Customer Reviews

D-Link DI-514 Wireless Cable/DSL Router, 4-Port Switch, 802.11b, 11Mbps

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(36)

 

 

This is just about as simple as Wireless Networking gets. You take this out of the box and it only takes a couple minutes to setup. This device practically walks you through every step and suddenly you are done and connecting your laptop wirelessly.

After setting this up I can now share my Internet with multiple devices (PC, Laptop, PS2, and whatever else is Internet capable.

I am happy with this router from D-Link because of the ease of use and simplicity of this router, oh and the low low price. Thanks D-Link!

I just got cable internet and wanted to share it on my other computer. I've never used one before, and was able to set this up fairly quickly. It works fine, and there's really nothing more to say.

It's low cost comparing to other routers kinda bugged me before I used it, but not anymore. It works, and I can't see spending anymore on another one.

Purchased this a few weeks ago and just set it up. The instructions in the box are basically useless - compared to the Netgear, for example, you better know what you're doing. But I basically do and didn't have any real trouble with initial setup: MAC address filtering didn't work right the first time and I had to do a hard reboot, but otherwise ok.

Also, a bright spot for customer service. Two of my laptops worked fine out-of-the-box but one could connect but not send or receive packets; I called tech support, and while they slowly read to me off of some manual, they asked enough questions to talk me through configuration steps I've never had to touch before and that worked perfectly - fixed that laptop and kept the others running. Kudos on that, and so far everything's working great!

I purchased this router because the price was right. I should have stayed with my gut and got a Linksys -- I had connection problems right off the bat. Only one PC would connect at all, and it dropped its connection every few minutes (Using the DWL-650 PC Card).

I finally found an obscure post on a forum for APPLE users, which hinted about a preamble setting in the performance section of the config utility -- SET THIS TO LONG (Short is the default). Connection dropping went from a matter of minutes to a matter of hours and both laptops were able to connect. I was unable to find information on this matter ANYWHERE on D-Link's site.

Overall, I got what I paid for. The DI-514 works marginally well, considering I got it for around $30. Still, I wish I'd spent the money for a Linksys.

Amazon sent me the 614+ by mistake originally, but it worked fine with my G3/900 iBook. Then they sent me the 514, but it wouldn't let me get on the web when connected wirelessly. I connect via ethernet and no problem, so DHCP is OK. Finally, remembering something I read about using Linux with this router, I went to the Advanced section on the config utility, then selected "Performance", then set the "Preamble Type" to "Long" instead of the default "Short". Wallah! It worked! Don't know if it was because my neighborhood was crowded with other wireless routers, or if because I set the SSID to not transmit (though this didn't cause a problem with the 614+) but anyway that's something to consider if you're having a problem with this router and an iBook. Otherwise, it seems fine so far.

I actually travel with a wireless router for work so I wanted one that was small and light. I've tried several and this one is the best of the bunch for being small and light. Some Linksys products have a slightly smaller box but they come with huge, heavy, bulky brick-type transformers. The D-Link products have a very neat, light and small transformer so when combined with the router and transformer, this DI-514 is clearly the winner.

The DI-514 is also shorter and smaller than its 614+ brother and works just as well. (Supposedly the 614+ can have higher bandwidth when combined with a matching PC card but if you want higher bandwidth nowadays, you might as well go with 802.11G anyway).

Meanwhile, this router seems to work very easily. In some applications (like at a hotel) you just plug in the cables and you are on-line wirelessly without any setup at all.

I bought this router because I wanted basic 802.11b wireless with my built in wireless adapter in my laptop. This was also my most inexpensive option with the mail in rebate and all.

So far I am pleased with my purchase since the setup and functionality were a breeze. This router has performed perfectly since day one. I get reliable wireless connections with my laptop, and our connection to the Internet is always up. Now all of our computers have access to our broadband with a nice firewall to protect us.

128-bit WEP causes no dips in speed, the range of the wireless is surprisingly good, and the parental controls provide some help in preventing ads and improper sites from appearing on all of our computer screens.

The router works great for me, but I have an important warning: Do NOT disable the wireless feature. I discovered that checking the 'disable' button in the wireless setup page actually leaves the wireless fully operational BUT WITH NO ENCRYPTION. It broadcasts an SSID of 'GeorgeAP22' -- apparently some leftover test mode.

So, set up the wireless encryption, and leave it enabled, even if you have no current need for it. Otherwise, your network is there for everyone to see.

Tech support told me it's a known problem that will be fixed in a firmware upgrade. After two months, still nothing on their website. I have firmware version 2.00.

The first thing I noticed about this router was that my internet download speed was about 2700 Kbps when connected directly to the router but dropped to 1200 Kbps when operating wireless.

That's with link quality of 100 and only one other computer on the network with no applications running on either computer (aside from the one browser window required for the test). Both computers use DLink DWL-520 Wireless network cards.

To solve the problem I updated the firmware to 1.02. That didn't improve the data rates, but it did make the router's HTML-based menu screens load so slowly that the browser usually timed out.

Following industry standards, DLink apparently mans their first echelon phones with technical illiterates who while capable of following a scripted check list, haven't a clue what's causing your problem or how their sequence of steps might might solve it. For example, to solve the slow menu problem they had me reset the defaults on my browser even though I had no trouble bringing up any other web page I tried. And it made no impact on them that the router menus wouldn't come up any quicker with Netscape.

So, after numerous calls, multiple case IDs, and never talking to the same person twice, I decided it was best to cut my losses and give up before they reconfigured my computer to the point where it wouldn't work at all.

If you surf the web a lot or do internet gaming, stay clear of these products. Stick with a reputable name and save yourself the aggravation and wasted hours trying to make cheap junk like this work. The money you save isn't worth the headaches.

I recently attempted to setup a D-Link DI-514 for a friend. Here's what happened:

(1) After changing settings at the router's admin page (...) AND clicking the apply and continue buttons, frequently the settings would not take effect until after the DI-514 had been powered off and on again. This looked like bad firmware to me. (...)

(2) I could not get 64-bit or 128-bit encryption to work with two known good notebooks that work on other encrypted, wireless networks. Encryption is essential for security!

(...) If you didn't change any of the settings, you are not using encryption! Anyone that strolls or drives nearby with a Pocket PC can use your wireless connection. If they monitor your network long enough, they can get your computer's MAC # then use your connection to do bad stuff while making it look like it came from you! Be careful! Also, if you don't change your admin password, a cracker can surf in through your cable/DSL broadband connection and do the same bad stuff I listed above from far away!

(3) Resorting to MAC address filtering, I went to the router's page to set that up. I entered the MAC # and clicked the "apply" button. The screen filled with error messages, and I could not log back onto the router until I pulled the power and turned it on again.

This was a "hardware version: B firmware version 1.00" brand:D-Link model:DI-514 . The release date for this firmware is Oct. 2003. (...). Tech support was squirrelly about commenting on that as well (Although I did get a *BIG guffaw* from the 877 number support rep when I said I was trying to get encryption to work on this model. Was he trying to tell me something his boss didn't want him to tell?).

I do have to give a good rating for the 877 tech support line's *short* wait time. After punching in the last digit before being put in the queue, it was only 7 minutes before the rep was on the phone with me.

(...)

BOTTOM LINE: I could only get it to work in unencrypted mode. The bargain is tempting, but the firmware design is poor and plagued with problems, and it doesn't really do all it says it does on the box. Spend a little more money and get a good wireless router. As they say "YGWYPF" and "The cheapskate pays the most in the end!"