Customer Reviews

2Wire 2701HG-B Wireless-G 802.11g ADSL Gateway Router

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

First off, my home setup consists of one (Win XP) EMachine desktop and a (Win Vista) HP pavillon laptop. Am using AT&T's DSL, $19.95, basic package.

That said, this 2Wire gateway box was a breeze to hookup, just follow the colored pic instructions. My desktop was hard wired via the ethernet wire included and laptop connects via the wireless wifi signal this 2Wire box emits.

Only issue I had was with the "registration" portion once I was all connected and clicked on the IE browser. AT&T's 24/7 tech support walked me through this. Big problem was that the 2Wire box I had, though brand new, was one of the "SBC models". The AT&T tech rep had to give me some instructions to load to get the 2Wire in sync with their system. Don't think you can ever tell or have a choice of knowing if you are going to receive an AT&T configured box or one of these SBC models.

At this time, am all good to go, surfing through the internet at blazing speeds, way faster than my old dial-up ISP provider. Wireless laptop connection is at 5 bars all the way to my living room. Durability, longevity wise, we'll see how this box pans out. For now, I give this 2Wire DSL modem/wireless router a 2 thumbs up!

Having used the 1701HG (http://www.amazon.com/2Wire-1701HG-2WIRE-Broadband-Router/dp/B0029LRYMK/) previously, I found the interface basically tolerable, and as a modem it functions well enough with my AT&T account. It's built in a less annoying and cheap looking case. (though the 1700 series was pretty rigid for a dsl modem)

The Good:
- Easy Setup
- Compact Chassis
- Functions Fairly Reliably
- Has SPI firewall and wireless access

The Bad:
- As with most DSL modems currently, supports only Fast Ethernet (e100) ports, as opposed to the Gigabit and 10G stuff I'm waiting for
- Wireless is par at best

The Ugly:
- No QoS (this is a fairly important feature for gamers and such)

Both this and the previous model of AT&T's Wireless Gateway are big ripoffs. The previous model uses 802.11b which is turtle speed. This one uses 802.11g which is aardvark speed.

The biggest kicker of all time is that AT&T constantly tries to get you to upgrade your internet connection to Pro or Elite while full well knowing that their equipment cannot handle those speeds. I just bought a Wireless N Router and a N1 USB Adapter which is jackrabbit speed from NewEgg for $60 for both. AT&T wants over $200 for these inferior pieces of plastic and they will make you buy a USB Adapter seperately.

Way to go AT&T, expect a phone call from me soon.

Save your money and buy N or N1 routers and adapters when they are on sale. This equipment is a joke.

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Possible the best feature rich DSL modem around. I have noted that the Qwest 2 Wire 2701 HG-D Seems to be a much better built Modem than the AT&T 2701 HG-B.

I have three of these. One of the 2700 model and two of the 2701. Being the central hub of my home office network, always like to keep an extra on hand just in case I ever overload it and it blows a cork.

Solid construction that really stands up to it's name. When I bought my first one new from Qwest, they told me the life span was 3 years for these modems. I can tell you these modems last a lot longer than three years. (The performance will depend greatly on the reliability of your DSL provider.) These are super fast. I'll never go back to dialup again after using the 2wire. Setup of wireless devices is so easy, and the wireless is almost as fast as the Ethernet. I have the Qwest models which have the added advantage of a USB port in the back. Also reliable, although the USB does have some issues. If you allow your computer to sit in idle for oh say 20 minutes, the USB disconnects and you have to eject and plug the USB back into your computer, to get the internet back up and running on that portal. This is only one of two issues I've ever had with this modem. Unlike cable modems, the use of the USB port will not slow your network down. The other is the power supply. The power adapters were apparently made cheap when they were manufactured. Make an extra effort to keep the adapter nice and cool by plugging it straight into the AC receptical on your surge protector. Allowing them to sit on the carpet, wood or any other surface that can overheat the adapter, and you'll end replacing the AC adapter every three years. The adapter simply burns out after a few year if they deal with to much heat.

I have the 2701 hg-D model which does support VOIP Voice Over Ip. I have the latest firmware installed on my original modem still in use. It has Qos setting, so this modem does support Quality Of Service. The modem does work well with Digital Voice modules like the Linksys pap2-T. The quality of telephone service is impeccable. You won't be able to tell the difference between a regular analog telephone line and the internet dependent Digital Voice VOIP service. You can get the latest firmware from Qwest for free which will support VOIP. Type the default 192.168.0.1 into your web browser to access the firmware and control panel interface. Set a master password so only you can access the firmware/control panel interface.

