SMC2655W 802.11b 11Mbps Wireless Access Point

by SMC

Product Details

Product Manual [981kb PDF]

• Item Weight: 7 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005RT00
• Item model number: SMC2655W
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 18, 2001

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

This SMC 11 MBps wireless access point is designed for both business and home users, with a maximum operating range of 1,800 feet. It acts as a bridge between the wired network and the wireless clients. The wireless access point enables the desktop wireless PCI card users and the laptop wireless PC card users to obtain seamless network connection. This access point features support for up to 64 wireless users, and simple plug-and-play installation.

Great for mobile users, temporary work sites, and a range of other applications, wireless technology provides optimal mobility, simple and flexible installation options, and excellent scalability in supporting additional PCs. The technology is also ideal for use with cable modems, xDSL, or SOHO applications.

In the typical wireless configuration, an access point connects to a wired network. The access point supports up to 64 users, with a maximum range of 1,800 feet. Users access the LAN via wireless adapters in their notebooks or desktops. The wireless LAN adapters interface between the client network operating system and the access point.

Product Description

The SMC 11 Mbps wireless Access Point is designed for both business and home users, with a maximum operating range of 1,800 feet. It acts as a bridge between the wired network and the wireless clients. The Wireless Access Point enables the desktop wireless PCI card users and the laptop wireless PC card users to obtain seamless network connectivity.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SM2544W Wireless Access Point-Buy it over Linksys, December 23, 2001

By 

Jake the Snake (Medfield, MA USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: SMC2655W 802.11b 11Mbps Wireless Access Point (Personal Computers)

I have purchased Linksys products in the past and other than the fact that it took 3 tries before I finally received a working DSL/Cable Router, I have always been pleased with the performance but the technical support was a complete joke.

I decided after reading the reviews on Amazon.Com and other sites that I would spend the extra $10 and go SMC because of it's ease of installation and tech support.

I purchased the Linksys PCMCIA card as part of my wireless solution and it took less than 5 minutes from opening the box to surfing on the web to get it and the wireless acces point up and running. The speed performance is beyond expectations. I have the basic cable modem attached to a Linksys DSL/Cable router and plugged the SMC Wireless hub into one of my available Linksys ports and that was it.

I made the choice to go the SMC route after vowing never again to deal with the inept "Hope Desk" offered by Linksys. If you had any thoughts about buying Linksys, think again. SMC is THE way to go.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good performance - a pain to get up and running, June 12, 2002

By 

Kathy Conroy (Carthage, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SMC2655W 802.11b 11Mbps Wireless Access Point (Personal Computers)

A month ago, I bought the SMC SMC2655W Wireless Access Point to provide access for my laptop to my small, in-home Ethernet. I use an Orinoco silver card with the laptop. I read many reviews concerning the performance of this combination, and I made the purchase based stricktly on the performance issue.

It's a good thing that I am an experienced network tech, because getting the SMC unit to work with my existing 3com ISDN router and ethernet was not easy. To start with, my router provides DHCP services to all connected workstations. However, the SMC AP didn't seem to respond properly as a DHCP client no matter what I did. Even after I did the firmware upgrade, it made no difference. In the end, I was forced to turn off DHCP on my router, manually set up the IP table in the router, and assign hard IP addresses to every device. To initially access the SMC AP to make the necessary adjustments to it, I was forced to make up a crossover CAT 5 cable and plug the AP directly into a PC to configure it. Also, even though I upgraded the manager software that comes with the AP, it still cannot find the AP automatically on the network. I have to give the manager the IP address of the AP before it can find it. Oh, yes. Don't count on much help from SMC beyond the average front-line phone tech help dummy. After I called SMC, they were ready to tell me that the unit was defective. I had already determined that it wasn't, so I proceeded without their "help" after they couldn't explain to me why it was defective.

After finally bringing the SMC online, the actual operation was flawless and performance was beyond my expectations. There is nowhere in my house or out in my yard that I can't get a full signal according to my Orinoco card monitoring software. I live on a large farm, so I decided to actually test out the range. I found that I could actually still get a medium signal and 5mbs transfer rate at over 1000 feet as long as I could maintain clear line-of-site between the SMC AP and the Orinoco card in my laptop. I could also get a full signal and 11mbs as far away as 600 feet.

No doubt the SMC has a hot radio. I even read that there was info on the web that shows how to tweak even more power out of it. However, I don't consider the installation I had to perform to be a task for the average plug-and-play user. That is why I rated the unit a 4 out of a possible 5. If the software, DHCP client sevices, and tech support were better, I would rate this unit a 10!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Get the Firmware Upgrade, November 26, 2001

By 

Satureja douglasii "herbabuena" (United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: SMC2655W 802.11b 11Mbps Wireless Access Point (Personal Computers)

I attached this product to a Road Runner cable modem, and with the accompanying SMC card in my Vaio Z505-HS (running Win98), it seems to work just fine. Just make sure you get the firmware upgrade. (see below)

The Access Point has a tendency to go to sleep if not used for several hours (for example overnight). It is easily woken up by power cycling (unplugging and replugging the power supply). On practicallynetworked.com the solution mentioned is to upgrade the firmware. I tried to download the new firmware from SMC, but the format of the zip files cannot be opened by WinZip. They're supposedly some ancient version of zip from the mid 90's.

The solution to this is to call SMC (1-800-SMC-4-YOU) and have them email you the firmware upgrade. The version you want is AP14g8. You will also need a crossover internet cable (...) so you can connect your computer to the access point. SMC will give you the static IP settings you need and walk you through the firmware upgrade.

I had to actually run the utility that came with the SMC card before the Vaio could talk to Road Runner. Setting up the network settings from native Win98 was not sufficient. (See next paragraph.)

My 3Com AirConnect wireless PC card from work does not seem to be able to talk to this access point. The SMC card works fine on the wireless network at work, so it's not a reciprocal problem. I suspect this may be due to the fact the 3Com driver does not support all the functions that the SMC access point uses, such as channel number. My officemate has a wireless SMC router at home with a Lucent Gold Card and reports it works. (My SMC card works with her router as well.)

Overall the access point works fine once you take care of the firmware upgrade. (This is why I gave it only 4 stars)