Customer Reviews

Cisco-Linksys WRT110 RangePlus Wireless Router

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(25)
1 star:		(61)

 

 

Got the Linksys WRT110 because my Netgear WGR614 has been acting funny (will only connect to one wireless device at a time). I chose to do a manual install/configuration of the WRT110 and skipped the disk install completely. Setup the encryption (not WEP, by the way) and other settings, and I had the wireless router working in 10 minutes (it actually took less, but I was tutoring my 17-year old nephew on how to properly install a wireless router, which was why I skipped the disk install version). Afterwards, I searched the available wireless network, found the router SSID, typed in the password for network security (a definite must-do in San Francisco), and I was wirelessly connected! Still connected after 3 days, too.

I gave it a 5-star rating because it worked for me out of the box and without the disk installer. No glitches, and the device was current with the latest firmware. The router is on the second level, and I have decent signal (24-54 Mbps) in all the rooms on the same floor, and a stronger signal than the previous g-router on the other floors (18-24 Mbps with WRT110, -vs- 0-12 Mbps with WGR614). Internet is not affected, since my DSL is only 6 Mbps, anyway.

I picked the WRT110 over the WRT54G2 to try out the MIMO technology. I will update this review in a few weeks after I've completed my testing. Stay posted.

After configuring it as a stand-alone router, I then put it to the test by adding it to my LAN. I have a special configuration, which is a bit more advanced than those of a typical user. I have a D-Link DIR655 (Gigabit Wireless N router) as my DHCP router and is set as N-only mode. I have the WRT110 as wireless-g device hooked to this router which transmits at g-only.

"Why do I have two routers, when the DIR655 is backward compatible with G as well as N?" one might ask. The reason I have it with this configuration is because I have three wireless-N devices and four wireless-G devices. The G devices drops the DIR655 down to wireless-g whenever they are wirelessly connected to the DIR655. So, I have a wireless-G router hooked to the DIR655, the wireless-G computers are connected to the WRT110 and the N devices are connected to the DIR655, and all the devices are working to my preference.

Update:
After having this router for a week, it has stood up to the test and consistenly maintained its connection. My test is basically to bring two laptops (both wireless-G) one floor up and on the other side of the house where the router is located. Both laptops connect fine, and consistently maintain 8-24 Mbps, wheras connection with the old router is still hampered and drops connection every now and then. So either the MIMO function works as noted, or this is just a better router all together. I do not have the WRT54G2 to compare (with and without MIMO), but I'll try to get my hands on those and do a side-by-side comparison.

UPDATE 2 (2009-11-02):
After having this router for over a year, I am still surprisingly very pleased with it. I say "surprisingly" because the reviews for this router on Amazon.com is all over the board. I may have been one of the lucky ones with this router, because 1) I have never lost connection (wired or wireless) with this router, 2) I have never had to restart (in fact, I completely forgot I had this router, since I am running two different wireless routers), and 3) it is small enough to fit on top of a cabinet so that I don't see it. I have three computers (two notebooks, one desktop) connected wirelessly, and two wired PC computers (acting as file servers). It has worked so well for me that I bought one for my father-in-law, and one for my brother. After I set up their WRT110 routers, they have reported NO problems thus far (a year coming up in December). Overall, I am VERY pleased with this router, and fully deserves the initial 5-star rating I gave it.

UPDATE 3 (2010-11-03):
I've had this router for over two years now, and I stand by my initial 5-star review. I have never had to reset/restart this router since my last review a year ago, I've never dropped a connection when connected to this router, I have various things connected wirelessly to this router with no issues (4 desktops, 4 laptops, several iPods, my blackberry and Droid, my HP Ipaq, Iomega ScrenPlay TV Link, and whenever guests come over). I am able to stream video in DVD quality with no stuttering or lag. I do not have an extensive HD video collection, but with the home HD videos, the playback quality depends on the computer I am using, and ranges from perfect to acceptable (which tells me it is a hardware issue related to the computer, and not the wireless router).

I had to post an update because I've been reading some of the recent negative (one-star) reviews, and maybe I got lucky with my unit because it has been as reliable as my D-Link DIR-655 router. One possible explanation is that maybe Cisco-Linksys QC is slipping a bit with the newer products. Another is that the components are different, and not as reliable as the initial batches. Whatever the cause, I know I have been quite happy with this router for over two years.

