Customer Reviews

Microsoft MN-700 Wireless 802.11g Base Station Router

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(32)

 

 

I am using this router and running 2 laptops and a desktop with it. Set-up was fairly easy (I did some manual configurations)and, since I am not using Microsoft wireless adapters, I had to manually configure the computers. I am running an 4 yr old IBM Thinkpad with a Netgear MA111 adapter and also a Dell 3800 laptop (about 2 or 3 yrs old) with the same adapter (802.11b). No problems at all once I configured the WEP security keys,etc. The desktop is an H-P running Windows 98SE, also no problems. When my daughter was here with her new Dell with a 802.11G card, she seemed to have even faster connections.

The farthest I have taken the laptops is out on my deck which is 2 or 3 walls and maybe 50 feet from the router. I have the router conncected to my Comcast cable modem and am surfing the net usually at 1.2-1.7 meg per sec. I would recommend this as a simple, effective way to set up wi-fi at home.

First, a disclaimer - I am an ex-Microsoft employee (but not in this area). I bought this at retail after I had left, so my experience is as a normal customer.

I bought this to replace a Linksys wireless router that I had set up on an existing network as a wireless access point for my wife's laptop (which wasn't located in a spot convenient to our Ethernet connections).

The Linksys was very unreliable as an access point and I am not a networking expert. So I decided to try the MS solution (where I knew the focus was on ease of installation). Since I was upgrading anyway, I bumped up to G.

Installation went completely by the book (including an auto update after I installed the base software). Within 30 minutes, I had the hardware set up, the software installed, the new notebook adaptor in my wife's laptop and the connections made.

It has worked flawlessly for 6 weeks since then. I also have a Dell laptop with the Centrino B wireless adaptor built in and it connects easily and reliably as well.

I also like the vertical setup over the Linksys. It looks better and is more space efficient. And the status lights are visible from more angles.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised at how easily this setup and how well it has worked. Recommended.

I bought this router to replace an SMC router after my roomate left with it. I have Windows XP and a cable modem. Got it up and running in 5 minutes, but fine tuning the security features took an extra hour or so.

Pros:
- The Price, so cheap with all the good features, couldn't pass it up
- Nice install wizard, handled my cable modem really well
- Great security features: NAT, WEP, MAC filter, Port Filter, etc.
- Configuration tool has a nice user interface
- I like that it automatically patches it self.

Cons:
- The documentation that is included is not very good. Amazing how many pages they spend on stupid stuff (this is what you power cord looks like... Instead of This is how you can increase security in your wireless network set by step.)

Tips:
- Be careful turning on the MAC filtering, make sure you put your desktop MAC address in first, or you might get locked out :) found out the hard way.
- Make sure you block the ICMP Ping so hackers/crackers can't find you easily on the network
- Make sure that you select "share files and printers" in the wizards, because it is super difficult to find these settings to change your mind later. It probably isn't a good idea to "share my whole computer" though. Should someone actually break into your network...
- It is a pain in the butt to copy down that long WEP key, on all of your wireless laptops, but once you have done it, you can rest assured that you are pretty darn secure.

All in all, I have no regrets with losing the SMC wireless router.

The router shipped with a major software bug in the PPPoE connection - it randomly disconnects from your ISP. Fortunately, there is a patch that fixed the problem that is available to download. It is difficult downloading a patch for a router that must be connected to the internet for the auto update to allow you access to the patch, but keeps on disconnecting you. The manual download did not work due to Microsoft's web page errors. After many attempts, the auto update download worked, and fixed the PPPoE problem. The router now works well and does have a good signal, like other reviewers report.

Note that the technical support is only free for 2 years, after which they charge you per call, at present. It is very disappointing that Microsoft reports 24 hours tech support, but conveniently omits the charges you're in store for if you need it in the future. The tech support people are very polite - absolutely worthless, but very polite about it.

Overall, the router is working well with the patch, but when considering the whole experience to get there (that I had to figure out by myself), it gets 3 stars for average.

