***UPDATE February 7, 2013: Still working and no issues have come up to date.
***UPDATE June 27, 2011: Nothing has changed thus far...the router is still working perfectly fine.***
Let me begin by pointing out that I just purchased this yesterday, so I can't comment on the long-term reliability of this router. That being said, I had to post a review given that I'm very satisfied with the process thus far. I'll update this as time progresses.
This router was a replacement for my old WRT54G that served me well for about four years, but was acting up (dropping signal, slow connections, low range, etc). So I decided to purchase this model (E2500 as a replacement).
The whole time before this new router arrived I was dreading the prospect of setting it up given my experience with my old WRT54G router. As soon as it arrived, I followed the instructions in the packaging and then put the CD into my macbook to launch the installer. The installer itself simply involved pressing a few buttons and then it did the rest! My network was up and running in about five minutes- with the installer doing all the work for me.
What I did notice was that the installer created a guest account that wasn't protected like the main one. This concerned me, so I logged-in to the advanced settings using the router's IP address at 192.168.1.1 using my browser (you should preferably use the computer you used to setup the network because it's already connected to the network). I think the default is to leave the login name blank and to use your default network password as your login password. Once I was inside, I disabled the guest account, but it turned out that there was a password in place- it's just that it's browser-based apparently (your guests will be able to login to the network itself, but will only be able to access the internet by typing in the password in the browser). So if you want to leave the guest access available, simply write down the default password that shows up on-screen or setup a new one. I also changed the default password used to login to my router in here as well (under the "administration tab"). So, to clarify, the 192.168.1.1 address brings up a menu where you can modify your router's default settings to your liking. I think this was a criticism of the "easy" setup- that it doesn't let you customize your router. I actually see this process in reverse- the "easy" setup configures your router to work properly given your circumstances. Once it's setup, you can modify whatever parts of the setup that you want to. In my case, I only modified the router password, guest access, and my network key.
Once it was setup to my specifications, I proceeded to update all of my computers with the new network key. I also connected all my other devices to the back of the router (there are four slots).
In regards to performance- my macbook that wasn't getting a signal with my old router works perfectly now. That being said, it's a new macbook, so it's able to utilize the "n" band. My sister has a 2006 white macbook next door that only utilizes G though- she's having no problems either.
Overall, I'm happy i made this purchase and highly recommend it to others. I don't own any other n-routers, so I can't comment on how much "better" this is relative to others. I can only say that I'm happy I made the right choice with this one. I'll make sure to update this review should issues with reliability surface.
EDIT: You actually don't have to login to the router's IP address to access the features I mentioned above. You can simply use the "Cisco Connect" software that came with it. The only issue I can think of is that if you use this software, you can only run it through the computer you setup the router with. The IP method above will work from any computer connected to the network (after logging in with password). The con of the IP method is that it's not as "user friendly" as the "Cisco Connect" method. Ultimately, you should weigh the pros and cons yourself and decide which is best for managing your router. I'll be choosing the "Cisco Connect" method in the meantime just because it's easier to use, but I'll go back to the IP method should anything happen to my computer (where the Cisco software is installed).
Consider this Amazon's Choice product that delivers quickly
Amazon's Choice
Buy it with
- +
- +
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Choose items to buy together.
Customers who viewed this item also viewed
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Compare with similar items
 | Linksys E2500 (N600) Advanced Simultaneous Dual-Band Wireless-N Router | Linksys E2500 Wi-Fi 4 IEEE 802.11n Ethernet Wireless Router - 2.40 GHz ISM Band - 5 GHz UNII Band - 75 MB/s Wireless Speed - 4 x Network Port - 1 x Broadband Port - USB - Fast Ethernet - Desktop | Linksys N300: Wi-Fi Wireless Router, Linksys Connect, Parental Controls, Home Internet, Wireless Devices up to 300 Mbps Transfer Speed (Black) | Linksys WiFi 5 Router, Dual-Band, 1,500 Sq. ft Coverage, 10+ Devices, Parental Control, Supports Guest WiFi, Speeds up to (AC1200) 1.2Gbps - E5400 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer Rating | (1458) | (131) | (39) | (2507) | (3566) |
| Price | $59.00 | $24.99 | $29.89 | $69.99 | $28.99 |
| Sold By | Electronics Basket | Connected Home Store | Zandale Enterprises | VDC Inc | Connected Home Store |
| Connectivity Technology | Wireless | Wireless^Wired | Wi-Fi, Ethernet, USB | Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi, Ethernet |
| Data Transfer Rate | 300 Mb per second | 54 Mb per second | 300.0 Mb per second | 300 Mb per second | — |
| Frequency Bands Supported | Dual-Band | Dual-Band | 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz | — | 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz |
| Item Dimensions | 6.85 x 7.44 x 0.91 inches | 2.64 x 12.76 x 10.08 inches | 8.5 x 7.25 x 2 inches | 7.43 x 5.97 x 1.23 inches | 2.17 x 8.46 x 7.36 inches |
| Item Weight | 0.71 lbs | — | — | 0.52 lbs | 0.02 ounces |
| Range | feet | feet | — | feet | — |
| Total Ethernet Ports | 4 | 4 | — | 4 | — |
| Total LAN Ports | 4 | 4 | — | 4 | — |
| Wireless Communication Standard | 802.11a/b/g/n | 802.11n | 5 GHz Radio Frequency, 2.4 GHz Radio Frequency, 802.11n | 802.11b, 802.11n, 802.11g | 2.4 GHz Radio Frequency, 5 GHz Radio Frequency |
Customer reviews
I bought this router as a replacement for the same brand and model I had before, I expected this one to be an upgraded model with the same model number. Some came with an added USB port like the included picture, but when it was delivered it didn't have the upgrade either. If you buy this Linksys E2500 (N600) Advanced Simultaneous Dual-Band Wireless-N Router don't expect it to come with the USB Port.
Images in this review