I've been a long-time fan of Linksys products and have been pleased with their general reliability for years, until I purchased this product. I have maintained networks of hundreds of users, so home networking is almost effortless for me. I set my father's WRT110 up and everything went without a hitch. Total set-up time took only about 5 minutes, including showing him how to administer it himself. He has been up and running for nearly three weeks without a problem. I swore that his connection felt faster than my old WRT54G that I keep at home. Set-up seemed really easy and basically identical to previous Linksys wireless products I have purchased. I liked my father's router so much I figured I would replace my aging WRT54G. I was definitely swayed by the sleek, sexy design, low-profile, and the keen blue lights, but more importantly I actually thought this was a better router.

Quite possibly the worst mistake I've made in a long time. The first WRT110 that I purchased for my own use wouldn't allow me to access the the administration pages. This wasn't a password issue but a full blown, "server does not exist" when attempting to access 192.168.1.1 (the admin web IP address common to all Linksys routers). That's assuming attempting to access 192.168.1.1 didn't lock the computer up to the point where I was force to Force Quit or End Task on the browser. This happened to both my PC and my Mac. It would function as a wired gateway to my cable modem just fine but there was literally no way to configure it to do anything else. I tried resetting it, unplugging it, and I even thought about sacrificing a chicken and doing a little voo-doo dance naked beneath the moon before I figured the cold autumn air wasn't very conductive towards that type of solution. Nothing would allow me to configure that particular router. I even tried the bundled-in software as a last resort and that wouldn't work.

I exchanged the defective unit with another WRT110, convinced I just got a bad unit. I set the replacement one up and Voila! It worked. I can administer it just fine and manage to secure my wireless network the way I like. For some reason this particular unit took about 30 seconds to update settings when my father's only takes about four or five, but I was willing to accept that. I thought I was good to go until four days later, the router starts locking up hard several times per day. No activity at all. Not able to hit 192.168.1.1 and I can't even ping the router. The lights are on and it indicates activity, but it just doesn't respond. The only way to get it to come back to life is to unplug its power supply. After it reboots a few minutes later it will stay up for a few more hours before dying. I have updated to the most recent version of the firmware (from 1.0.0 to 1.0.04) and the issue seems even more frequent after the firmware update, but my perception of that may be clouded by my frustration and general hatred for this spiteful demon of a router.

I'm done with this exercise in frustration and I'm going back to my trusty WRT54G. My father's WRT110 works great for him, and I hope that other people with this model are able to get the same experience, but I will not be recommending this model to anyone. I have never had problems like this with any Linksys product before and I still recommend other Linksys products, just not this particular model. Just save your receipt and the box in case you need to exchange it.

I have owned a Linksys B wireless router for over 4 years. I have too many products competing for a wireless signal so I decided to upgrade to the 110. The only issue I had is where I had to call tech support to find out where in the router's menu could I change the output to B/G.
I have the following items connected
PS3
XBOX 360
iPod Touch
XP Laptop
Vista Laptop
Mac iBook
XP Desktop

I usually have the one laptop and a video game console going at the same time and don't notice any problems. The router is on the second floor and the video games systmes and laptops are on the first floor. I don't have experience with any other companies and I would continue to use Linksys products.

My Previous router was Dlink, which served me for 3+ years without any or the regular router issues.

It just stopped working one day Wifi died in morning and ethernet died by evening.

So went ahead and bought this new wrt110 router.

Setup was easy could connect my laptop in 5-10 mins over wifi.
Speeds was positively impressive than my 3 yr old router. could immediately notice.

Then I bought up other devices ( 2 more laptops + a ps3 + a iPhone). All good.

Impressed so far. , i thought of giving a 5* rating.

Problems started next morning, I work on VPN to connect to office. And have large file transfers every now and then.

It just wont stay connected. Disconnects at least 4-6 times in a day
All my transfers hang. I need to re-enter passwords every now and then
My Skype calls drop.

