Cisco-Linksys WRT120N Wireless-N Home Router

by Cisco

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.6 x 11.3 x 9.6 inches ; 1.8 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0028N6VNW
• Item model number: WRT120N
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (128 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #228 in Computers & Accessories (See Top 100 in Computers & Accessories)
  • #84 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > Networking Products > Routers
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 7, 2009

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

From the Manufacturer Get connected without wires. The Linksys by Cisco Wireless-N Home Router (WRT120N) is an affordable, basic wireless router for sharing a broadband Internet connection and accessing files from almost anywhere in the home. It's a perfect wireless solution for those new to home networking who want the speed advantage of Wireless-N.

Wireless-N Home Router

Product Features:

• Wireless router shares the internet, printing and storage with multiple computers
• Double the speed of G when used with other Wireless-N devices but also works great with older G products
• Includes four Fast Ethernet ports for your wired computers and devices
• Powerful encryption protects the router’s wireless signal and a built-in firewall helps guard your computers from Internet attacks
• Push button setup feature helps make wireless configuration more secure and simple (Wi-Fi Protected Setup™)
• Easy to install on a Windows PC or Mac with Network Magic™
  
  

---

Step up to the speed of Wireless-N!

Get connected without wires.  The Wireless-N Home Router gives you a wireless connection that's twice the speed of Wireless-G so your whole family can share a broadband Internet connection and access files from almost anywhere in the house.

Wireless Freedom

Wireless-N technology lets you surf the web from the living room, play on-line games from the bedroom, and listen to your digital music in the kitchen.  The extra speed lets you connect more devices, and move files faster.  And Wireless-N works great with your older devices, too.

Device Connectivity

Keep your digital files in one place, and share them from any computer on your network. Four built-in 10/100 Ethernet ports make it easy to connect additional wired computers, storage, printers, and other wired devices to your network.

Security Made Simple

Wireless security and firewall protection help safeguard your home network and computers from most Internet attacks.

---

Product Benefits

Wireless-N Home Router Ports

Setup and Installation

• Includes Network Magic Basic do-it-yourself tools to set up, manage and secure your network.
• Share Internet connections, printers and files
• Block intruders from accessing your wireless network
• Troubleshoot and repair problems quickly
• Setup Wizards for both Windows and MacOS X computers
• Wi-Fi Protected Setup™ helps make wireless configuration secure and push-button easy
• Clearly labeled, color-coded 10/100 Fast Ethernet ports and connection points on the back of the router
• LED indicators on the front of the router that clearly communicate connections and functionality

Security

Wi-Fi Protected Setup™ helps make wireless configuration secure and push-button easy.  Just push a button on the router and on other Wi-Fi Protected Setup-enabled wireless devices to automatically create a WPA2 connection that helps protect data and privacy with up to 128-bit industrial-strength encryption.  The Router can serve as a DHCP Server, has a powerful SPI firewall to help protect PCs against intruders and most known Internet attacks, supports VPN pass-through, and can be configured to filter internal users' access to the Internet.  Advanced configuration is simple through a web browser-based interface.

Performance

Many Ways to Connect

• Connect notebook and desktop computers and other devices such as storage or printers without running cables or drilling through walls
• The integrated 4-port, full-duplex 10/100 switch facilitates the connection of computers or Ethernet-enabled devices such as printers, cameras and storage into the home network
• Connects the home network to the Internet  via a cable or DSL (ADSL) modem

Design & Environmental

• The sleek and stylish product silhouette eliminates external antennas and looks good anywhere in the home
• Sturdy, robust design keeps obstinate cables in place
• The external power supply meets ENERGY STAR requirements
• Product packaging and documents made from minimum 80% recycled content and printed with vegetable-based ink

Works Best With
For optimal performance the Wireless-N Home Router (WRT120N) can be used with these other great Linksys by Cisco products:

• Wireless Notebook Adapter (WPC100)
• Wireless USB Notebook Adapter (WUSB100)

Technical Specs

• Model No: WRT120N
• Standards: IEEE 802.3u, 802.11g, 802.11b, draft 802.11n
• LEDs: Power, Internet, Wireless, Wi-Fi Protected Setup™, Ethernet (1-4)
• Dimensions: 7.99" x 1.38" x 6.3"
• Weight: 8.4oz (0.238 kg)

Package Contents

• Wireless-N Home Router
• Setup software and User Guide on CD-ROM
• Ethernet network cable
• Quick Installation Guide
• Power adapter
  

Minimum Requirements

• Internet Explorer 6.0, Safari 3.0, or Firefox 1.0
• CD-ROM drive
• Network Magic Basic Software requires up-to-date Windows XP, Vista or Vista 64-bit Edition
• Setup Wizard also runs under MAC OS X 10.4 or higher
  
  

---

Which Linksys by Cisco router is right for me?

Select your Linksys by Cisco router based on the type of activities you do most: SPEED COVERAGE WRT54G2 Wireless-G Broadband Router               WRT120N Wireless-N Broadband Router               WRT160N Wireless-N Broadband Router           WRT310N Wireless-N Gigabit Router         WRT320N Dual-Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router         WRT400N Simultaneous Dual-Band Wireless-N Router       WRT610N Simultaneous Dual-N Band Wireless Router

Each router can perform functions beyond the checkmarks above, however the checks represent the optimal usage for each router.

