SMC SMCWBR14-G2 Barricade G 2.4GHz 54Mbps Wireless Cable/DSL Broadband Router

I can tell you all you need to know about this router in one sentence: Do not buy it or you will regret it. Don't say I didn't warn you.

This router feels fragile and flimsy, and it is. I bought it in May and it worked fine until August, when I moved it to a different room and plugged it into a new outlet. Then it stopped working. I have had SMC routers in the past, and this has happened to me before: the router works fine for a while, but it cannot withstand any kind of handling, no matter how gentle.

Worse yet, when I called SMC technical support to get an RMA number so I could return the router for a new one, they insisted that I spend over an hour trying one thing after another to make it work. Sorry, but it is simply not worth over an hour of my time to try to repair a $49 router, especially when I know from experience that it cannot be repaired and I need a replacement. Eventually, I asked to speak to a supervisor, and was put on infinite hold...Read more

First of all, it's really weird that the one in the picuture has the logo on the right of the lights with the lights toward the left while mine has the logo on the left (in front of the antenna) with the lights in the middle, but that's really not too relevant.

What is relevant is that I suddenly became unable to use this for Internet access last night and nothing I could do could bring it back (and that over a cat-5 wire, not wireless) so now I've reverted to my old SMC7004ABR for internet access.

So, before I throw it in the garbage, I thought I'd share my thoughts on this device.

First, it runs really hot, and that might be what caused it's demise after a year. I wondered how long this thing would last, and now I know. If late at night the spiders are gathered around it singing campfire songs, it's likely running too hot. (No that really didn't happen, but if spiders could sing on those cold winter nights, they'd gather next to one of...Read more