Tech support could not help much. Linksys forums say that I am not alone.
http://forums.linksys.com/linksys/board/message?board.id=Wireless_Routers&thread.id=99803&view=by_date_ascending&page=2

Summing Up.
Buy this IF:
1. You are ok with dropped connections for few mins
2. You have only 1 device that needs to connect to WIFI

else , Shop around as I am doing. Do you have any recommendations?

I am an Electrical Engineer and operate a small Internet service provider. Before we encountered this model we were a very loyal reseller of Linksys products, but this model made us reconsider.

We bought a case of these routers to sell to customers, and it was a large amount of money wasted. Every single one has been a lemon. Not one customer has been satisfied with their performance. Web page loads are interrupted. Video locks up. The range is terrible (the signal doesn't go half as far as that of one of Linksys' own WRT54G2 routers). And it uses an oddball chipset, made by Ralink; most of Linksys' products use silicon from Broadcom. This means that it's not supported by third party firmware -- such as Tomato Linux, OpenWRT, or DD-WRT -- that might work around the problems. We accepted them all back from our customers, lest they harm our reputation, and took a bath on them financially. They're good as nothing but doorstops.

Our research reveals that Linksys dropped this product unusually quickly after it was introduced, and hasn't bothered to release a firmware upgrade for it since 2009. It's a dog. Don't go near it.

P.S. -- If anyone out there is an attorney and wants to do a class action suit regarding this defective product, I'm in.

I was able to set up this product in minutes with no hassle. I like the fact that it supports WPA2 and 802.11n. I have had no connectivity issues whatsoever in my 2-story house (~1700 sf), and I've been able to use it in the backyard. It works well with my macbook pro, and I also have a windows desktop and Tivo hooked up to it, both with wired connections. When my sister comes over and brings her laptop, she can also connect up simultaneously with no problem. I was afraid that lack of external antenna would make it not work so well, but this is not the case.

I bought the WRT110 for my Verizon DSL based on good customer reviews that touted ease of setup. Well, I wish I could say my setup was quick and easy, but it wasn't, and required a 20 minute call to tech support. Basically, the problem boiled down to the DSL modem and the Linksys router trying to share the same IP address. I'm not computer-saavy enough to be able to figure that out, and my expectation is that the router setup would be smart enough to assign a different IP address without conflicting with an existing modem.

I may revise my review in a few weeks as I try various setups and house locations, but right now we're not off on the best foot.

UPDATE - After several weeks, I can say that this router has turned in solid service with great range. After experimenting with different locations, the router now resides in the finished attic of my 2000+ sq ft old home. Two floors down is where I usually connect, through a bunch of old timber and solid plaster, and I never get anything less than a solid 5 bars! It's difficult to understand other reviewers who have complained about range problems. Perhaps it's the internal wireless card on my 10-month-old Toshiba laptop...?

I'm not sure why this router has decent reviews here at all. It sells based on price and features, but if you read reviews elsewhere you'll see there are tons of reliability problems. I decided to chance it and use the new cisco branded linksys, got this item as an early x-mas present from a family member.

Setup was easy of course (I have a stack of cisco certs and teach SP/NP level cisco classes) and the router was up and running with wpa2, I loves me some AES. Range was good (despite the internal antenna) in my 1100 sq ft house and I was able to connect with all of my devices, XP and MacOS.

About an hour in my wife was watching streaming TV on the wired connection and I was VPN'd in to a client over the wireless connection. All connections dropped and would not re-establish. The power LED was blinking. I power cycled the router and all was well for another half an hour. Then all connections dropped again. This time the power cycle didn't fix anything, I still got the blinking power LED.

I connected my laptop directly to the cable modem and saw this was a common problem. Did a factory reset and was able to administer the router again, but the website wold only half load. I'd get some text but no buttons. When I was able to make changes the save button would cause the router to freeze and I'd have to go through the factory reset each time to get it working again.

I spend about an hour with the linksys live chat support most of which was spent convincing the tech nothing was wrong with the NICs on all three of my computers and that there really was a problem with the router. I finally convinced him to give me an RMA. Then when I tried to process it I found out linksys wants to CHARGE THE CUSTOMER for the cost of shipping the bad unit back to them. Keep in mind we're talking 10% of the entire cost of the router to ship it back.

