Cisco-Linksys WRT160N Wireless-N Broadband Router

Full Description

5 Reviews

1. I bought this router to use as an access point so my laptop computers could connect to my network and the internet either with an ethernet cable or wireless. I have 5 computers and a printer on my network and was wiring the router to a Linksys hub in my office that is about 75′ from the cable router. I managed to establish a wireless connection, but could not maintain it for any extended period of time. It would even drop connection in the next room after a few minutes. I returned this router and bought an Apple Airport,at the suggestion of my son. All my computers run Windows (XP and Windows 7) so I had not tried Apple products before, although I do have an Ipad ordered. My son’s network is also Windows based, so I took a chance on the Apple. The Apple Airport simply works! My house is around 3000 sq. ft. and I could maintain reception anywhere in it and even out on the deck. The Linksys couldn’t begin to match the reliability or throughput I got with the Apple and I would not recommend the Linksys, at least not for the type of application that I needed. The Apple was a breeze to install too.

2. If you look carefully at the reviews on this product, you’ll notice that most of the newer reviews for this product give it 1 star. I suspect this is because the latest version of this product, the WRT-160Nv3, was released in mid/late 2009. I think it’s not a coincidence that this product has been getting consistently bad reviews. Hopefully my review (along with 200 others) can persuade you to save your time and money and look elsewhere for a wireless router.

   I bought this to use in a small apartment. The wireless-N capability and decent price made it look like a good investment. Set-up with the provided install-disc took less than 10 minutes. The bundled software did a decent job at monitoring network status and providing shortcuts for settings some parameters, but it was hardly necessary. After installing the software, I connected my desktop via ethernet, and all was well. Next, I configured the wireless settings from the built-in management page on the router (by default, this is 192.168.1.1). The management page was clean and easy to navigate, and I had a WPA2 wireless network set up in no time. Logically, I tried to connect my laptop. This is where the nightmare began..

   My laptop (a 15″ Macbook Pro from 2008; I’ve never had problems connecting to any other wireless networks before) detected the network at full strength but refused to connect, and consistently displayed “connection failed” or “connection timeout” errors. I figured it might be a problem with WPA2, so I switched to WPA. Didn’t help. So I tried WEP, and even no security. Nothing worked. Next, I played around with the advanced wireless settings. After 2 hours of trying everything I know (4 years+ of working in the IT industry), and trying everything I could find online, I still couldn’t get it to work. I flashed DD-WRT onto the router, but that didn’t help anything. Even boosting the radio Tx strength to 200 mW (almost 3 times the default strength of 71) didn’t help. For reference, my laptop was sitting RIGHT NEXT TO THE ROUTER on my desk.

   At this point I was wondering if it was a problem with my laptop, so I borrowed a friend’s and tried connecting from there. At first, his laptop wouldn’t even detect the network from the next room. After moving it closer, it just gave the same error messages I was receiving. Just to be sure, I even brought out a third laptop, running a different OS, and tried it with that. Nothing worked. I also noticed that something funny was happening each time I attempted (and failed) to connect through the wireless; with each timeout, the router would reset itself, and my ethernet connection would disconnect for a few moments.

   From my experience with the WRT-160Nv3, I conclude that it may make a decent network router if you plan on only using ethernet (for 50 bucks it’s hardly worth it), but it makes a downright terrible wireless router. Seriously.. the ‘wireless’ part didn’t even work. This was a major disappointment, as I’ve had great experiences with all the Cisco/Linksys products I’ve used in the past. It’s possible that this particular router was a lemon, but 200 other reviewers also complained about similar problems, and I’d prefer not to deal with another bad product again. I’ll be trying a D-Link DIR-655 next ..

3. Pros –

   Sleek design; great finish and styling
   Easy setup; plug and play; no compatibility issues
   Familiar web interface for configuration
   Expanded network range

   Cons –

   Lasted 6 months; dropped DSL connections and self rebooted constantly
   Extremely unreliable wireless; had to reboot router daily
   Very long delay in establishing PPOE link to ISP

   Summary –

   Had a lot of confidence and hope given brand name but severely disappointed
   Actually shocked that any item associated with Cisco could be such garbage
   Cannot return to store now as past 1 month period
   Will attempt compensation from Linksys but not hopeful – buyer beware, brand means nothing

4. Please, do not even consider buying this product unless you are a glutton for punishment. Linksys KNOWS the firmware inside is flawed, and they are not making any efforts to fix it. You will have multiple sites that occasionally will not load. You will have multiple sites that will be mysteriously re-directed to other pages. And customer service, as nice as they may be, have no solutions. I have been told for MONTHS that the firmware problem is being addressed and that a new upgrade is coming that will fix these problems. It’s now late July, 2010. I’ve heard that since January.
   The easy solution to these problems is to not buy this router. When I am able, I just bypass the router and let it sit unused. Then, my internet experience is flawless.

5. i have the router upstairs with my other computer but am using a netbook down stairs in my house (mainly got it so i could use the netbook down stairs)..the signal is low or very low but i can still get a connection..sometimes it doesnt connect or loses connection but i am able to get it back in a few mins. its a good product but i wish it had a stronger out put or signl my netbook could reach better.