I got it installed within an hour including applying a huge patch for the base station. I was uncomfortable abt the fact that microsoft might want to issue patches now and then as usual and we have to keep patching it up.
Pros:
1 Easy to install
2 Works as wired and wireless
3 With wifi pda it would be real fun(not tried)
4 No wire clutter
5 Has WPA which is next thing in wifi
6 Wifi certified
7 Feeling of sitting with a laptop in any room is awesome
8 Good speed though might diminish with distance
Cons:
1 The network adapters for computers costs as much as base station
2 The xp and windows 2000 interface for the network card is different and might be confusing at the beginning though the base is same.
3 If wep or wpa is not configured by the user any one can use the network and access the shared files folders
4 Microsot might keep sending patches and one has to install it diligently
5 Concern about creating more radio waves in your environment without knowing the effects on ones health - phones work on similar frequency but they are for short conversations and not running 24 hrs
6 Not much flexibility in setting up of the firewall

I havn't tried any more esotoric options in the networking workd like vpn etc. I did download files while cooking and watching the download. I havn't tried any distances more than the 1000 ft apt area. Prospects of checking email in the restroom is awesome - onestep closer to microsoft's plans to bring computers to public toilets.

Bottomline is I am keeping my wifi. 4 stars instead of 5 because of fear of many more patches coming down the way though some will be nice upgrade and some for bug fixes.

Disclaimer:
I am not related to the company in anyway except as a customer. Every user may not have same experience as me. All persons reading this review read it and deceide for themselves their choices.

I read the other reviews, and I admit I was a bit apprehensive in buying the G verison of the Microsoft's Wireless Base Station. But after having so many problems trying to get the one from Linksys running, and how great Microsoft's Wired Base Station worked out for me, I threw caution to the wind and purchased one (just don't let my wife know).

Just like the wired version, the setup of this wireless Base Station is easy. It only took 5 minutes to get setup and running. Kudos to Microsoft for getting this right.

As far as hang-ups and connections problems, I have been spared of this. I have two XP machines connected via ethernet, and an older XP laptop connected via Microsoft's Wireless G card, and having downloaded various XP and Office service packs, and the AOL 9.0 update (all of which took longer than 3 to 5 minutes mind you), I have yet to experience any problems.

The only complaint that I have is that the laptop connection is sluggish, but compared to 100mps, a max of 54 would be I suppose.

Now if only I can get the Win 98 machine to setup as easily... but that is another question...

Despite all the negative comments that all the Microsoft haters post here, I can say that I have had this router for more than a year and haven't had any problems with it. It has a pretty good admin interface, and you can get used to it quickly. It is stable, and I don't remember having any disconnects when I finalized all the settings. I had a D-Link Super G D-624 (?) and that product was x2 expensive and wouldn't work, period.

I can open ports on this router and make my webcam, or my webserver available to my friends, I can access it's settings from the intranet or internet; it's protected by the password. I disabled SSID broadcasting, setup encryption, using only MAC address recognition, changed the password for the admin access, and totally forgot that I have a router somewhere on my network.

Would be nice to see if MS comes up with the next model sometime later. But, there is an MS Broadband Network client running on some of my PCs and it tells me when it's time to upgrade a firmware or local software. And, the router itself is running Windows CE OS. If you have problems with your current router, you may look for this one as a safe replacement.

If you are technically literate install it yourself, if you are not, have someone that is install it. This product is great for the money. What it comes down to is either you can use technical know how with common sense to figure out your installation or you will be whining like these babies. Obviously, they cannot write a manual with every possible setup scenario in it! Buy and enjoy your computer where you want to. It is great to be wireless!

I have been around the globe and back searching for the right networking. I told myself that I would want it for internet, network printing, and sharing files. I read tons of reviews and listened to stories from my friends and relatives about many companies. Being the gullible person that I am, I bought D-link. I thought I had a one in a million chance of having to return it considering the fact that they are the #1 leading company for networking. Well I had a four day weekend from work to set it up to enjoy and admire the wonderful technology. That was my dream, not my reality. The "quick installation guide" shouldn't even come with it because it won't do you any good. The service is pointless because they don't have a clue about setting it up. I called 11 times total. You can tell the technician 1 level has people just reading the words off paper because they all were the same. AFTER 3 DAYS of pure torture, it was working. *Problem*: It worked every 30 seconds. I spent another day fixing it and got to know every tech's name there: Mark, Carlos,etc (now you know that is a problem right there).