Rightfully annoyed by this I called customer service. The rep tried to explain the RMA process to me several times like a mantra even after I made it clear that I understood it but didn't agree with it. I finally resorted to asking for a sup. She put me on hold for 10 minutes then came back on and tried to pass herself off as the supervisor using a fake name! Are you serious? I called her on it and she put me back on hold. 15 minutes later I got to talk to the actual supervisor who after some discussion admitted to me that there was no way they could violate their procedure and send me a pre-paid shipping label. She apologized that they had no way to appease an angry customer. (Her words!)

I returned this brick to amazon since they act like an actual business that backs what they sell by providing a pre-paid shipping label. I will not accept a replacement, they'll just send me an amazon gift card which is perfect. So I can buy something that doesn't suck.

So, to sum up: The router has good features and decent range. It has lots of reliability problems (do a web search), and WHEN it breaks linksys will try to pass on their cost of doing business to you. DO NOT BUY, and if you already have I suggest you return the item to amazon and get something else before you end up with the same problem.

I also have Comcast and was able to hook up this unit, replacing a WRT54G, with no problem at all using a Windows XP desktop and the installation wizard CD. The WRT54G's limited range did not work in all areas of my house, and the WRT110 has resolved that issue. Devices that are 80-100 feet away from the unit have a strong, consistent signal. The only downside that I have found with Linksys is that the wait times on support calls has become greatly extended from what it was two years ago. It seems like the support staffing has not kept up with the number of units being supported.

Perhaps my title seems strong to you? If it were not now 12:21am - I would sit and think of something stronger to tell you how I really feel.

Folks I am 43 years old - and have worked on computers professionally for over 20 years. I have configured more routers and networking equipment in my career than I care to remember. I am not a typical home user. I do networking FOR A LIVING. I can tell you firewall ports in my sleep. I can configure extremely intricate networking designs. I set up networks for businesses. I am the guy people call - when the EXPERTS can't make a network operate properly! I think I SHOULD be qualified to set up a silly wireless router - don't you? If I'm not - who is?

Yet even with this much skill, and over 20 years of experience, I must tell you honestly that THIS piece of twisted nightmarish plastic is the WORST piece of networking gear I have ever had the extreme misfortune to be tortured with. Horrible. Dismal. Completely unrepentant JUNK. And these are the better points! The bad aspects can not be written here in a mixed company family forum.....

Let me explain in detail.....

The setup did NOT work to begin with. Oh it tried to. Until it locked up the router. And then could not run because the router was - well - locked.....

OK - no problem. I know how to go in through a browser to the control interface manually - the old fashioned way. On a Linksys the magic address is 192.168.1.1 - remember this address boys and girls - if you buy one of these twisted demons from the minds of the mental midgets who designed it - you will NEED to know this handy tidbit. Default user name and password are both - admin. Keep this close. Close to your heart. You will get well familiar with this before you are done......

Except that did not work.

What do I mean - would not work? Well..... I could PING the silly thing. And the address would reply. But if I tried to access it at 192.168.1.1 in a browser - it would tell me it could not load the page. What seemed to be happening is that it was passing through this device to the cable modem directly. Wonderful - isn't that lovely?

So the wired ports are useless to take manual control of this jumping piece of joy.....

And the wireless would not even turn on......

After a bit of fiddling with the reset button - which also did not work as designed - I managed to get this thing reset again.

Now wireless worked. Yep - light is on...... Joy! We have ignition!

Bypassing the software install that had crashed it in the first place - I went in through the browser and set it up.

Eazy Peezy - ba da bing ba da boom - and 4 minutes later.....

Wireless working - ethernet ports working - and all is well in the universe.

Did speed tests. Outstanding. Everything is great. Full signal. 8mbps upload speed - limited by my cable modem speed. Walked all over the house with my laptop - upstairs and down - signal strength barely moved. Outstanding! Almost - ALMOST - worth the hassle.

Stepped outside for 5 minutes

Full power.... then - 1 bar...... Almost no signal.

Came back inside...... 3 bars..... Hmmmm. Why the low signal strength?

I know - lets reboot the Laptop!

Laptop reboots - no problem - can not connect to router.

Looked at the router.....

Wireless is now again not working on this router! AGAIN! Are you KIDDING?

