Customer Reviews

NETGEAR GS608NA Giga Switch 8Port

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

NETGEAR's GS608 8-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch is a good product with nice clean lines. The one I have actually works flawlessly for my needs. The problem I have is that I have noticed that there is a wide variation in performance depending on the version of the switch that you get. If you have a v1, you will not get full jumbo packet support, thereby limiting you to 20 MBps. If you have v2, you will get full jumbo packet support, but non-windows computers seem to have hardware issues interfacing with the ports. And now that I have gotten to use the version 3 rendition in a Windows only situation, I can say that the performance was good. But I can't help but wonder, what happens when I have to hook up one of my Unix or linux workstations in that room? What if I have to connect a Mac? Will version 3 have the same compatibility problems as version 2? So my main gripe is, why didn't Netgear just scrap this product line and create a new product with a new model number if they new they had hardware problems with different revisions? Those buying from Amazon will probably get version 3, but if you try to buy this at a brick and mortar store all bets are off. Depending on how long they have had inventory, you can get any of the three. So the moral of the story is, definitely try to avoid versions 1 and 2 if possible.

How do you know which version you have? On the bottom of my switch, there was a white sticker with the standard power rating info and random information. Towards the bottom of the text it had the model number with *v3* appended to it, with no spaces. So if you have v3, the actual model number will look like "Netgear GS608v3*. The same goes for v2. I believe that v1 doesn't have any special markings on it, though I don't have one of those handy to verify that.

As to speed and performance, the v3 definitely works great. Each port is represnted by a number on the front of the switch. You will know that it is running in gigabit ethernet mode and connected to a cable if the port is lit up green. So if you see a green 1, 3 and 4, that means each of those ports are in use by network cards that are GigE capable.

Since all three of these are still sold under the same model number, I have to average out the performance of the others with the latest revision. As long as you get the latest revision, you should be OK in terms of features and performance at the higher end of the speed limits of gigabit ethernet. But as for whether or not all the problems with alternative TCP/IP compatibility, I have to test that a little further before I will feel comfortable that they have solved the problems of v2. If that happens, I may revisit changing this rating but until then I think this is a good device that still has some risks associated with it.

Enjoy.

What this switch is:

* Perfect for a home network with gigabit capability and on a limited budget

* Plug and play; AutoUplink(tm) - up-linking works in any port

* Backwards compatible with lower speeds

* All ports gigabit capable

* Good performer given its price

(Having numbered port LEDs on the front panel is a nice touch, and the switch looks very good next to a mac mini, too):)

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And what it is not:

* Business class equipment with an Office Depot price point

* Something that will make non-gigabit equipment any faster. Every link in the chain must be gigabit capable to take advantage of faster throughput - from the NICs to the cable (cat5e or better). Don't curse the switch when standard cat5 cable doesn't play well with gigabit ethernet - make sure you have cat5e (e for enhanced) or better cabling

Like so many other small home office users, I have recently upgraded my network to 1000mpbs to help increase productivity. Unfortunately, I originally purchased a GigE 8 port switch from another mfg. that used a fan on their switch, a VERY noisy fan. After a month of listening to what sounded like an airplane engine, I tossed that unit and purchased this 8port Netgear GigE unit. It is SILENT. Basically a plug and play item due to its unmanaged nature, I have had good data thru put and no problem. It comes with a small clip on stand for vertical storage if desired. The unit is finished in an attractive gray and chrome exterior. It is also small enough to live on a desktop without sucking up valuable real estate.

So, if you are looking for a switch that will not be stored remotely in some closet, this is the one that will keep the peace in your office. A+ *****

According to the Netgear site, for jumbo frames to work, you need to have a serial number starting with 1DR or 127x5B or 127x5C. I would suggest you get the latest firmware also.

The switch will need to be configured correctly before jumbo frames are supported. You must also have an ethernet adapter capable and configured to support jumbo frames.

For the price it's a good deal; especially if you do backups from PC to PC, or PC to NAS.

This product works ok as basic gigabit switch. It looks very nice for home office, does not get hot. However, I bought it not for nice looks, but looking for great functionality. Unfortunately, it turned out to be nothing but trouble.