So I returned the waste of space and purchased this Microsoft MN-700 with of course the network adapter for my laptop. From the reviews I read I heard it worked and was easy. I couldn't believe that because the D-link ratings are higher than this for some very odd reason. Keep in mine I am a tech person and work with computers constantly. So I bought it after talking with a friend who told me that she had it and it was perfect. The first feature I noticed that was different was that right on the box it said you could network for printing and transferring files. With the D-link, it didn't say it on the box and from every single option on the D-link webpage, I don't think there is a way to do that which isn't at all what I truly wanted. Plus if they are the same price, why not get more for your buck.

Now all the other reviews said it only took 15 minutes. I definetely disagree with them because that is false advertisement. It only took 10 minutes :) . I had *2* laptops and a desktop running at the speed of light in 10 minuts. The setup was absolutely amazing from where I was coming from. First of all, YOU GET REAL SOFTWARE!!! With D-link, you are praying that you can access your own personal website for your system. That is BS because if you needed help then obviously the web isn't looking good. The interface is wonderful and nicely setup. You can view detailed specs of your system. When you setup their quick installation guide (which actually works) follow it exactly and carefully and there is no way to come to any problems. It is very fast. In fact, I am typing this review ON MY LAPTOP.

I am able to send my docs. directly to the printer wirelessly! No more saving to floppy disk and bringing over, etc. I can share my documents with other computers and I think music files. Still trying out all the features. KEEP IN MIND that you can't share everything!!! Program files is locked and some other files are too. Plus, even files that are allowed to share won't let you share even if you can access one's computer from another computer.

They have a nice customer service considering I only called them once with a miniscule problem. For the curious, the question was: How do I share files with other computers? See they tell you a little about that in the wonderful big manual that comes with it (that D-link doesn't have), but you have a 1 in 20 chance of picking a folder that matches the information in the book. See each folder is different. If you right click on one folder it might be a major folder where the option would be *Sharing and Security* whereas the minor folders don't have one. Of course I was clicking on the minor so I wasn't doing it right. ***Remember when you call, you have started the first day of the 2 years you can call for free!*** I didn't care because I know I wouldn't use them again because the whole product is so simple and if there ever was a problem, I just would take the software off and start over again.

Well this is my review and I am sure you can trust my help. This product you WILL NOT be dissapointed of. This is wonderful and works like it is suppose to. I am running windows XP so that I am sure this will work. Thank you for reading.

I'll start by saying that I really did my research before buying this and I still think it was a good purchase. In terms of bang-for-your-buck, this device tops the list. The SPI Firewall, WPA support, and easy setup make this a great choice for the casual home user. Add to that the great help menus, the industry's best support site, and the oh-so Microsoft intuitive wizards and you've got yourself an easy best-buy.

So why I'm only giving it three stars? In short, I'm dissapointed in the router performace and functionality. This is really only going to impact those of us who like to tinker with things like this, so for those of you who don't know your DMZs from your DHCPs, go ahead - this is probably a very good choice. The wireless aspects work great!

Here is my beef: As a router, it's quite limited and I find the NAT and firewall to be sluggish. Also, you can't disable the firewall without shutting down the routing functionality altogether (switching it over to Access Point mode). Which, of course, disables NAT and DHCP as well. This is fine if you only have one PC on the network and are running WinXP firewall but not so great if you want to share the connection without messing around with ICS.

In router mode, it seems to make for slow page loads with new DNS lookups and/or when loading a page with multiple DNS redirected images. If I bypass the router and connect to my ISP directly with the Windows XP PPPoE client and XP firewall, I get much faster page loads. However, java speed tests are exactly the same with either config so for file downloads and VPN connections (tunneling through the firewall) it works perfect.

If MS doesn't release an upgraded firmware soon, adding more functionality to the router, I'll probably buy a stand-alone firewall and keep the MN-700 as a great WAP.

So, in short, if you need strong router performance, look elsewhere but keep this in mind for a great, inexpensive home WAP.