1 Your Friends Will Envy You
I am the proud owner of three "F5D5230-4" routers, and I have one at home, one in my car, and one at the office. Setup was so easy, that I had everything running in five minutes. I docked it one star because the manual is incomprehensible to English-speaking people. Whenever people ask me what that fantastic looking little box is with all those wires, I just lean back in my chair and proudly say "this is the mother of all routers, it's the F5D5230-4".
2 Belkin's customer service leaves much to be desired.
My Belkin 4 Cable/DSL 4 Port Router never was a trouble-free device. It needed frequent resets and then seemed to cause one of our computers to start only in safe mode. Further investigation of the system revealed an over-heating power adapter. Unplugging the adapter fixed the non-starting computer and all three worked just fine when individually plugged into the cable modem. On December 6th, I wrote an email to Belkin because I wasn't able to find an identical adapter locally. Belkin replied they would email me again once my RMA was approved, but told me not to respond to their notice. After waiting what seemed to be an unreasonable time for the RMA, or further communication from Belkin, I wrote again, because only one computer was on line via the Cable modem. By December 26th, I had written three or four times with no response from Belkin.
When a relative came to visit with yet another computer, I relented and bought a Linksys router. The Belkin router remains inoperable when all that it needed was an adapter replacement or some other indication Belkin was aware of the problem with their product.
3 I wouldn't recommend it
I wouldn't recommend this product. I have it for about 3 yrs, works as a simple DSL router in 2-3 computers home network. It froze on me on numerous occasion for no apparent reasons andhave to present the reset button on the router in order for it to work again. In 3 yrs, it broke twice. The first time was about 6 months in the ownship. Belkin replace it with a new one and postal cost out of my own pocket. The 2nd time was last week (warrany expired), the same old problem. It just quite working. I won't be replacing my router with the same unit for sure.
4 THIS WILL EVENTUALLY SPAM YOU!
This router will take a legitimate connection to a web site and turn it into an ad for belkin products! The older models don't but if you update the firmware (like maybe to close a security hole in the future, or for compatibility of a network game) you will start getting ads! There are a couple of articles that are at popular news organizations that confirm this. BOYCOTT, DO NOT UPGRADE THE FIRMWARE!
5 OK for printing, but has odd problems.
Its ok, and it lets you surf the net, but it has some odd problems. Particularly, it stops working when playing certain online games, such as Counter-Strike, or anything running on the Steam game engine. This has been particularly frustrating for me, as a gamer, because I now need to buy a brand new router since there is no longer anyway for me to get around this.
6 Not bad
Not a bad product, I've used it for 6 months or so, but requires too many resets for my taste. After 2 or 3 days of use, traffic through the router slows to a crawl, which requires me to reset the router. It's annoying.
7 Great Router!!
I love this router. I have cable internet connection with 3 computers hooked up to the router. My connection is lightning fast and it took less than 5 minutes to hook up. It has a numerous amount of features including a hardware firewall which is great. I also have an xbox and it is working awesome. I recommend this router to any one!
8 Not bad - WHEN it's working
I have had cable internet for six months now and have tried a couple different routers during this time. When I set up the router, I ran into a number of problems because I was unable to get past the "login" and "password" screen in order to clone the mac address, etc. Technical support was unable to help me and couldn't even figure out how to reset the router! I was able to get it set up and running eventually and did not have any problems those first few days. I had this router working on my small (windows xp pro, windows xp home & windows 2000) home network. When it works - all the home computers can connect to each other, share files, play multiplayer games, and surf the net with no speed concerns what so ever. The key here is "when it works". There are "down times" almost daily where the router is unable to function. I was able to continue working online just through the cable modem, but that left the rest of the network offline while I was doing so. I exchanged the router (for the same Belkin 4 port) and had the exact same problems again! Thinking it may be my cable company, I had them run numerous tests that came back fine so I then tried another brand router. Linksys and DLink work fine with absolutely no interruptions but both of the Belkins that I tried couldn't even make it 24 hours without breaking down.
For the price, it isn't bad when it's working - but you can buy both DLink and Linksys for the same price range and have more stability.
9 A Disappointment
I use Verizon DSL and was unable to configure this router to work properly without intervention from Belkin's technical support. The included software repeatedly failed to properly configure the router. The manual was poorly written and Belkin's website was of no use for my particular problems. I will acknowledge that the Belkin technial support representative was knowledgeable and helpful. The day after I had the router set up and running it died on me. After contacting Belkin technical support again and running some diagnostic tests, the tech support representative came to the conclusion that the device was not functioning properly and I should return it to Belkin for a replacement. Instead, I returned the device to the store and purchased a slightly more expensive router from Linksys (model BEFSR41). That router was a snap to set up - no need to contact technical support. In sum, the Belkin router was a disappointment - I can't recommend it at all.
10 Very unpredictable
I'm what would be considered a computer geek and have found this router to be a waste of time.