---

** Not all products available in all locations. Specifications are subject to change without notice. Linksys, Cisco, and the Cisco logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of Cisco Systems, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and certain other countries. Copyright © 2009 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.

*Maximum performance derived from IEEE Standard 802.11 specifications. Actual performance can vary, including lower wireless network capacity, data throughput rate, range and coverage. Performance depends on many factors, conditions and variables, including distance from the access point, volume of network traffic, building materials and construction, operating system used, mix of wireless products used, interference and other adverse conditions.

Product Description

Step up to the speed of Wireless-N! Get connected without wires.  The Wireless-N Home Router gives you a wireless connection that's twice the speed of Wireless-G so your whole family can share a broadband Internet connection and access files from almost anywhere in the house. Wireless-N technology lets you surf the web from the living room, play on-line games from the bedroom, and listen to your digital music in the kitchen.  The extra speed lets you connect more devices, and move files faster.  And Wireless-N works great with your older devices, too.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Wow what a POS... $30 Belkin is better than this..., November 9, 2009

By 

Cdav - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cisco-Linksys WRT120N Wireless-N Home Router (Electronics)

I hardly ever write reviews (like someone else said) but wow, what a piece of crap this is! DO NOT BUY THIS! The setup is easy but this router is junk. It will just stop working for no reason. I don't know if it is overheating or what. I have even tried flipping it over so the vents are facing up. It will just stop working once is a while. By once is a while I mean around 1-3 times a day. Sometimes I have to manually reset(unplug - the reset button doesn't always do it.). Other times it takes a few minutes to start working again. I had a $30 Belkin before and it lasted 2 years with no problems until the end. Once I find a good replacement I'm going to pull an Office Space on this thing.

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Faulty Units, October 28, 2009

By 

IPslinger "IPslinger" (Wilmington, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cisco-Linksys WRT120N Wireless-N Home Router (Electronics)

The ratio of success with these units is about 1:5, meaning that for every five that we purchase, only one will function properly. I am an IT Professional and install several residential and commercial wireless systems a month and I have had great success with the previous line of Linksys Wireless Routers (WRT54G's), but these newer Linksys/Cisco Wireless Router must have a design or a component fault. Typical Chinese junk(IMHO). Don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE Cisco fan, but I'm very disappointed in this newer line of consumer grade routers now offered by Linksys/Cisco....

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good router; you simply have to know how to configure it to sidestep some bugs., September 18, 2011

By 

L. B. Glass - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cisco-Linksys WRT120N Wireless-N Home Router (Electronics)

I see quite a few negative reviews here from frustrated customers, but the truth is that this isn't a bad router. I've set these up for plenty of users and they've had no issues. You just need to know what's inside and how to configure it, and as an electrical engineer who specializes in wireless, I can tell you about this.

This router -- unlike most Linksys routers -- uses an Atheros SoC (system-on-chip). (Most Linksys routers use Broadcom chips.) This means that it has some quirks that are peculiar to Atheros. For example, most Atheros-based devices are well known to have what's called the "stuck beacon" problem in their internal software. The problem is not due to overheating, as is speculated in some of the reviews here, but it can be triggered by heavy network loading or noise on the airwaves. Without going into too much technical detail, this is a problem that happens when the router gets busy or encounters noise and misses its chance to send a "beacon" signal advertising its existence. If it doesn't get to send the beacon by the time it's due to send another, it sends out an invalid beacon that doesn't conform to the Wi-Fi standard. This can cause everything on the wireless network to disconnect abruptly.

Atheros should have fixed this problem long ago, but for some reason its developers do not seem to want to admit to the problem. And because Atheros insists upon providing the low-level code that runs the chips only in canned binary form (they call it a "hardware abstraction layer," or HAL) to most equipment manufacturers, and the code is difficult to understand and modify even if you have it, the majority of equipment makers who use Atheros chipsets have been unable to fix this bug themselves.

My advice for trouble-free operation is as follows. First, don't use the included setup disk, despite the stickers that say "Run CD First." All it will do is put annoying software that you don't want or need on your computer. Instead, configure the router via its internal Web interface. Update to the latest firmware and then set the beacon interval to a large value (1000 milliseconds or more) so that the chances of the "stuck beacon" bug cropping up are virtually nil. Also, set the router to use only ordinary 802.11b and 802.11g (Mixed B-G) rather than the nonstandard 802.11 "pre-n" that it implements. You won't see a slowdown (802.11g is faster than any Web site) and you won't see other odd problems. It also helps to set the router to use WPA encryption (only slightly less secure than WPA2) and use a long, non-guessable password. When you select WPA, the firmware will turn off some "features" that might be troublesome and you'll have a nice, stable network. Yes, it'll be 802.11b/g, but it'll be solid as a rock and very compatible. With these settings, it will work just fine with a MacBook, an iPad or a Kindle and will not trigger the WEP 802.1x authentication bug in Windows XP.

If you really thirst after true 802.11n, get an E-1000 or E-1200. But you won't see any meaningful difference in speed or range in normal use.

By the way, there are a few Linksys models you really SHOULD avoid: those based on Ralink chipsets, such as the WRT100 and WRT110. These now-discontinued models are hopelessly defective and will give you nothing but grief. Ralink chips aren't inherently bad, but Linksys products based on them have been uniformly awful.