Customer Reviews

Cisco-Linksys AT&T CallVantage Wireless - G VoIP Router with 2 Phone Ports WRT54GP 2A-AT

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

 

 

When I received the Linksys router from AT&T the only problem I had was figuring out how to connect my existing router. I went to the Linksys website and pulled down some documentation but it didn't work. To make a long story short I was making the problem much harder than it was. All I had to do was plug my cable modem into the Linksys router from AT&T and connect one network port from that router to the uplink/cable modem port of my other router and I was done.

The CallVantage service setup was easy. After connecting the AT&T Linksys router to the cable modem I used my browser to connect to the CallVantage activation site. The activation process was four steps. The longest step was when it automatically updated the router. When that was done the phone gave a short ring indicating I could make phone calls. The whole process took maybe 10 minutes. AT&T includes a pamplet with the router that walks you through the process. Its just a few pages with big pictures.

Immediately after activation I started calling friends. I would talk to them for a while before asking them if they noticed anything different. No one noticed anything. Voice quality is at least as good as a conventional phone. The AT&T rep said it would be better but I can't tell. It's certainly not worse.

The phone switch over went smoothly. I was able to keep my current phone number. Dialing the phone works fine. The feature set, like someone indicated earlier, is amazing. There are features included that I didn't know you could get on a home phone. Basically every feature you have now plus some ones you probably haven't heard of. AT&T has a well thought out and organized web interface for managing everything.

Some things to be aware of, AT&T says if you have a fax it may not work across the line. I don't have a fax so I can't test this. They said that some people were able to resolve faxing problems by upgrading their fax machine. Also if your power goes out or cable modem goes down you won't have a phone unless you have cellular or another line. As far as power outages I'm a big believer in UPSs and all my computer equipment is connected to one. You can connect the router phone line an existing phone jack and all your phones can share the line. You have to disconnect the outside line first and if you have a 2nd line AT&T says you need a splitter so that only one phone line goes into the router. You can get a splitter from Radio Shack for a few bucks.

Last thing, when I ordered my service, the rep on the phone was extremely repetitive. They definitely want you to understand all the aspects of setting up your phone service to work over your network. That's probably good for most people but for me it was like enough already.

Anyway this is great stuff. Next thing for me is to get the first phone bill. All of the taxes that apply to a regular phone line don't apply to a VOIP line. I'm interested in knowing what the "real" total will be.

Have fun if you try it. You may not be an early adopter but one of these days this will be the standard. The current phone system will be a thing of the past.

I've been using this router for two days now. I've exchanged it twice and spent over 9 hours with Linksys Technical Support.

All the Routers experienced the same problem. The router firmware (Enclosed software on a chip)is very unstable. When I enabled certain features (Logging, disabling DHCP), the router begins rebooting every 600 seconds. Only a hard reset and reconfiguration back to factory specs. clears the problem. If you try to access the router with any security features on, like a firewall, or virus scanner etc. The firmware develops a rebooting loop every 600 seconds.

Technical support, Basic and (Level 2 Advanced) is in a foreign language!! I occasionally can detect an english word. These people knew far less than I, and I'm not a techy! What is the Linksys solution?:
1. Don't make any changes to the router selections. Things like changing the default password to your own more secure password, setting the clock, or any of several others.

2. Use your $12,000 workstation on the Internet w/broadband cable access and DO NOT USE your Firewall, Virus scanner, Spyware scanner etc. Everything will be OK, Your using our router... (This is insanity)!

3. The firmware (to try and reload the software) for this router IS NOT AVAILABLE!

And the VOiP features and functionality? Never got that far. I use a standard PC from Dell with XP-Pro on a cable modem.

Read the various technical forums and discover the severity of this problem for yourself. I found them on "google".

I got rid of my land line and got Callvanatge service. Callvantage uses your normal phone but it plugs into your router instead of your old phone jack. The installation was very easy. I make all calls for under $30 a month. Some of their features are pretty cool also. When a call comes in, it rings my home phone and cell phone at the same time. That way if I'm waiting for an important call - I can pick it up on either phone. I can also view all my incoming and outgoing calls on the internet, almost instantly. So, I can view my call log while I'm at work and see who called during the day. Also, the quality is just as good as my old land line.

This rounter "CallVantage WRT54GP2A-AT" and the "Vonage WRT54GP2" have the same problem that Roger Simon (Orlando, FL) posted I spent about 12 hours between both the Vonage and CallVantage routers. If you leave the factory settings as is then the router works great. When I tried to add my ssh service and change any other parameters that's when the router would become unstable. It kept dropping the internet connection. Soon as i hooked up my old BEFSR41 everything worked great. Bottom line these routers should not be on the market. It is not worthy of one star.

I have found this router to be an excellent combination of phone adapter and wireless router, all in one.

Positives:
The main reason I chose this product is space considerations. The router works well, reliability, and has a very good range. I have the router in my office in one corner of the house. With WEP encryption turned on (WPA is supported), I still manage 50% signal quality at the far corner of a 2700 square feet footprint - the signal has to travel through at least four walls and 70 linear feet.

Drawbacks:
This router is not actively supported with firmware updates by Linksys. Check out this model under the Linksys Support. You will find no firmware updates. This is a problem if you plan to add signal boosters, additional access points, or wireless print servers, etc... Most of Linksys' components require the WRT54 be updated to a later firmware version for interoperability.