As with the other's that have had problems, I myself am included with this group. I have earthlink aDSL and after playing with the tcp/ip settings, the PPoeP settings on the router and many more troubleshooting theories....being on the phone for endless hours with my ISP assuming that that was the problem, it was finally concluded that this router was it. It works great when it wants to and when it doesn't...it tells you by not allowing a connection. The info on the website is a joke, since all it tells you is what the settings "should" be for your ISP. It doesn't tell you what to do when the router decides it doesn't want to work.
And now, after having it for a month and a half, I have bought a D-Link router.....and after 72 hrs of un-interrupted service(a 1st)...I think I can finally enjoy what I paid for.....high speed, always on internet service for my home network consisting of 4 computers.
11 I'll give it zero star if I can
I bought this router one week ago and it has stopped working for 3 times. And I had to disconnect all cables, reset my cable modem and reset the router in order to get the connection back, and still I do not know what the cause was. I followed every step in the setup and I'm sure I didn't do anything wrong. Definitely do not choose this if you need it for home office, because it is extremely unreliable. Even if you need it for personal use, I would not recommend a router which needs resetting every 2 days for getting normal connection back.
12 I'd Give It A 10 If Possible
... Right outta the box it I was up and running in less than five minutes after having set up my network and cable modem. I have a desktop and laptop hooked to the router...
The router though lets me transfer data between the two networked computers at blazing speeds. 700 megs in about 5 minutes. This is mainly due to a 300 P2 laptop hooked to a Belkin network card in a PCMCIA slot which is not as fast as my PCI based desktop NIC. The laptop's HD has sub-standard read and write speeds. Setup with the router was easy and considering I knew nothing about networking beforehand it was a plus.
All in all this router is in the economy price range and it works well providing your ISP is up to speed. I've never been disconnected from the cable except during Hurricane Lili...and that was for about 12 hours because of power lines down.
13 I'd Give It A 10 If Possible
With Time Warner Road Runner service being the only broadband service available in the Houma, La. area I signed on with the early bird service which quickly turned into a beta test for them. The first two weeks were blazing speed. 1.8 to 2 megs a sec transfer rate, all the time, any time. This is with firewall and NAT enabled on the router. I used all the default settings and no firmware update. Right outta the box it I was up and running in less than five minutes after having set up my network and cable modem. I have a desktop and laptop hooked to the router. I've been losing bandwidth ever since and after many phone calls discovered it's not the router's fault. Time Warner-Houma only set up 2 T-1 lines and expected to feed a town of 90,000 on that. They signed on 300 customers and the two T-1's are woefully inadequate. Now they've stopped signing on additional users till they figure it out. There's plans for a T-3 line and as to how many I do not know. All I know as for now as long as I call and complain they cut my bill in half and that's what I was paying for dial up. The on average 600 k a sec bandwidth is better that the 3 or 4 K I got with dial up.
Check with your cable or DSL provider before blaming the router. It will move some serious data when connected properly on the cable company's end. I've learned through many phone calls that none of the workers in Houma even have a clue as to what they are dealing with. Like I mentioned earlier they are new to this and it's still in beta testing here.
The router though lets me transfer data between the two networked computers at blazing speeds. 700 megs in about 5 minutes. This is mainly due to a 300 P2 laptop hooked to a Belkin network card in a PCMCIA slot which is not as fast as my PCI based desktop NIC. The laptop's HD has sub-standard read and write speeds. Setup with the router was easy and considering I knew nothing about networking beforehand it was a plus.
All in all this router is in the economy price range and it works well providing your ISP is up to speed. I've never been disconnected from the cable except during Hurricane Lili two weeks ago and that was for about 12 hours because of power lines down.
14 Hey i think this is great
it is very easy to setup and very fast and almost as good as linksys and d-link, great for the price. although do have some difficulties with having the voice chatting enabled
15 Its great but i do have some minor technical issues
it works great with two laptops hooked upto the dsl, great networking, easy installation. just have some minor technical difficulties with having msn voice chat, even though i have followed the instructions into configuring the dmz to allow me to be outside hte firewall it does not help
16 Router
EZ to use, sets up in seconds. Best Router I've used to date, The firmware is so simple.
17 Don't buy this router!
If you are looking for a router, do yourself a favor and don't be swayed by the Belkin reputation and cheap price of this product. I have liked Belkin products for years and think that the company has a great reputation for building solid products that don't over-complicate easy tasks. Where networking is concerned, I have a very basic grasp of how it works. Where computers are concerned, I have a very strong knowledge of what it takes to make a great computer and how to build it piece by piece. When I was looking for a router, I came across this Belkin component and thought that thier reputation for building a solid, simple product would mean that this was the router for me. I was wrong. The set up of this router is simple and connecting any router isn't difficult, but this product just simply doesn't work consistantly. One day it works, one day it doesn't. I have a simple need of this unit and that is to connect two computers in my house to my DSL modem. It does this job, but only when it wants to. Let me tell you, there is nothing more frustrating than turning on your computer, opening your browser and seeing the "cannot display page" message because today your router has decided not to let you in. The router worked the day before, but it just doesn't feel like working today. It just does this once in awhile, maybe it will let me in tomorrow... In the meantime, do yourself a favor and don't by this product. Buy the Linksys, Netgear or SMC.