The modem is also great for static IP hosting. I have a very popular internet radio station in my home office. This streams at full 256K stereo quality over the internet, via windows media player. In the three years since it's inception, it's had over 20,000 listeners on the internet. My original 2701 has handled all the traffic without any complaint, without any issues. I broadcast 24 hours a day.

Because these are slightly older modems, they do not support wireless N technology. Although they might if a firmware becomes available to support it. However since it appears that 802.11 G/B will continue to be the wireless standard for a long time, I don't plan on using the wireless N anytime soon. Wireless setup is a piece a cake. Just type the network key on the back of the modem into your computer and other devices wireless setup utility, and bravo your connected. You can also set your own custom network key, via the wireless settings on the firmware. Yes, the wireless is secure. I've had a few people try to hack in before, and all attempts failed. Both firmware versions also have a built in firewall for added security. You can also shut wireless security off, for places like a cafe or public library, so anyone can access the internet via your modem (no password needed). I like that fact that this modem will work with literally any WiFi device. And setup is always easy. It's quite literally like having your own WiFi hotspot in your own home or office.

In fine here is an internet hub in a box that would easily support any small business, or large family home. Anything you can do with internet technology, this modem will literally support. As a customer I'm very happy with 2 wire, and plan to buy up more 2 wire products in the future.

I got this gateway with my AT&T DSL account. It was easy to set up. I don't do gaming or watch lots of movies, so this gateway does what I need it to do. I used to have a DSL modem, but the signals would always drop and I'd have to keep resetting it. So far, no problem here.

The WiFi signal from this gateway is the strongest I've ever gotten in this house. I was able to hook up my computer down the hall and into the kitchen without a hitch. Whereas that used to get one bar, it's now full strength. The computer across the house and up a level gets a weak signal, which is better than no signal that we had before.

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UPDATE #1: Anyone know if this is a problem with our gateway or our service? The connection is great when I'm on. When I turn off the computer and come back, it works fine. When I leave the computer idle for hours and come back, the connection is lost and I have to reboot the gateway.

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UPDATE #2: I blocked my computer from sleeping and solved my problem. Now, my computer is either on or off, but no sleeping. The connection has stopped dropping.

I've used this model DSL Modem and Router for a long time, and it works fine for me.

We experience trouble free operation using Bellsouth / AT&T DSL Extreme product.

My specific usage is to route a home network with multiple PC and Mac machines, and wireless networked printers. We have XP, Mac OS 9, Mac OS X, and Windows Vista 32 and Vista 64x machines on the network. Our printers are HP, some ethernet, some wireless. We use a Cisco switch to handle the extra ports. We run business apps, and need reliability.

The interface includes the ability to upgrade the firmware online - if you have one of these, or buy one of these, you should follow that easy procedure.

I've seen all the negative reviews for this item and I was a little concerned of this router would work for me. It turns out it does. I bought this router/modem used, when I got it I went to the at&t website for installation guide, it was as easy as pie. My internet speed is 1.5mbps and I have 1 windows vista desktop, 2 laptops one which is windows 7 and the other windows vista and I have a WII connected to the router. All my items get the internet in my house and even a couple of houses away my internet is still available.The security on this router is good with WEP. My only concern is how long it would last.

It would be an excellent router / modem if it didn't drop internet signal every five minutes. To me, that is a deal breaker.

I did some research and ended up buying a Netopia 3347-02-1006. It was a pain to get it to work, if you are in California, but here is how: through your ISP (AT&T, in my case), get your ISP email and a password they assign to you. Enter them. The machine will not connect. Go to the menu to the left to "expert mode." Say "yes" to access it. Then go to "Configure" and then "Connection" and change the VPI to zero. That's it. It'll connect immediately. Tech support and I were in the phone for nearly an hour before we figure it out. I have read good things about the Netopia (mainly no dropping signal), but I haven't confirm it yet. I'll update this review only if the Netopia fails. Otherwise, dropping signal issue was resolved. So long 2Wire.

You know this is kind of silly... I used to be able with AT&T to plug my Airport Extreme directly into the wall jack. A tech came out to my home and installed a special wall jack so I could do this. It worked flawlessly... now that I moved... AT&T told me that I would not be able to use this device because in this building there is no such hookup for it. So I had to use the 2wire they provide and bill me for each month. Only problem is this device sucks and constantly drops signal all day long. I am looking to find out is there a way in which I can bypass the 2wire all together, and maybe find some sort of adapter for an Airport extreme to plug in the common phone line into it like the piece of junk 2wire modem uses? Please tell me you know the answer to this question as I am looking to dump this AT&T piece of sh^& in the trash!

Got it because it was on AT&T's site. It works fine when it works, and then every now and again - sometimes at VERY inconvenient times - it goes out. I'm pretty sure it's just a problem in the phone line, but it's infuriating.