Router does not now respond by any means to reset. Held the reset button down for 30 seconds - 45 seconds - 1 minute...... No luck. Did it with ethernet unplugged - plugged in - power cycling it while resetting - resetting after power cycle while self test in progress - every combination you can think of.

No luck

Hard reset doesn't work. And no other way to reset the reset process....

It now works only as a WIRED hub. Wireless will not even turn on.

And it has decided to ignore the reset button. Completely.

And the IP address for system configuration - while responding to ping - will not load in any browser - neither under Windows XP or under Mac OS 10.5.

It is basically a pile of useless junk.

It would be funny except it is now 10:00pm and I am tired from working all day.....

I know - maybe Linksys has a utility to reset this bad boy..... Lets call TECH SUPPORT...... (laugh)

OH WHAT A JOYFUL EXPERIENCE THAT WAS!

Called 5 times. To India apparently. They have a FINE script they use. Asking you to reboot your computer - reboot your cable modem - hook your computer to the cable modem.....

I NEED TO RESET THE FLIPPING ROUTER!

My cable modem works. My computer works. Why do these people not understand that the red button on this piece of divine comedy DOES NOT WORK?!?!?!?!

5 TIMES!

OK - fine. Maybe I am suddenly devoid of common sense. Know what - lets do it THEIR way! They obviously have the technical competence of a 3 day dead squid - but hey - maybe when they run out of script and have to THINK - they will LISTEN to what the problem is......

Off we go.... Running in circles. A complete exercise in useless repetition and frustration.....

And then when they run out of ideas - they put you on hold to ask their manager - then THEY HANG UP.

Oh FINE. Call back in. No sir - we can not transfer you to the person you were just speaking to. They are (a) busy, (b) on with another customer, (c) no longer with the company, or (d) not in today - even though I JUST SPOKE TO THEM 15 SECONDS AGO!!!!!!!!! Ok FINE.... Lets see if THIS person can help......

OH GOOD LORD - they have the SAME SCRIPT. And are just as hard of hearing and absent of ideas as the last person! OK - FINE - lets do it THEIR WAY. AGAIN.

5 TIMES!

COUNT IT - 5 TIMES! OH GREAT GOBS OF GOOBLY GOOK! What form of MADNESS is THIS? This would be some sort of erotic FANTASE to Dante - or the Marquis de Sade - but to me - I am becoming just a tiny bit MIFFED at this point.

So I call back in - and ask for a SUPERVISOR.

After 10 minutes on hold - I am told - there IS NO SUPERVISOR. WHAT? NO SUPERVISOR! I AM NOT KIDDING!

And they hang up again. I did not say disconnect. THEY HANG UP!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?


3 hours later - I have it now boxed back up - for a store return. You better believe this particular bundle of joy is coming right back at you Linksys. NO WAY am I keeping THIS.

And by the way - researching it on the web - there are KNOWN FIRMWARE ISSUES with this router that (a) cause frequent reboots, (b) lock up the router, and (c) prevent the reset button from operating. OUTSTANDING!

WHY DID YOU PUT THIS PIECE OF ABSOLUTE AND TOTAL GARBAGE ON THE MARKET LINKSYS? It is NOT ready for commercial release. It is not even ready for ALPHA testing - but less BETA testing. Who runs your QUALITY CONTROL? A merry band of blind deaf mutes in a cave? I will guarantee you that they could not find their own bottom if you shined a spot light on it, and put a fire alarm between their.... KNEES.

Only their TECHNICAL SUPPORT is worse.......

Lets see - Quality control is non existent - product released with known problems and issues - and Technical Support is bad joke on a good day.

What happened?

Linksys was once known as a quality brand and quality product and worthy of a bit of a price premium.

Not anymore!

Linksys just lost a long term customer of the past 10 years. One who has recommended literally 100's of their products and generated a healthy bit of sales for them as well as bringing them new customers.

NOT ANYMORE!

Not after FRANKEN-ROUTER!


This little bundle of pure plastic pride is now sitting on top of the color laser - and will be taken BACK to the poor unfortunates who sold it to me in the morning - and EXCHANGED for something else. Something NOT made by LINKSYS!



Netgear - Belkin - one of you two get the business tomorrow. Lets see if you can do better.

I KNOW YOU CAN NOT POSSIBLY DO WORSE!