| 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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disposable router, November 23, 2004
By user
I bought this model for my home network. It completely died and I can't get any decent service from Linksys.com. When I call them on the phone, all you get is some unintelligible operator with a heavy foreign accent who was obviously given that job to keep decent folk with legitimate complaints at bay. Unless you are into disposable routers, stay away from all things Linksys! Otherwise, I have a used one that I would like to sell.
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Linksys router and card are not up to its reputation, November 12, 2004
By user (Cary, NC, USA)
I bought this router and a Linksys wireless card 1-1/2 years ago. The router crapped out at the end of its 1-year warranty and they sent me a replacement. It lasted 6 months and crapped out, but since my total warranty period was 1-year, I have to buy a new router. The wireless card lasted until a month ago and I replaced it with a Belkin card with a "lifetime" warranty. Linksys Tech support was exported to India and they try but the language problem is there. I will not buy Linksys products again.
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Why you should buy Wireless-B instead of Wireless-G, November 9, 2004
By user (Carrboro, NC United States)
This is a great product and a greal value. I heartily recommend it in lieu of the various Wireless-G offerings for anyone not trying to play high-end games between wirelessly-networked computers in their home. Why? Simple: cable modems typically have a maximum speed of 3 Mb/sec. DSL is similar, but usually lower (1.5Mb/sec). A Wireless-B router is 11 Mb/sec and is therefore capable of sustained transfer speeds much greater than your connection to the internet anyway. Wireless-G is even faster at 54Mb/sec. However, ANYTHING OVER THE SPEED OF YOUR INTERNET CONNECTION IS WASTED. Again, the exception is when you have multiple computers in your house which need to attach to EACH OTHER at high speeds. The extra money you spend on Wireless-G is wasted. Oh, and a Wireless-G laptop WILL work with a Wireless-B router. Do yourself a favor: save some money and get this product!
Oh, I'm a computer systems specialist at a major university in NC, so I do have some idea what I'm saying!
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Install SP2 - helps alot!, October 3, 2004
By user (Corpus Christi, TX United States)
Initially I didn't like that this router much, even though it was easy to set-up. With basic operation it worked fairly well, as long as I didn't add WEP encryption. However, when WEP was enabled this router continually dropped out and needed to be reconnected, continually. This made even web surfing frustrating and downloading almost impossible.
However, once I installed the XP Service Pack 2 - this router works like a dream. WEP is enabled and the router never drops out anywhere in my house. Reception is 2-3 bars at it's worse.
I'm very happy and impressed now - it just took 3 months to get there! At times I thought this thing was a piece of junk, it's definately not!
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Router is good. Linksys support is awful., September 22, 2004
By user (Santa Cruz, CA)
When I bought this router, I used Linksys' support # to configure it. I am on a Mac & was able to call Linksys' support, get through easily, talk to someone in the US who was familiar w/ OSX and connect via my DSL modem without a hitch. I recently upgraded to the WRT54 & tried calling because I couldn't access my router's settings via IE. To my dismay, the person on the other end was not a native English speaker & I had a very difficult time understanding him (I had to ask him to repeat every instruction at least twice). I was uncomfortable sending out my details (phone#, service provider & IP address) to him because of this. As it turns out, he was in India. He also said he knew nothing about OSX & that I should call Apple to find out how to configure my Linksys router. Well that's helpful. While the new router is considerably cheaper than Apple's base station, I am considering sending it back & paying the difference for Apple's base station because I am so annoyed that Linksys has outsourced its technical support to India, even though my BEFW11S4 has worked fine (as long as i don't have to change settings).
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READ THIS IF YOUR Ver.4 ROUTER STOPPED WORKING!, September 19, 2004
By user (Tucson, AZ United States)
After I upgraded the firmware and loaded Windows XP Service Pack 2 this trusty router which had served me well for over a year (maybe almost 2 years?...can't remember) suddenly started dropping its connection to the internet. SOUND FAMILIAR? After tearing my hair out, talking to Linksys tech support 5 times and scanning the internet for solutions I finally thought why not try an earlier firmware revision (as except every few days or so, it would lose connection and then I'd have to unplug and replug in the power supply but lately it was happening after 15 minutes). So that's what I did. I just happened to have firmware revision 1.5.10 still saved on my computer. So I reinstalled that and voila! I've been up now for over 2 hours. We'll see if it works. Anyway, seems to be a problem with the firmware revision as far as I can tell.
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For the Price, you can't beat this router, September 16, 2004
By user (Tallahassee, FL)
The set-up is simple, the controls are intuitive. You can buy routers with greater features, speed, etc, but for the price conscious person who needs a simple home network this is a great choice.
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An unfortunate product, August 25, 2004
By user (Charlottesville,VA)
Clearly, there is something flaky with the hardware in this thing if so many of us have to reset it all the time. I upgraded the firmware to the latest and it made no difference. If you buy one, it seems to be a crapshoot whether it will work or not.
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Works fine for me!, August 24, 2004
By user (Champaign, IL)
I dunno what other people's bad experience with this router, but it works just fine with me. I connected my dsl modem to this baby then run the setup CD, and it was all done! Connection is rock solid with no drop whatsoever. Been using this router with three of my apartment mates and a friend who ocassionally come to share our internet connection wirelessly with his laptop.
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Great product, easy install!, August 15, 2004
By user (Brooklyn, NY USA)
Great deal for a good router. First I just plugged it all in and everything just worked from the start, no problem. Then I went into the web setup and everything is pretty simple. It just works on its own - all you gotta do is change the setup password.
Wireless works great, too, although I mostly use it through wires. I networked two computers without many problems and I'm very satisfied.
