Customer Reviews

D-Link DGL-4300 Wireless 108G Gaming Router

5 star:		(97)
4 star:		(27)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I'm a computer professional so technology is not much of a mystery to me, but I still want something that's solid, and easy to manage. The internal software to his unit is pretty good, and the performance is top notch. For one its easy to store, and save your configurations. This is important because there may be occasion where you have to reset the router, and your settings would be lost. The firmware was easy to update, and will need to be updated as soon as you connect the device. A word of caution here, if you are using a dial-up connection, (unless its always been very stable), I don't recommend upgrading the firmware with it. One thing you cannot do, because it will likely render the router useless, is lose your connection in the middle of a firmware upgrade.

This is a gamer modem, and the help files and web manual provide good information as to how to set it up. It even has the settings to port replicate many popular game already built in. In addition, it has a special gamer network traffic section to keep your games running on an even keel over your network. I works, but better with some games than others. While I can't speak for any screaming, bleeding edge speed boosters, it seemed fast. I connected my old Windows 98SE machine using a Hawking, USB, wireless receiver, and it just worked! I experienced none of the problems I'd read horror stories about with other wireless routers.

Connection is a snap. Disconnect your cable modem from the back of your comp, connects its ethernet cable to your new D-Link router, run the included cable from the D-link to your ethernet port on your comp. (If your computer was connected with USB, you might need a $10 ethernet PCI card if you don't have an ethernet connection.) Turn everything back on, and (at least in my case, it just worked). If your running it as a network, and not just a single firewall, I'd recommend the most modern computer for the wired connection. The rest can either go wired or wireless. I got excellent signal strength, and have yet to experience a dropout on my wireless machine. For those who don't know, a wireless router is normally wired to the first machine (wired connections are generally faster and more solid than wireless). The wireless part is generally for other computers and network devices (like printers and such) to be connected to the wireless part of the network. In the past all connections to a router were wired. If you have one computer you can use an access point, instead of a firewall, but with the exception of this one, (which is expensive) most access points cost near the same as a four port wireless router.

Ok, now the bad news. It is a complicated piece of tech, and to do some things, people might need help. My advice is to read the FAQ's, and go to the web boards. I needed to get it to host a BattleNet game. I had the correct ports replicated as an exception, but it didn't work. I called the tech serve, and a typical moron told me how to ping the system with Windows command line. I spent a half hour trying to tell him I was connected fine, and could even play the game I wanted (Warcraft III Frozen Throne), but could not host a game. He couldn't answer a few simple questions, and finally admitted he didn't know anything about networking, but was reading from a test script. He agreed to transfer me to level 2 technicians. When I spoke to them they couldn't answer my questions either, and gave some lame excuse that if they told me how to host on BNet it would make my network insecure, and they would be liable to a lawsuit. Give me a break, you create a gamer router, and even include the ports listed for that game, then won't tell your customers how to set it up. I just don't think they held up their end of the bargain (D-Link support that is).

After two days of testing it, I finally figured out, I had to create virtual servers for each port separately, then create a static IP address, and connect it up to the dynamically created one from Comcast. That would allow the virtual servers to be used by the gamers connecting to the host machine, to connect to a defined, unchanging address, which would connect to whatever other address came up dynamically by the service provider, using the DCHP server. It sounds complicated to a non-network guy, and it is. I'd have like to been told how to do that by tech serve, but they were too incompetent so it was just trial and error, plus a lot of reading.

Bottom line is if you've gone though the router trials before, this will probably be a good experience. If not, prepare to educate yourself on the wonderful world of networking. I do recommend routers to be used as firewalls to all computer users who access the web, gamers or not. Hackers are banging on your computers ports all day long on the web, and with a hardware router, they only see a router, not the computers hidden behind it. If your not a gamer, this one is pricey, but if you want the latest greatest, as of today, this is pretty much it.

I've always sworn by Linksys and Netgear, but this past summer, I was pulling my hair out with VOIP problems. On both my older Linksys Wireless-G router and a newer Netgear WGR614 router, all calls over VOIP would end spontaneously after 5-10 minutes. It varied and improved somewhat when I moved to the WGR614.

On a whim, I purchased this from CompUSA. I'd had problems with D-Link in the past - two wireless routers in a row died in less than a year, just prior to purchasing my Linksys G-router. Oh man, how things have changed.

1) VOIP is given priority on this router. I haven't dropped a Vonage call in three weeks.
2) Where before my XBox live signal (XBOX360 w/ wireless-G adapter) was weak and prone to disconnection, this router provides a very robust and stable connection.
3) Both of my Apple Powerbooks connect without issue. I've had problems with both the Linksys and Netgear router and WPA-PSK implementation. It would often kick back my password, deny access to the network, or my Apple would wake from sleep and not be able to find the network. Again, in three weeks, both Powerbooks have connected within seconds using WPA-PSK.
4) It sounds stupid but...this router is attractive. No longer do I feel the need to hid the unit under a desk. It just looks...cool. LEDs are bright, though, so if you game in a darkened room with this router, watch out. ;)
5) More intuitive interface than the competition.

