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"Firmware bugs really cripple the router." on by mb822
Pros: Awesome hardware.
Cons: Firmware. This firmware is so buggy, just go to the community support site at Cisco's website, you'll be pretty amazed at some of the simple, yet very crippling, bugs that made it through.
Summary: The hardware specs of this router are awesome. However, the firmware cripples it. There are some pretty fundamental bugs that made it through, which still, after 100+ days since the last update, still affect the router. Go to the community support site and you'll see nothing but silly issues with the router. I've been fortunate that none of the bugs have been show-stoppers for me, but I wouldn't recommend this router with its current firmware (2.0.36 as of the time of this writing).
Cisco switched to a Marvell chipset on the v2, which means that you can't load any solid 3rd-party firmware to address the stock's shortfalls. With this, you would hope that more substantial firmware updates would come through, or at least more often. The routers of some of the others in this price range have undergone quite a few updates which have fixed many issues they experienced. Yet this router, as a flagship of the E-Series, still has a lot of problems.
My final point is that, for some unexplained reason, Cisco has removed functionality that was there in other flagship routers. I'm coming from a WRT610N to this, and I still can't understand how the parental controls are so much weaker than on my previous router. Also, the advanced wireless settings have been removed. In addition to fixing the bugs in the firmware, it's really getting hard to stick with firmware that doesn't feel like it offers any additional value, things like bandwidth monitoring and so forth.
If you're going to go with the e4200, definitely get your hands on the v1 so you can load decent firmware on it. If you get the v2, you'll have buggy firmware, and it doesn't seem like there will ever be a way to get around the lack of updates and fixes, due to the Marvell chipset. It's awesome on paper, and the hardware is there, but being stuck with sub-par firmware is really quite unfortunate. -
"Good speed and range... but don't expect anything more." on by Renegade_Raul
Pros: - Excellent data speeds (although I think the included speed test software exaggerates it)
- Nice looking
- Seemed pretty reliable (no dropped connections in my brief experience)
- Very good range even through several walls speed remained pretty goodCons: - At this price range I was expecting more, my previous router cost me $50! and worked well.
- VERY few external hard drives are compatible! Make sure you google to see if your HD will work.
- Problematic setup.
- Tech Support wasn't very helpful.Summary: I was leaning towards the Airport Extreme but this router had better reviews from cnet. Setup was problematic it just didn't go smoothly (Never had any problems with any previous routers). After all was said and done, the signal was strong and fast BUT I cant stand behind this price. Specially since I cant use it with my WD MyBook HD. At this price point everything should work spectacularly right out of the box! I didn't want to sound like an Apple Fanboy but I will be exchanging it for the Airport Extreme. Apple has always been straightforward, no caveats. And im sure it will work well with my Macbook and my HFS+ formatted external hard drive.
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"USB NAS sounds better than it really is" on by Reni Perez
Pros: Easy setup off CD software
Good speed on both 2/5 Ghz bands
Fast USB with flash driveCons: Pricey
USB NAS slows down or stops depending on drive size and number of files
Occasional drop outs in wireless signalSummary: I wanted to upgrade from a G router since I now own an iPhone and iPad which use N-wireless plus was looking to connect a USB drive for use as a NAS drive. The setup was very easy using the included CD and the connections strength to all my devices is strong though I have experienced a couple of periods where there is no wireless activity and then it comes on after a while.
In addition, CNET gave the USB to NAS speed on the Linksys E4200 V2 great marks but in my trying to connect a Western Digital 2TB drive via a USB enclosure to the E4200V2 router, I found that it worked fine and fast when it had a few files on it but once I copied 1.5 GB of movies and music to the drive and tried it, Windows 7 gave me an error message on trying to access the drive. After a couple of hours with Cisco support, I learned that the USB connection is limited to 2TB and to the number of files and folders which I had exceeded. So one main reason for buying this router over a less expensive one, became pointless. I may return the router for a Netgear or ASUS and buy a separate NAS box. -
"10% of the speed of my old Linksys WRT54G" on by russpalmeri
Pros: It looks nice. Yep. That's it for the pros ...
Well, OK, the tech support is great, but see below.Cons: It gave 10% the speed of my old WRT54G. A direct to router connection 10 MBps, WRT54G wireless 5MBps, E>4200v2 0.39 - 1 MBps. This after an hour rejigging the router setting with tech support!
Summary: You may have a different experience, but this was a big loser for me. Thanks, Amazon, for your return policy. For $200 it should work out of the box. This one hardly worked at all, even with a nearly complete change of settings.
Save your money and get something else. -
"Don't waste your money." on by loki_racer
Pros: None that I can think of.
Cons: Everything.
Summary: Gigabit connections aren't nearly as fast as they should be. 802.11n with a laptop 10 feet away from router can not stream HD video from a Windows Home Server on a 10/100/1000 connection.
It is controlling my bridged DSL modem and is constantly knocked offline, multiple times a day. I have to power cycle the modem to get it to reconnect to the internet.
All the issues mentioned above weren't issues with my network when it was running a WRT600n. The only thing I changed, and very much regret, is replacing the WRT600n with the E4200.
Cisco Linksys E4200 v2 Maximum Performance Dual-Band N900 router user reviews
