After over 12 years continuous great service the old girl has given up the ghost due to a power on off accident, I think, which has forced the power light to continually blink and which no amount of soft or hard resetting (Inc 30/30/30 method) can get the power light to go back to being solid. Not allowing me to Ping and upload the original firmware using TFTP utility to revive it. Suggestions for revival appreciated as I don't think I would upgrade (draft N Access point or cheaper draft N router would be purchased without gigabit switch) to a new router if I could get this one back up and running again wirelessly. I've already got threads in router forums here:
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,26905107~start=16#26921162,
here:
http://www.linksysinfo.org/index.php?threads/wrt54gs-v1-firmware-needed-will-v3-work.36907/
and here:
http://homecommunity.cisco.com/t5/W...ower-Light/m-p/494492/highlight/false#M223355
so please chime in if your expertise is in the area of reviving Linksys routers.
Anyway enough of the old hardware. I now live in a two-bedroom flat which measures 29' x 27' x 8' on one floor with my router working at the furthest extremity of the flat in my bedroom to the other of the 29 feet in my kitchen. The old Linksys WRT54GS speed booster had absolutely no problem reaching to the furthest extremity and was also good enough to reach the front and rear gardens as well but I did suffer dropouts in my kitchen when using the microwave which I would like to solve with my next router. I have an arrangement to share my Wi-Fi with my neighbour in the above second floor flat directly above where the router it currently is and he's having no problems.
I did have a list of preferred features, including manufacturer boasts of 600 Mbps etc, but having read the "How to Choose the Right Wireless Routers for You " looking over the "Wireless Charts" I need to reassess. The features I still would like but don't necessarily know if I will need immediately as I don't have them now are:
#1. Dual radio 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz so hopefully get over the 2.4 GHz interference from my microwave in the kitchen, if in fact that is causing my audio dropout problems.
#2. Ready Share USB 2.0 or 3.0 connectivity.
#3. Guest network access.
#4. DLNA support.
#5. Detachable Antennas.
Here is the current hardware I have and I need to connect to via LAN and wirelessly:
virgin media cable broadband modem .
Belkin USB network Hub.
TP Link eight port gigabit switch model number: TL-SG 1008D
D-Link 323 NAS.
HP TouchSmart tx2-1015ea Notebook draft N capable, gigabit ethernet.
Sony tablet S android tablets draft N capable only, DLNA support preferred in the router but not necessary.
Two desktops PC's with dual Realtek gigabit network cards that can be bonded.
I also have two wireless headsets, radio-frequency Pioneer SE-DIR 800C and Infrared AKG hero 999 but both are not generally on at the same time as my wireless network usage.
I was initially willing to pay over £200 for the DrayTek Vigor 2830 VN+ but the reviews here convinced me it was more a small business router with things like VPN hardware support which I don't need and wasn't very user-friendly with its documentation user interaction. I then moved down to the new ASUS RT-N66U (estimated price £190 ) based on the wireless results in the performance leaderboard chart but that model isn't available in the UK yet and I am a bit sick of being an early adopter only to have to wait for firmware revisions and being at the mercy of the waiting game as to whether third-party firmware will be written etc.
So that brings me to this thread to see if I should have my mind changed over the forums feedback reports that seem to be favourable to the ASUS RT-N66U or to go back to plan B router choices which are:
TP Link WR2543ND = £69.31, does have (MIMO) 450Mbps wireless,no ready share but does have USB FTP server storage access, no DLNA but does have two-year warranty and detachable antennas .
TRENDnet TEW-691GR = £79.85, doesn't have dual 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio does have up to 450Mbps 1st 3 x 2.4Ghz router , no USB FTP server or ready share, no detachable antennas network access no DLNA but does have two-year warranty.
Netgear DGND3700 N600 £119.99 does have dual radios, 600 Mb per second, does have two USB ready share storage access ports and guest access to wireless. But it only has a one-year warranty in the UK.
Apart from the DrayTek the above Routers were on my radar for the 450 Mb per second wireless maximum manu specs which I thought would guarantee me uninterrupted wireless throughput and bandwidth to my furthest destination of the kitchen and not be interfered with by the microwave. But I guess this isn't necessarily the case having read the guide.
