm quite pleased.
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Going Wireless Couldn't Be Easier, July 29, 2005
By user (Seneca, SC USA)
I own a G4 MAC and the Befw11S4 couldn't be easier to setup! Just follow the instructions. I own a 4000 square foot home the router is downstairs and the computer is in an upstairs bedroom and works great. I plan to install a second PC in my basement and this should be no problem. If you have a range problem verify that antenna is connected the airport card. This is an excellent router I would recommend it to anyone.
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Barely usable, unstable and constantly aggravating, July 18, 2005
By user (New York, NY)
I've been using this Linksys wireless router for over a year, so I've got some experience with it. In a word: terrible. Sure, sometimes you can manage to get a wireless signal, but otherwise it'll suddenly drop for no reason, then refuse to let you reconnect. Unplugging it and plugging it back in might help, but who wants to do that a half dozen times a day just to maintain a constant connection?
I've tried all the workarounds, from updating the firmware to using a secure connection - and nothing really helps. Oh, and when I do get a stable connection, it's horrendously slow. Somehow, as the connection goes through the cable modem to the router and then to my laptop's wireless card, the speed is reduced to dialup sometimes.
I would not recommend this product, unless you regularly purchase electronics as a means of masochism.
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Sometimes great, sometimes very unstable, July 4, 2005
By user (Chicagoland, USA)
I use this device for DHCP and NAT between my DSL router and my other wired and wireless machines. Sometimes it works great, and I have no wireless coverage problems.
Other times, it seems to have major DHCP issues. It will hand out the same IP address to wired and wireless computers, or it will just drop the wireless connection and has to have the power pulled in order to fix the problem (which also disrupts connectivity for the wired users). I've recently upgraded firmware, but that hasn't helped.
I would not buy another device from this manufacturer if (when) I replace it.
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Awfully unstable product., June 11, 2005
By user
It works.. but sometimes it doesn't. And then, after working for a few minutes, it suddenly doesn't work. Then it *may* start to work, but eventually it will stop working anyway... (I hope you got the point)
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Lost connection in 30 minutes, June 8, 2005
By user (Petalumca, CA United States)
If you surf internet lightly, this router may be good for you! However, you will run into connection lost problem if you have heavy internet traffic.
My DSL connection is 3M/512K. After configuring this router and upgrade to latest /greatest firmware, I fire up eMule and BitTorrent client -----> This router choked within 30 minutes. I thought it's my configuration, No, it's the router. Check dslreports.com, lots of people complain connection stall problem with this router. Or you can just do google "BEFW11S4 issues v4", and you will believe me!
Conclusion: Stay away from this router!
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