Review on Cisco Linksys WRT54G2 Wireless G Broadband Router by Javarie Malick

OK. I was originally considering a Wireless N version of this router to possibly replace my old WRT54GS (Linksys Wireless G Router with SpeedBooster). Admittedly, this router had problems. It worked, but not as well as I would have liked given my settings. Since all my devices are wireless G or B, I figured I'd just stick with the G router and save money (it's almost half the price of the N router). For reference, I have a laptop (wireless), media server (wireless), PS3 (wireless), PSP (wireless), DS (wireless), EEE PC (wireless), PS2 (wired), 360 (wired), printer (wired) ) and DirecTV HR20 (wired) . Yes I know. Important: The media server is in the bedroom closet, away from the router in the living room. With my old router, the signal strength got weak through the walls, very weak. LAN activity was painful, streaming movies from the media center was painful as it froze and stuttered frequently; Thumbnails are not loading. Enter this router. The first thing to note is that a CD is NOT required. If you're new to wireless connections, you can just follow the instructions and CD, but if you're comfortable navigating the router's web interface, just bypass the CD and set it up as usual. it will work. Installation was easy and discovery was quick, I was able to replace my old wireless network in minutes. There's also a feature that lets you do a push-button Wi-Fi protected setup, but apparently receivers need to integrate that feature too - and none of mine have done that. So I just ignored it. For those who are setting up for the first time and have purchased receivers with the feature enabled, they may find it helpful to set up. I immediately noticed an improvement in LAN speeds. The already mentioned media server is now roaring quickly over the network; Thumbnails load as quickly as if I were sitting at my computer, file transfers aren't nearly as slow, and streaming content plays with minimal latency. Internet connection was also slightly improved on devices that were not near the router. There are a few issues, not necessarily with the router, but with the way Linksys designs them. First, connecting to the internet took too long and wasn't as easy as it should have been. I had to power cycle the modem for it to retrieve the IP address information, although the details should have been easily accessible from the previous router that received them. It could be a Time Warner issue, not a Linksys issue - maybe it's seeing a different MAC and freaks, but I doubt it. After I got the IP information, the router didn't connect to the internet for over a minute. I'm using Vista Premium so I can tell when it's 'Local', 'Internet' or both and I've had trouble bringing up either. Second, and a minor issue at best, the power cord is easily half the size of the WRT54GS. I can't understand it with the best will in the world. I have a hard time finding a router in a good location because I prefer to have the router on a UPS and by cutting the cable I need to mount the router in the middle of the floor. Small problem but still a problem for me. Otherwise I can highly recommend it. They seem to have fixed most of the issues that previous devices had. I noticed that the negative reviews were coming from people who were having issues with the support team; I never call Bombay customer service so can't say anything bad.