Easy setup, limited features, constant reboots required
April 21, 2011 By J. W.
Received this router, set it up with the same SSID and password as my previous router, and most of my devices were able to connect without having to reconfigure anything.
Configuration of the router was quite simple. Here are the pros and cons:
Pros:
1. Easy to set up password, left wireless channel selection to auto, etc.
2. Multibeam technology - spreads the signal well around the house. Can even use with my portable devices and laptop in the backyard (router in the den, so 2-3 walls away)
3. Self-healing technology (though this is suspect, as it seems to consist of telling the router to reboot itself at a certain day & time). Product description claims some kind of analysis to find the clearest channel (I did configure it for auto channel selection...many routers now have that option).
4. Many different devices connected - D-Link wireless print server, desktop PC running Vista, laptop running Windows XP Professional, laptop running XP Home, iPhone, Samsung Galaxy S, iPod Touch, iPad, Wii (streaming Netflix), 7" Android tablet, etc.
5. WPS configuration (though I did not use it...just assuming it will work)
6. Other standard configuration options available - DMZ, virtual server, MAC address filtering,
Cons:
1. Router displays its info (internet settings, lan settings, firewall settings, etc.) without needing to login
2. There is no place to reserve IP address based on specific MAC ID -- this is very important if you are connecting to LAN or WLAN enabled printers (or printer servers) or NAS drives. As a work around, I had to configure my printer with a static IP address, and make sure that the DHCP address range avoided the static IP used for the printer. The downside to this is the router will not display the printer in the client list (client list is only for DHCP clients, so static IP won't show up).
3. One of my computers will not reestablish connection if coming out from System Standby. Solution is to reboot the router (unplug power, or login from another computer and do a software reboot). This did not happen with the previous router.
4. Frequently the printer on the WLAN network will not print. Rebooting the router (unplug power cord or software reboot) will fix problem.
5. Missing ability to configure different TCPIP ports, services, or restrict access hours (parental control).
Conclusion:
If you want a simple router and are not connecting a network printer or NAS drive, this router will work fine and is simple to use. More advanced users with networked printers and NAS drives, or wanting to control internet access, etc. will find the lack of these options frustrating and should look into a brand name instead.
