155 of 166 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Verdict is still out, November 3, 2007
This review is from: TRENDnet 300Mbps Wireless N Gigabit Router TEW-633GR (Piano Black) (Personal Computers)
Final verdict on the Trendnet TEW-633GR and its routing problem. (See Final Update below for the end results.)
Summary: When I connect my systems (Red Hat, Windows, Palm OS, OS/2 (Warp/Server)), PS2, etc to the Internet using this router, I'm unable to reach various Internet addresses. Doing a trace route finds the packets go so far and then get "Destination Network Unreachable."
NOTE: This also occurs from the router's administration page's ping page not just from various machines on the network.
The problem does NOT occur under two circumstances.
1) I connect a system directly to my Comcast cable modem.
2) I use my Linksys router (WRT54G or WRT600N).
Hook the Trendnet back up and the problem returns 100% of the time.
After calling Trendnet support, I began to become hopeful in finding a solution. Level one sent me almost immediately to level two, who called me back and worked through various possibilities. Follow-up phone calls from level two, though, required I contact them.
During the last session level two agreed something "interesting" was going on for two reasons.
1) They were unable to ping to these sites from their location using DSL. Their trace routes failed at the same point.
2) They connected into my router and verified mine failed by using the ping feature under Administration.
NOTE: I'm avoiding using the term web site, as I use various Internet protocols into these sites (e.g. sftp, ssh, smtp, dns, imcp, and yes http).
They gave me a choice to send them the unit or send it back to Amazon.com for a refund. I decided this unit is still my first choice as a replacement for the Linksys. Getting a RMA number, I send the unit back. This is where we are today. Trendnet has the unit (USPS tracking) but has yet to contact me.
The TEW-633GR works great otherwise and the gigabit wired interfaces do improve system to system speed for various protocols (e.g. ftp, sftp, large http requests, etc.).
Can I recommend it to you? If the Internet addresses you try to reach doesn't hit this routing issue the answer is yes! But I'm not sure what Internet addresses have problems with this router. You might go a lifetime without hitting this problem or one day you need to connect to your new employer's site and can't. Fortunately, Trendnet does seem interested in solving this issue.
I'll update this review as I get more information. The verdict is still out and hopefully this router will get a five by five rating and be with me for a very long time.
Final update:
According to the router's developers the problem is with the ATHEROS chip set they use.
I'm using Comcast and tried both a RCA and Motorola modem. We also tried DOCSIS 1.1 and 2.0 before I ended up returning the router. Trendnet said they are ** NOT ** going to fix the issue for a couple of reasons.
(1) They don't have cable access at their headquarters. They have T-1 and DSL.
(2) They don't believe cable users are a large percentage of their business.
(3) We agreed not all cable users will see this issue. Yet, those who do will be out of luck, period.
I'm now using a Linksys WRT600N with a Broadband chipset with no routing issues. I returned the Trendnet TEW-633GR to Amazon.com because of this design / software defect (per Trendnet assessment).
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best router I have ever owned!, October 9, 2008
This review is from: TRENDnet 300Mbps Wireless N Gigabit Router TEW-633GR (Piano Black) (Personal Computers)
Pros: Ubicom Firmware for great QOS, with a ton of firmware options. Nice looking, and VERY stable.
Cons: None
This is easily the best router I have ever owned. Previous routers I have owned were the Linksys WRT-54G, Dlink DGL-4500, Zyxel X-550.
This router is FAR more stable than any of the other routers I have owned. For example, in both the Dlink and Zyxel routers, the "User access control" would always eventually lock up the router if I turned on logging. This router never locks up when I do that.
The firmware is actually written by Ubicom. I knew that before I purchased it, otherwise I would not have purchased a router from Trendnet. Its very similar to the very popular Dlink DIR-655 router. Only this router has larger antennas, more memory (according to an xblitlabs review).
The lights on this router are also just the right brightness. One thing I always hated about the Dink routers was the super blinding blue lights... which were cool at first, but quickly you wanted to cover them up because they become annoying. The lights on this router are just the right brightness... orange and green. Also if the light is orange, it means its a gigabyte connection... green means its not a gigabyte connection.
The wireless signal is even a little stronger than my previous Zyxel router. Although I'm only using it in 54g mode (no mixed mode).
If you do buy this router, *** make sure to update the firmware before you do anything ***. Mine shipped with firmware dated last year... and its the reason the router gets some negative posts.
I didn't install any of the software, I just type the router address of 192.168.10.1 into my browser address bar and accessed the config from there.
I have my router sitting in its included stand, sideways so that the heat escapes easier.
This is easily the best router I have owned, and I honestly mean that. I am not a Trendnet fanboy either. I don't understand why some people have problems with this router. One thing I never do though, is trust any review written by a person who has only one review on Amazon. Or a review written from a year ago using old firmware.
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14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Unlike some routers, this one is easy to install and easy to encrypt/secure wirelessly, December 2, 2007
This review is from: TRENDnet 300Mbps Wireless N Gigabit Router TEW-633GR (Piano Black) (Personal Computers)
Unlike some routers that you have to configure before you can get them to work, this one came with an installation CD that did the job right, no strings attached. Instructions were extremely simple and easy to follow, and i've never had any problems with it. Encrypting/securing the router is part of the installation, and you don't have to be a computer junkie to figure it out. About the only downside of the product is fingerprints are highly visible on it when you touch it since it's like a black shiny mirror, but you can just wipe those right off. This product not only supports N-band, but is backwards compatible with all other previous wireless bands (G-band, B-band, etc), no configuration required.
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