If you are considering adding any additional components to your Linksys wireless system, I recommend opting for the default AT&T CallVantage wired VOIP router, and adding the wireless router separately.

I was a little hesitant in forking over $125.00 for this router. As well as the fact that Cisco doesn't adversise it supports Mac OS X. I had previously tried a Netgear router with the D-Link telephone adapter. But this solution didn't work, and returned it within a day. So I decided to give this solution a try. Learned alot about VoIP. The key here is in having the right router, the right network and the right phone, then it works perfectly! Installation was a snap. You just plug the Linksys router per the installation instructions into your cable modem (I have Comcast), then to your computer, and then your phone. Just follow the instructions. The Linksys router configures identically as the Netgear router ... you use a web portal into the router, and just setup per the instructions. I'm running a Mac Mini with OS X 10.3.9, and and a wireless IBM ThinkPad T41 .... the Mac and the IBM auto sync into the router IP address space ... a couple of clicks and your done! The catch is to have a good telephone go with your Cisco-AT&T Solution. Previously, I was using an old phone, and I was having some interference from the phone, that limited the quality of the VoIP ... so I bought another simple GE phone, for about 8 bucks at Target, and plugged it into the Cisco router, for a test I called my folks from Colorado to California ... we were all amazed at the quality of the voice call!!! They couldn't believe I was running the call over the internet!! Now I'm hooked on this new technology. Thank you Cisco, Thank you AT&T!

I have a Linksys 802B unit that works perfectly. The CallVantage unit is another matter. I've rebooted the router 3 times in 4 days to get my connection back. The tech guy in INDIA couldn't comprehend what I was trying to get across. He told me to switch channels. Only problem was I told him I was losing the connection at the router on an ethernet connection. Nothing has changed except the router and my wireless phone. It is a 5.8 gig unit with that frequency on the base unit and the handset. Shouldn't be a problem.

I changed my SSID,enabled the WEP, and changed my default password. Oh yeah, perish the thought, I forwarded a port.

I think I'm sending this back and getting the AT&T adaptor. I can always get a little 4 port hub and start at the modem and split into the phone before the router, then have a cord go into the router, then out to my computer etc.

Waiting to hear from Linksys web tech now. I'm holding my breath.

Regards, Owen

The router and AT&T service sucks. I had a problem with my service and they were not able to resolve the issue. The customer service is even worse, it takes an eon to get through and they seem to have 24 to 48 hours of turnaround at each level of support.

IF you have to cross three levels, you can only imagine the wait.

I would suggest anybody thinking about switching to ensure that you have a backup cell phone with a lot of minutes!!

In short, I would not recommend it to my friends.

Thanks.

I was hesitant to purchase this item due to some of the reviews, however, after having recieved this item today.. I am pleasantly surprised.

I did go through a bit of a ordeal trying to set up the telephone portion of this router.. as I was "upgrading" from the original D-Link TA that came with the service. Due to this, I had to call customer support and have some "server issues" sorted out before the system would accept my new adapter. After that however, I am completely satisfied.

Some of the concerns addressed in other reviews were as follows:

1. Just doesn't work - NOT TRUE
2. Voice quality poor - JUST AS GOOD AS WITH ORIGINAL TA (i.e. perfect)
3. Firmware updates not provided - AGAIN, NOT TRUE. THEY ARE PROVIDED BY AT&T AUTOMATICALLY, NOT BY LINKSYS THEMSELVES. HENSE WHY YOU WON'T FIND AN UPDATE ON THEIR WEBSITE. I WAS IMMEDIATELY UPDATED TO VERSION 1.00.26 FROM 1.00.11 AFTER ACTIVATING.

All in all.. if you are looking for a wireless router to complement your VoIP service with AT&T.. in my opinion this is a fine solution. I got a rebate of $60 on this.. so with Amazon's great pricing.. this router was only $40!! It's features are much easier to use and includes DMZ unlike D-Link.

Go for it.

I have this unit but I bought it at Staples. I got a new Motorola cable modem through Amazon but went down to Staples to get the integrated Wireless router and Telephone Adapter. I am glad that I took this path even though I paid $25 more. Why? The telephone output quit after 11 days. I exchanged for another over the counter just this morning.

I started out signing up for callvantage at their website. They sent a Centillium telephone adapter. I had a netgear wireless router installed already, and a toshiba cable modem provided by Cox cable. Had lots of problems with losing internet connections. There were multiple problems, difficult to diagnose. First I discovered that the toshiba modem (supplied rent free, basically they gave it to us) was an old model and the local office could not provide any other modem. Nice that it was free, but they could have told their customers that to get reliable internet they should go buy a new, current generation model. Reviews here on Amazon convinced me to get the Motorola surfmodem.

So, then there was the issue of having two routers inline. They got confused. The Centillium (also supplied free, from AT&T) is a router and NAT, but with only one output. Put that into the Netgear. The Netgear would get confused. Eventually I decided that the integrated TelephoneAdapter (TA) and actual multi-point router with wireless was what was needed.

Works perfectly now. I am using the netgear wireless router as a switch. Something that you cannot find out from anyones documentation is: plug the input from one router into the INPUT on another (modern) router and it is a smart switch, not a router. So, it works fine now as a switch in the cabin and I have two wireless access points on different channels and the IP telephone.

But, the first Linksys router/TA I had quit driving the telephone out port after 10 days. I hope this one is more reliable.