GS608 is advertised to support jumbo frames (packets with size as big as 9KB - 6 times more than standard packet of 1.5KB). With properly configured network clients jumbo network can easily reach transfer speeds up to 80MB/sec and more. But with standard packets network can barely work up to 20MB/sec. So, this switch certainly does work faster than old 100MBit switch, but hardly 2 times as fast, when with jumbo frames it would be 8-10 times faster.

When I noticed that GS608 supports jumbo, it was huge factor for me to go ahead and purchase it. I wish I knew it was all marketing lie!

Upon receiving the product I was so excited so I disposed of packaging (I know - stupid me), only to find out day later that jumbo DOES NOT work (I am senior network engineer, and I do use jumbo at work with great success with more expensive switches). So I could not return or replace the product, and my multiple calls to Netgear support to resolve this were very frustrating and led nowhere - they just could not (or rather would not) understand what I am talking about.

So I am stuck now with basic gigabit switch, when similar model (not even pretending to support jumbo) could have been bought much cheaper from other vendor who does not do false advertising.

You decide for yourself.

I bought this about a month ago to work with my wired and wireless network at home. The network consists of the Netgear gigabit switch, an Apple MA073LL/A AirPort Extreme Base Station and a LaCie 500 GB USB 2.0 External Hard Drive, Design by F.A. Porsche (301103U) drive. They all work quite well together with both Macs and PCs. Of all the equipment, the Netgear switch was by far the easiest to setup and use. I had been using an old NetGear router that was constantly dropping my internet connection. Now I surf along at a great speed and without interuption. The switch has colored lights to tell you if you have a gigabit connection (green) or a 100MB connection (orange). My only beef is with the connecting stand legs that let you stand it up on its side. They are a bit flimsy. Everything else is easy to understand and use and I see no issues with speed. All in all, this is a great switch and perfect for home network use.

After much research and having used Linksys products in the past, we found these Netgear switches at Amazon. We bought 3 of the 8-port units for our house. We have cat 5e wiring in our home. We were able to connect Macs, Windows machines (both XP and Vista), TiVos, and printers without any problems. We noticed a dramatic speed boost by switching to the Netgear gigabit units over our previous Linksys units. I'd highly recommend these; they're plug-and-play and relatively inexpensive.

Netgear tends to make a fairly decent product for the price, but the GS608v2 is flawed.

Random ports on the switch will infrequently negotiate 1000Mbit speed and will fall back to 100 after about 3 min without a link. Other ports work just fine at 1000Mbit, but you will have to experiement to find the ones that do work. On top of that, some network devices will not negotiate at all including two 100Mbit laptop network cards, one 3com and one xircom which are very solid, reliable devices in any other situation, but do not work with this switch.

Other users complain of overheating issues or freezing issues that require a power cycle, or even complete failure after about a month, but I have only had mine a few days so those problems havent come up yet.

Go with any other 8 port gigabit model. This one is not worth the hassle. I can only hope netgear will allow me to RMA this item for some other model.

Just plug it in and go. This is an approved switch for the ReadyNAS Duo that I have, and it works flawlessly with it. Also works with a Macbook Pro running 10.6, an Airport Extreme router, a PS3, an Xbox 360, a DirecTV HD DVR and a Panasonic Plasma (for VieraCast).

Apparently this has the same chipset as the GS108 so the speeds are the same. The only differences are the materials (this one is plastic, the GS108 is metal) and whether you want front ports (the GS108) or rear ports (this one). I went with the GS608 because it went into an entertainment system cabinet and I wanted rear ports and to see the status lights without pulling the cabinet away from the wall.

Keep in mind there is NO CONFIGURATION on this model. If you need to set traffic priority (for example, voice and video receive a higher priority than web surfing) you should look at the GS108T. And this model cannot be stacked because of heat dissipation. If you need to place two or more together you have to use the supplied stands to place them in a vertical orientation next to each other.

I originally had a Cisco / Linksys Small Business switch in it's place, but it doesn't support Jumbo Frames.

My home network has numerous devices which support Jumbo Frames and using two of these increased my traffic with a noticeable difference.

Excellent product for the price.