I've heard that D-Link provides weak support for their products, but then, so did Netgear and Linksys, both of whom I called about the VOIP issue and both, naturally, blamed it on the VOIP box. Hopefully, with such an outstanding product, I'm sure I'll never have to avail myself upon D-Link's tech support.

Sure, this router is MUCH more expensive than the competition, but it works as advertised, provides a better WiFi signal and, most importantly, its CONSISTANT.

D-Link only made one mistake with this router, and that was bad marketing. They shouldn't market this as a 'Gaming' router, but more as their premium brand router. The real option that makes this router shine is that it just works. I had initially bought a linksys WRT54G seeing that Cisco bought linksys and I thought it would be great but it was bad news. It was slow, had poor signal strength compared the 4300 and wouldn't 'just work' with the PSP and the Gameboy DS. I sent it back to Amazon and bought 4300 instead. I had bought a new router to replace my old DLink 614+, and am nothing shy of overjoyed. This router is no gimmick. It has a gigabit switch built in which if you have gigabit NIC's in your wired network make file transfer lightning fast. And the wireless has an increased range over my previous DLink router, not to mention wireless G and the Dlink 108 boosted signal as well. The real feature that makes this router amazing is the Quality of Service (QoS) features. They make it seem like its more for gaming, but you can tweak priority of packets between gaming, internet traffic, phone (VoIP) traffic, and customize it to the your liking. You can even set it to turn off certain ports or all activity at certain times, i.e. you can keep people off after their bedtime!!! Overall this router is Stellar, but I have to say that if your not a techie, or really going to take the time to learn how to use thing, it will just seem like a plain old router when in fact it is a powerful networking tool, that you can set up once correctly and walk away from. If your very new to home networks, you may just like something simpler. Either way this is an amaizng product and the best home router i have ever used.

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Router Uptime is now 6 Months. Never had a problem and its been wonderful. Xbox Live works well as does the Nintendo DS with Mario Kart. The range on my laptop is pretty good. i have the Router in the basement but receive 75%+ signal strength all over the first floor of our house. I haven't decided if i want this on an upper floor to increase the range and strength out into the neighborhood. More on VoIP as soon as we get it.

I upgraded from a Netgear WGT624 108Mbps router to the D-Link DGL-4300 and boy, what a difference! The signal that was weak and always dropping upstairs through several foot-thick stone walls is now solid and fast. Gigabit local network is so fast I can capture video to a networked computer's RAID hard drives without overloading mine :-). Because of the removable antenna, I can attach a booster to it, but now that it's working so well, why bother? I just saved another $100 :-).

The only configuration I had to do on Comcast was to copy the MAC address of my old router to this one (Internet Port MAC Address) so Comcast thinks I'm using my old router (then reboot the computer). If you don't have a router yet, you can simply clone your computer's address, and you're done. Be sure to upgrade to the latest bios ASAP in the setup process before you configure too much. The latest is a huge improvement in speed and compatability with 108/g/b protocols.

This is by far the best router out there- probably even better than most Pre-N routers for range, and defititly better for Gigabit LAN speeds! I've never been so happy about a product's performance as I am with the DGL-4300!

I won't waste too much space. I also own this router and agree the other reviews are accurate.

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Bottom line: This router will *help* you if you have multiple users doing different types of tasks (say 1 person games, 1 downloads legitimately purchased music, 1 uploads vacation pictures to a friend), but it won't solve all of your problems if you are an avid P2P file-sharer. I would recommend reading the help guide (very useful online help) to assist in tweaking the router to maximise performance. Also, I've had to call D-Link tech support for my business, they are friendly, knowledgable, and were responsive in getting my problem solved.

Be warned: I've read reports of problems with a feature of this router with X-Box Live (but also note: the feature is DISABLED by default!).

Living in Alaska presents a lot of issues with networking and power fluctuations. I could not stay connected for more than a couple of hours at a time with other routers I was purchasing. I do a lot of online gaming, DAoC, SB, WoW, etc and randomly losing connections during large battles really became frustrating. After buying Linksys router and giving up on I decided to try the DGL-4300 gaming router, to see if I could stay online for more than a couple of hours. Installation was a breeze and the first large PvP battle I fought in with 50+ people on screen I noticed that not only was the lag I had been receiving with the Linksys routers non-existent, but I never once became disconnected for an entire evening of intense fighting. I am sold 100% that this router is worth every penny. I spend top money to buy high-end computer equipment that I can overclock to its maximum potential, but I always ended up buying cheap routers. This gaming router lives up to the hype and helps my equipment produce maximum online gaming potential.

I agree with all the preceeding reviews. This router is extremely stable, has a fantastic range, the blue LEDs and black chromed finish are beautiful too. Best router I've ever owned.

