Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)To give you some background, I picked up the USR8054 as an open box return at a local store. I felt I would test my luck and see how bad or good this router really is.
To give you fair warning, I'd like to think I'm pretty technically savvy. After resetting the router(previous buyer didn't clear his settings), the router quickly and easily detected my wan(cable modem) and my connected computer(via wired lan). Normally it's a good idea to configure your router via the wired lan before connecting via wifi, although this router does allow for the initial connection via wifi. (Caution: This router in it's default state does not require authentication to access the network, configure the WiFi security first to close out intruders.)
The interface I found easy to use but looks exactly like their website(IMHO cheesy to dupe their website). I left the initial network settings at default with the network being 192.168.123.X. Didn't bother using the wizard, reading the manual, or the integrated help. More or less the system was plug and play. If you are using xDSL, there are some other configurations you need to do, which I did not test.
Feature-wise, the router seems to have most(about 80-90%) features found on other routers. The features it did lack I found to be the ones I find the most important. Contrary to the description, WPA (WiFi Protected Access) is not supported as of the date of this review using firmware 1.21h(Always update your firmware to the latest available). WPA has been an interim security standard for quite some time and has been recognized by Microsoft, Netgear, and many others. USR states they are waiting for ratification of WPA... Ratification??? WPA has long been made a standard!!! The only thing pending ratification is 802.11i which is due out very soon.(802.11i will replace WPA as the security standard). For those wondering, WEP has been found to be highly insecure and thus WPA was released to address the security issues of WEP.
After testing the wired lan, I tested the WiFi portion using no encryption. I found performance and range to be exceptionally good.(Also mentioned and supported in professional reviews)
The firewall is decent and supports DMZ and port forwarding. No SPI (Stateful Packet Inspection) which is probably why the router performs so well. No ability to filter based on keywords in the URL(Parental control).
If your primariy concern is security when using WiFi, I would seriously consider purchasing a different router. Otherwise, the router is fast and cheap.
The Breakdown
Pros
-Easy Setup (Remember I'm a techy)
-Slick black casing
-Inexpensive for a router offering 54Mbps+
-DMZ feature
-DHCP Lease time control
Cons
-No Static DHCP entries
-No WPA support
-No URL keyword filtering
-Interface needs attention to details.(ie. Post settings submission screen)
In my opinion, USR is still new to the networking arena and needs to mature. The router certainly fills basic needs but forgets some of the more advance features found in more popular routers. If anything, this router certainly doesn't stand out. If USR improves the firmware for this router, I'm sure it can be a much nicer router. Until then, I wouldn't recommend this router for anyone considering the lack of security and other fundamental features.
Routers I've worked with: Negear FR314(Wired), DLINK DI-604(Wired), Netgear MR814(Wireless), SMC 2804WBR(Wireless).
Click Here to see more reviews about: US Robotics USR8054 802.11g Wireless Turbo Router with 100 Mbps
US Robotics 802.11g 100Mbps (54g+) Wireless Turbo Router with 4-Port Switch.
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