18 Ab Fab Router!!!
This rotuer is fabulous. I have a roadrunner cable modem connection here in Jackson, MS. I bought the router and plugged up the cables and all was done. No configurations, no setup, nothing!! It gave IPs to both of my connected machines right away and are connected at 100 mbps. (Actual modem speed floats between 2 and 3 meg though) I have XP Pro on the master machine and Home on the other one. To share files I just enabled sharing on the folders that I wanted. I installed the software just for fun, and when you select the netsetup it brings up the XP home networking wizard, so you might opt just to leave out the software. The internet site was cool, but again unneeded. I even managed to hook up the Xbox and play Halo online using the Gamespy tunnel software. Highly reccomend the rotuer if you have a cable or dsl modem with the LAN port on the back of it. If you have a usb or other connection, then you might need a switch. Great product, go buy now if you want to network and share your broadband connection.
19 Trouble keeping connection with XP
I have been trying to use this router since November. When I hook up to it through my Windows XP machines, it cannot keep or re-establish a connection with my ISP, no matter how hard I try. I applied the firmware upgrade--twice. The first time, I got out of it before the upgrade completed, which rendered the router useless. Belkin replaced it for me, and I upgraded again, this time successfully. But I still cannot keep a connection. Very frustrating.
20 Perfect router if and only if you do so:
upgrade your firmware as soon as you get it. Then all the disconnection problems, as reported by other reviewers, will be solved. it is easy and takes about 1min.
the router has a cute design. intuitive web based set up page and reasonable price. Come with basic security set up, although not very advanced. The performance, is superb. I didn't do the test but some professional web site did and says it is one of the fastest cable/dsl router.
the only thing I hate it is the color. It looks much better on the box. Anyway I only care about the performance.
21 A good little router
I purchased this cable/dsl router locally for a very good price and have found it offers relatively the same features as the Linksys and Netgear equivalents. The device itself is easy to setup, and works well with a standard high speed connection. The reviewer whose kept losing his cable modem connection may have had this problem due to a cable modem that does not support DHCP or possibly his provider uses PPPOE, though I am unsure if cable could. If so he would have to specially configure the router. I have not have any disconnection problems or connection problems whatsoever.
A plus to the browser interface is the direct link to firmware update, a hands off install of them and the ability to configure many options and settings. The browser interface could be set up better, but it not terrible and easily navigated.
The manual is very weak. There is no explanation for the advanced features, such as the VPN for remote management and I have yet to make this work. The DMZ and port filtering is vague and confusing as well, which as limited my success in implementing it. One reviewer thought that if you know how to use these advanced features, then you might know how to set them up. I do know enough to set them up and I still found the lack of information problematic as I cannot tell if I have set THIS particular device up accordingly. Of course these features are not required for a basic setup so I cannot ding them too hard for the lack of documentation
22 Gets the job done
I had been using software to share my Net connection, but found this router locally on a good sale and decided to pick it up. I already had a home network in place, so it took me less than 15 minutes to install the router and get everything to work. The manual covers the basic installation and setup of the router, but some of the more advanced features ("Virtual Server Settings" and "Special Application Settings") are not explained at all. I suppose that if you knew what they were, you'd already know how to use them. Belkin's Web site does not have any more detailed explanation of these features. Fortunately, these aren't necessary for the main use of this product - to share your Internet connection. Online games have worked fine without any special setups, such as turning off the firewall or putting my PC outside the firewall (the "DMZ"), and I haven't had a problem getting disconnected from my DSL line so far. The only weirdness I've run in to is that Netscape won't connect to the router (to do the setup and change router options) at all; I have to use Internet Explorer (I have to hit "reload" a few times before I'll get the login screen mentioned in the manual) or Opera. So in short, it does what it is supposed to do, though it would be nice if the documentation discussed the advanced features so that I can tell if I need them or not.
23 Works great so far
I added a router to my home to share my cable modem since it couldn't be done on a regular hub and it has been great. For my two computers when both are being used to play online games at the same time, they ping between 30 and 40. The computer that is set up first has a faster connection for surfing the internet than the other one (posssibly something I did) but both can download at a 100k plus. It also has a myraid of options to go with it.
24 Don't bother with this one....
I received this Belkin 4-Port Cable/DSL Router as a gift for Christmas, which is why I gave it two stars--it was free! If I had paid for this, it would have been given less.
The documentation is very inadequate. While you're navigating through the web-based setup, it often refers you to the user manual for detailed help...unfortunately the help in the manual is exactly the same as the web-based setup screens. Belkin needs some major improvement in this area.
The biggest problem I have with this hunk of junk is that it keeps getting disconnected from my cable modem. I currently use a Toshiba PCX1100U cable modem. Before hooking up this router, I had always achieved very high speeds without ever experiencing a single problem. Once I hooked this router up, the problems started. If you're browsing webpages, and ONLY webpages, you should be okay. But it seems that as soon as you start to download a file of decent size, it disconnects you from the cable modem. Naturally, Belkin's website and technical support also leave something to be desired.
So, in a nutshell, save your money and go look for another brand of cable router such as a D-Link or Linksys. I've heard great things about the D-Link!