Just a word of advice - set up MAC filtering and don't broadcast the SSID for wireless if you don't want your neighbors stealing your connection. Many people tend to overlook the setup utility once they plug it in and everything works, and then they wonder why their connection is acting up.
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Warning- Stay Away from LinkSys, July 25, 2004
By user
I have experienced little more than frustration since I purchased my Linksys router. It constantly goes down and has to be reset. I have talked to others who have had the same problem, so I don't think that mine is just a lemon. It is very annoying to have to reset your router 2 or 3 times per session at the computer... I have lost more time to this router than I care to think about!
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If the router doesn't work, you are out of luck, July 13, 2004
By user
I bought a Linksys router in October 2003, and still have not gotten it to work wirelessly. The box did not include the installation CD, and I was told by Linksys that I could BUY one if I wanted. I have emailed, faxed, wrote, and of course called, with no help. I have asked for an RMA, and was told "I think that has something to do with returning the product". Linksys tech support is terrible. Buy at your own risk.
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Crashes often and DON'T UPGRADE FIRMWARE, July 6, 2004
By user
I have always been a very happy Linksys customer ... until I bought this unit. It seems that Linksys quality control is going downhill now that they are part of a big and established company.My router crashed at least once a day (which killed my VPN to my office), and required a power cycle to get working again. Not only would the internet connection die, but I could no longer access the router using 192.168.1.1. This was with the latest firmware at the time (1.50.10). I think that the router especially has problems with PPPoE connections. A week ago, I noticed that the new firmware was available, and I was hopeful that it would fix the crashing problem. I upgraded the firmware to 1.50.14, and after about 45seconds or so, the Linksys software said that the upgrade completed successfully. At this point, my router locked up and quit responding. After all the warnings about not power-cycling the router or computer during the upgrade, I was paranoid about doing so. I waited for 10 minutes to be absolutely sure that the upload had finished. At this point, I power cycled the router, and all that happens is the power light flickers on and off, and the router is now an expensive paperweight. I will never buy a Linksys product again!!! I have heard that the version 4 of this router (the current version) doesn't work very well, but I was shocked when the firmware upload made the unit completely useless!!!
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An abysmal product, July 1, 2004
By user (Portland, OR USA)
I have had this Linksys router for about a year, and it has been a living nightmare! It constantly drops the signal and has to be reset, and it stopped working altogether one day. After two hours on the phone with Linksys tech support, I was able to get the Ethernet ports working again - but not the wireless. I've commiserated with many others who've had nothing but trouble with their Linksys wireless products.Now I have a new D-Link wireless router, and it works great. It took me less than a half hour to set up and get running with all three of my laptops (including using WEP security), and the signal from the D-Link router is much stronger throughout my house than the Linksys ever was. I couldn't be happier now that I've ditched the Linksys!
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Range better than Netgear, by 25%, June 26, 2004
By user (New York, NY United States)
Had some trouble getting online until I realized someone else in our apt. building was sitting on the same channel. Quick channel switch and everything went smoothly. Works fine with Macs and PCs.The range is much better than the (slightly) cheaper Netgear solution. Solid product. Only rant? Always could use a bit more range! ;)
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Frequent disconnects. Bad quality control., June 19, 2004
By user
Do not buy this router. The quality is a hit or miss. And there have been quite a few misses now that cannot be ignored anymore. I just wished I read about this first. The router may suddenly fail to work and requires a reboot by unplugging it. This isn't ideal when you have it stuck in a location that is hard to reach. Running the latest .14 release of the firmware (6/2004) and still has the problem. For some it may occur once a month and for some every 30 mins. Please do not even consider this. If you are skeptical about these comments check out the forums in dslreports.com and search for 'post your BEFW11S4 issues'
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Easy Setup Worked Great --for 3 months..., June 18, 2004
By user (Cottonwood, AZ USA)
I'm a big fan of Linksys, I have used many of their routers for my customers, so when it was time for me to switch to wireless I naturally bought the BEFW11S4. Installation was simple and setting up security is a snap. The unit performed admirably for 3 months and then I started having problems. The unit would need to be reset occasionally. I could live with that, but now it happens once or twice daily. Very annoying. Also the DHCP server has stopped functioning altogether. I'm able to get along by setting up static ips for my pcs and resetting the unit constantly. I have version 4 of the device. I'll stick with Linksys for their wired routers, but time to try someone else for wireless.
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Drops connections after an hour or so, June 17, 2004
By user
I have a version 3 that has worked fine for many months, and wanted to get another one for traveling. I bought a version 4, thinking "newer is better" but found that after being connected for about an hour, the thing would lock up. To get it to work for another hour, I had to unplug it and plug it in again. Then it would work for another hour or so. I took it back, and got another one, but had exactly the same problem. I took that one back also, and lo and behold, there was one of the earlier models on the shelf (actually version 3.2), so I bought that one. It has worked flawlessly for the last year or so.I would recommend staying away from version 4, unless they have resolved this problem 100%.
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I'm on my 3rd one in 18 months! BLAH!, June 17, 2004
By user
I bought this in Nov 02. Never have I been able to set it up myself. I can generally follow directions, so I think if I need this much help, it's the product. Any time I lose power or the DSL goes out, this wireless router quits working and I have to call Linksys tech support. It's ridiculous. They've already sent me two new ones and they all do the same thing. This is a terribly unrobust product. I am in the process of getting a refund from Linksys and I recommend that you try it, too. DON'T BUY THIS PRODUCT! There are a lot of negative reviews here. Give another company a chance.
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Easy, Easy, Easy, June 15, 2004
By user (Duluth, GA United States)
Right out of the box, set it up, and both the wired and wireless worked with no problems. Its been great to have the wireless capability for my laptop. I highly reccommend this product. Works great with Centrino.
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