With my above requirements and presumably having been spoilt by the Linksys router stellar performance what would be your recommendation Tim with and without the above Routers.
Any thoughts much appreciated by one and all.
http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,26905107~start=16#26921162,
here:
http://www.linksysinfo.org/index.php?threads/wrt54gs-v1-firmware-needed-will-v3-work.36907/
and here:
http://homecommunity.cisco.com/t5/W...ower-Light/m-p/494492/highlight/false#M223355
so please chime in if your expertise is in the area of reviving Linksys routers.
Anyway enough of the old hardware. I now live in a two-bedroom flat which measures 29' x 27' x 8' on one floor with my router working at the furthest extremity of the flat in my bedroom to the other of the 29 feet in my kitchen. The old Linksys WRT54GS speed booster had absolutely no problem reaching to the furthest extremity and was also good enough to reach the front and rear gardens as well but I did suffer dropouts in my kitchen when using the microwave which I would like to solve with my next router. I have an arrangement to share my Wi-Fi with my neighbour in the above second floor flat directly above where the router it currently is and he's having no problems.
I did have a list of preferred features, including manufacturer boasts of 600 Mbps etc, but having read the "How to Choose the Right Wireless Routers for You " looking over the "Wireless Charts" I need to reassess. The features I still would like but don't necessarily know if I will need immediately as I don't have them now are:
#1. Dual radio 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz so hopefully get over the 2.4 GHz interference from my microwave in the kitchen, if in fact that is causing my audio dropout problems.
#2. Ready Share USB 2.0 or 3.0 connectivity.
#3. Guest network access.
#4. DLNA support.
#5. Detachable Antennas.
Here is the current hardware I have and I need to connect to via LAN and wirelessly:
virgin media cable broadband modem .
Belkin USB network Hub.
TP Link eight port gigabit switch model number: TL-SG 1008D
D-Link 323 NAS.
HP TouchSmart tx2-1015ea Notebook draft N capable, gigabit ethernet.
Sony tablet S android tablets draft N capable only, DLNA support preferred in the router but not necessary.
Two desktops PC's with dual Realtek gigabit network cards that can be bonded.
I also have two wireless headsets, radio-frequency Pioneer SE-DIR 800C and Infrared AKG hero 999 but both are not generally on at the same time as my wireless network usage.
I was initially willing to pay over £200 for the DrayTek Vigor 2830 VN+ but the reviews here convinced me it was more a small business router with things like VPN hardware support which I don't need and wasn't very user-friendly with its documentation user interaction. I then moved down to the new ASUS RT-N66U (estimated price £190 ) based on the wireless results in the performance leaderboard chart but that model isn't available in the UK yet and I am a bit sick of being an early adopter only to have to wait for firmware revisions and being at the mercy of the waiting game as to whether third-party firmware will be written etc.
So that brings me to this thread to see if I should have my mind changed over the forums feedback reports that seem to be favourable to the ASUS RT-N66U or to go back to plan B router choices which are:
TP Link WR2543ND = £69.31, does have (MIMO) 450Mbps wireless,no ready share but does have USB FTP server storage access, no DLNA but does have two-year warranty and detachable antennas .
TRENDnet TEW-691GR = £79.85, doesn't have dual 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio does have up to 450Mbps 1st 3 x 2.4Ghz router , no USB FTP server or ready share, no detachable antennas network access no DLNA but does have two-year warranty.
Netgear DGND3700 N600 £119.99 does have dual radios, 600 Mb per second, does have two USB ready share storage access ports and guest access to wireless. But it only has a one-year warranty in the UK.
Apart from the DrayTek the above Routers were on my radar for the 450 Mb per second wireless maximum manu specs which I thought would guarantee me uninterrupted wireless throughput and bandwidth to my furthest destination of the kitchen and not be interfered with by the microwave. But I guess this isn't necessarily the case having read the guide.
With my above requirements and presumably having been spoilt by the Linksys router stellar performance what would be your recommendation Tim with and without the above Routers.
Any thoughts much appreciated by one and all.
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