Customer Reviews

D-Link DWL-G800AP Wireless Range Extender, 802.11g, 54Mbps

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(15)

 

 

DO NOT BUY this product if you are intending to use it as a repeater. It does not support WPA or WPA-PSK in repeater mode. Their web site does not mention this, nor does their firmware upgrade documentation. I spoke with a tech who admitted this fact, but the idea that their ads were [...] did not mean much to him. This product will NOT work with their DL-624 in repeater mode if you want to have a WPA secure network.

Another steller D-Link product. Works great as long as you don't want to use WEP Encryption. After going through 5 phone techs, I finally had one level with me, saying "look, this thing never works with the encryption turned on". After that, I called back and the 2nd-Tier phone tech told me the same thing. Buyer Beware, don't purchase if you want to keep your network WEP turned on!!

The D-Link DWL-G800 works fine as a repeater once you get it figured out, it's the pathetic and inadequate D-Link documentation that's really the sticking point.

This product is advertised as being compatible with the DI-624 AirPlus Xtreme G wireless router/AP and indeed it is... EXCEPT that you cannot run the DI-624 in Xtreme G mode with the repeater, unless you enjoy dropped signal and having to hard-reset the repeater every five minutes.

Here's the quick and dirty if you are using this repeater with the DI-624:

1. Log onto the DI-624, go into the Advanced Options and enable the "Long Preamble", then disable the Xtreme G options. Allow the router/AP to reboot.

2. The DWL-G800 is then considerably more stable and can be configured with WEP or WPA.

3. An aside, if you are using XP with either service pack, know that Microsoft in their infinite wisdom have now included something called "Wireless Zero Config" which, so far as I know, can't be disabled or turned off, unless you're using some sort of third party configuration utility. Briefly, this means that you shouldn't disable the SSID broadcast on either AP if using this Wireless Zero config. In fact, Microsoft advises against it since the Zero config doesn't allow you to statically enter your SSID.

Open question to D-Link: why even purchase the DI-624 in connection with the DWL-G800 if you can't use the Xtreme G with it?

I've read all the warnings and the angry messages, and decided to go ahead and try it anyway, assuming that I'll figure it out, since I managed to get its predecessor (DWL-800AP+) to work when my network was 802.11b.

It didn't work. I tried all the recommended fixes that I saw here and elsewhere (disable WEP, disable DHCP, disable Super G, choose Channel 1, choose long preambles, etc, etc). Nothing worked. The client would get a great signal from the repeater, but there would be no traffic.

My firmware was the latest: 2.70 on the DI-624 router, and 1.05 on the DWL-G800AP repeater.

Then I tried downgrading the firmware on the router to 2.50, and it worked right away! I am using WEP and DHCP without problems, though Super-G is still disabled (the clients on this network are not Super-G capable anyway).

Bottom line: If you too have this pair (DI-624 Version C3 with 2.50 firmware and DWL-800AP Version A1 with 1.05 firmware) - I believe that you should be able to get it to work.

Once it works - it's worth it! No more dead spots in the house!

PS. I remember that DWL-800AP+ (the 802.11b predecessor) also didn't work with the latest firmware. One would expect newer firmware to improve upon the older one! Not the case with D-Link products!

Being in need of this product I went to the the only retail store in my area that had them. Fry's Electronics had ten of them on the shelf, all with customer returned stickers on them. The salesman assured me that they were ok & were probably bought to use with an incompatable router. Since I knew that my router a DI-624 had to be revision C to work with this item I reluctantly went ahead & got it.

After 4 calls & many hours spent on the phone w/ tech support I finally took mine back...

I would say there is probably a problem with this model... too many returned ones on the shelf & I would imagine the majority of them didn't work too.

The DWL-800AP+ isn't officially supported by D-Link for repeating other brands of wireless access points. It's best to use this with D-Link APs only. I've heard of some working, but it's pretty random.

I use the DWL-G800AP as a wireless repeater repeating the signal of my DI-624 (wireless router). This repeats the 54Mbps 802.11g speeds and I find it very easy to use.
You don't need this repeater to be plugged into the network via wired connection for it to work, but you will need to when you are configuring it to work with your WLAN. Basically you plug it in, configure it, and unplug and set it in the optimum place for best repeating of the signal.
I hide mine behind a picture frame on the mantle and it works great and isn't seen.

After purchasing a DI-624 and having that one raouter cover so much ground (air?) with a wireless signal I wanted to cover the rest of my expansive house with wireless internet coverage. This little box is just what I needed. First you plug this box into one of the router's open LAN ports, then access it via web browser and configure it (about 2 mins) to work with your wireless network.

This box will see the DI-624 and you just need to set it in wireless repeater mode. Then go put the little box at about the edge of where you get no more signal from the DI-624. I used my laptop for this. If the 624 reached out say 100 feet from it's base with wireless signal I set this little repeater at about the 75 foot mark to make sure it got a strong enough signal yet still add adequate coverage for the rest of my home.

It's simple enough and it works reliably. After setting up as a repeater you don't need to worry about it anymore.

I tried to use this as an extender for a D-Link 624 router. It works fine for around a half hour, then loses the connection to the router, disabling the internet connection of all computers on the wireless network. Repeated hard resets and rerunning of the setup utility are required to get it to work for another half hour before it dies again. Updating the firmware had no effect, and I don't have time to mess with tech support, so I returned it to Amazon. Instead, I bought a Hawking HAI15S directional antenna for my D-Link router, which improved my signal significantly, obviating the need for this range extender. It's also much cheaper.

As a network engineer, we've setup lots of wireless networks and never has one been so difficult to setup as these DWL-G800AP's and it's partner, the DI-624 rev C.
Their setup manual and live tech support are a joke.
First, make sure you have all correct firmware:
DI-624: Rev2.37 and DWL-G800AP Rev 1.05
(These are the config we used and finally worked)
In the DI-624, Changed the channel to 1, disabled the super G. In the G800AP, run the site survey, and select accordingly, than manually add the GW (default 192.168.0.1). Wallah.. works. I've read that the WEP and security does not work but it doesn't matter since this project is for a hotel.
NOTE: Some changes works immediately where others takes a minute to propagate through the network. If your change does not work after a minute, re-apply that change and try again.
Final word.. don't buy this device if you expect an easy setup.
Tran
Tampa, FL
[...]

I have the luxury of writing this review a little bit further out in the technology cycle than most of the others, so I can say: Just get yourself a better wireless router.

Based on the reviews here, several online fora, and my own personal experience, I can confirm to you that you have about a 30% chance of actually getting this to work, and you might get that percentage up a little bit if you keep returning defective ones and trying another. But why bother?

At this point, there are higher-power routers, high-gain directional antennae, and there are even products sporting 802.11n, which inherently has a better range that -a, -b, or -g.

If you've gotten into a situation where your router is inadequate for your needs, research and get yourself a top-notch router with good broadcast power--I would strongly recommend against trying to remedy an inadequate router by trying to add this product to your network.

I understand that my suggestion may be more expensive, but I am seriously saying that you will avoid wasting any more than necesary of the precious remainder of your time on this earth. Definitely hours (if, by some miracle, everything works on the 12th or 13th try), and probably a couple of days (assuming that after 24 or 25 tries you send back the first one and try again with a new one).