I'm posting here to add that (once you upgrade to the 1.5 firmware) this router works great with BOTH X-Box Live and Nintendo Wi-Fi with no additional setup. I even enabled WEP and there were no problems connecting to either service, all I had to do was enter the WEP key on the Nintindo DS and it was ready to go. Be you a router configuring expert or a novice, you'll find this router meets and exceeds all your needs.

We had 3 desktops, a laptop and a TiVo all wirelessly connected in our home using Linksys adapters and a WRT54G Linksys wireless G router. That router was the bane of my existence--it dropped signal constantly, at least 3-4 times per day, for no explicable reason. Numerous calls to Linksys as well as warranty replacements and firmware tweaks did nothing to fix the issue.

Despite the larger price tag, I decided to try the D-Link DGL-4300 after reading several positive reviews from people who had the same Linksys troubles as I did.

This router is fantastic! The menus are easy to navigate, featuring a simple format for novice users and a detailed menu for those more technically inclined. I literally had it set up and working with WEP encryption within 5 minutes. In addition, since it is designed with gamers in mind, the router already had a pre-set list of games and the communication ports they use. Since we play World of Warcraft, it was a snap to set up the firewall to allow WoW to communicate through the router, just by selecting the game from a list.

But the best aspect of this router is that it has been running for almost a month now and we haven't had a single drop in signal that has affected our network at all! I attribute this to a smart feature inside the router configuration (you can enable or disable it) that will automatically channel scan for the clearest channel available if it picks up any interference, a lot like a cordless phone does. So if my neighbors change their wireless network channel, the D-Link DGL-4300 will switch to a clear channel and then inform all my wireless devices to do the same--the total process takes less than 3 seconds and is fast and efficient enough not to result in lost signal or packets. It's wonderful!

My only reservation about an otherwise perfect experience thus far has been some limitations D-Link's firmware imposes on WEP security. With several wireless networks in my neighborhood, security is a big concern for us. With the Linksys, even a 64-bit WEP password could be up to 21 characters long. With this D-Link, a 64-bit WEP password has a maximum ASCII character length of 5, which forces you to get really creative with your password choosing. To add a little insult to injury for those less technically-minded, it also requires you key in your WEP password in hexidecimal, rather than plain text. This can be a bit of a pain--indeed, I had to Google a web site to translate my password to hex for me. Still, it is a small price to pay for an otherwise top notch performance router.

If you're having any connection or synch issues with your existing wireless network, or if you are looking to add a wireless network to your home and want speed, performance and (mostly) ease of use, you don't have to be a gamer to appreciate the subtle perfection that is the D-Link DGL-4300.

I don't know what it is, but all the routers I've had have all been, well lousy. Random hangs and crashes, crude and sloppy software, moody DHCP servers, unreliable upgrades, garbage power supplies, and general bad behavior. Funny thing is, they've all been linksys, and they never improved. Yup, faster, and more expensive was the claim, but they all were just junk. I'd finally had it. Especially in a house with school age kids that learn to rely on the internet, and when it crashes twice a week, I become tech support boy real quick.

Now this router is another story. I'd started playing around with Gigabit Ethernet last year, for gaming and MP3 file sharing, and was surprised to see a router that featured GbE when I went looking to replace yet another failed blue box. Let me tell you, after some 6 or so blue routers over the past 8 years, this one rocks. It just worked, no drama. The software makes sense, and is not a sloppy mess. It upgrades itself it you tell it to. It tells you whats going on. Its fast. You can find things in it.

The power supply even looks decent. I've had some D-Link stuff over the years, mostly wireless cards, and I knew they were pretty good, but this thing takes the cake. It IS worth the extra money, especially if it lasts a couple of years. Highly recommended

This DGL-4300 is the nicest router I have owned, in looks, features and reliability. My previous routers were an SMC, Microsoft MN-100, Microsoft MN-500, Linksys WRT54G. I've owned this router for over a month now.

This router basically is everything I want in a router, minus a few bugs. Such as if I uncheck one of the logging options, and then it will email me a blank log file instead. The log file btw is detailed, and holds many log entries (350 or more).... unlike many other brands which only store a few lines which tell you nothing. It also does not support UPnP yet, but may in the future, although it does have support for Port Triggering which is a variation of UPnP.

The BLUE LED lights on this are also super bright. So much so that it lights up your room at night time. I suppose that could be a drawback to some people who don't like any lights when they sleep. Its a very nice looking router, with a chrome front plate around the LED's (remove the thin plastic to see the shiny chrome, there is also a thin plastic covering the logo on top of the router), and the matt black color all adds up to a nice looking router.

The chipset inside this router is made by Ubicomm, the chipset and cpu are specifically designed for QOS. Unlike any other routers which claims to have QOS. Just remember to turn on the Gamefuel option and you don't need to really do anything else. Except set your maximum upload speed so it knows how to adjust the QOS. The QOS works great for games and when I was uploading at full speed, it had little to no affect on the game.

I have not tried VOIP, I don't plan on getting that any time soon. One thing I have learned over the years is that every brand of router has its own problems. This one has been the best for me so far.