Cable and Wireless? (Linksys EtherFast Cable/DSL Router with 4-Port Switch BEFSR41)

Member Name: andycharger

Product:	Linksys EtherFast Cable/DSL Router with 4-Port Switch BEFSR41
Date:	30/12/03 (336 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Handy for sharing Broadband connections, Small, Cheap

Disadvantages: Can be fiddly to set up

Not only is it a play on words (and a famous Telephone company) but now it is a good way to describe a fantastic piece of equipment that no Broadband Home should be without.
The Linksys Wireless-B Broadband Router.
Yep, you budget Networking buddies have supplied you with this great innovation. The ability to share your single Broadband Cable/DSL connection with up to 4 computers in the vicinity. I say vicinity as this is a WIRELESS ready router.

Hang on a minute Andy.....What is this Router thing.

I liken it to Mother cooking Dinner. Mother is the Router in this situation. The Broadband connection is like a massive saucepan full of dinner and the Children are 4 PC's around your house.
Mother takes the Dinner and divides it out amongst her 4 children , ensuring they all get some dinner and in equal proportions. That is what the router is doing. Taking the Broadband connection and suplpying up to 4 computers around the house with the internet!

What it looks like is a small Black and Blue plastic box not much bigger than a double CD box. On the rear fothe device are 2 moveable aerials to distribute the signal up to 50 Metres away. Bearing in mind that walls hinder the signal strength greatly. If you are in a house with many walls and ceilings to get through, expect a fall in signal strength.

On the other hand, if you have some long cables, you can connect the other computers directly to the back of this router using traditional Network RJ-45 Connections. They are the little square plugs that look a bit like a big Modem Plug.

So with the Router out of its box, powered up from the mains and one computer connected directly to the Router via a Network cable, you can begin the install proper.
This can be a bit tricky and it is worth talking to your Internet Service Provider (ISP) about this. Your ISP will have information that you need to enter into the install screen of the router for making it work. you ma

y also need to provide the ISP with some information about the computers sharing the connection.

What is great about this router is that you do not need any computer on to make it work. What I mean is that you do not need to set it up on one computer and leave that one on to work the others. You can in fact access the router management interface from any of the connected computers. However the initial set up does require you to be connected via a Network cable and not just on the wireless connection.

So what is a typical usage and set up?
Take my house. I have a Computer in my Spare room that is for personal Usage. Before, my broadband came straight into my computer. However, I now have a Company Laptop and I need to access the web and dial into work using the broadband connection. It has the Wireless capacity.

So I have the Broadband connection coming into my Router.
This is then shared out via a Network Cable to my Personal Computer In my Spare Room.
It is further shared out via the Wireless to my Laptop. All I needed to do to share this was register the MAC address of the laptop in the management tool. There is no "physical" connection between the Router and Laptop. Its all done by magic!!! So I have a combination of both Wired and Wireless sharing the router at once.

A few Technical Specifications for you:
If can share out up to 2.4Ghz of information Per Second. That is pretty good considering the average conection only supplies one Quarter of that from your ISP.
You can set up port forwarding so you can still come into your computer at home remotely from other locations. You just need to set up passwords and log ons. All of this can be done via the management console.
you dont need to buy a wireless access point to control the router for a distance. Luckily this has one built in so everything is contained in one box.

What about the price?
Well, I have had mine for 6 months
and prices have not changed much in this time. I paid £65 for mine and I think they
are roughly the smae price now.

Worthwhile Investment?
Absolutely. In fact, I think Wireless is the future. Soon we wil lbe able to have computers in every room with no network cables making the place look untidy. just Radio waves sharing the signal! Fantastic!

Summary: