Netgear WNR854T RangeMax Next Wireless-N Router Gigabit Edition

Pros: When it works it is fast and has a good range

Cons: Routinely drops connections and requires resetting, dies very quickly

Summary: I purchased this unit in July 2007 as I had good experience with Netgear products in the past, I appreciated the the advertized features, it was on sale for a competitive price, and I broke one of my rules and didn't read the various on-line consumer reviews before purchasing. This unit was relatively easy to set up, hardwiring my imac (intel) and using the wireless feature on both a Mac bookpro and an IBM thinkpad. The speed and range was noticably better than my airport extreme (the 2005 model). My ISP is a small cable company with solid service. Initially, I had some dropped connections, but over time things seemed to stabilize (for no apparent reason -- settings remained the same). Last week, 6 1/2 months after puchase, I looked up from my work to see what is known on many forums as "the green circle of death." Only the green, circular power light stays on and the router lost all functionality. There were no storms and my house is wired to a house-wide surge protector and then the unit was plugged into a second protector. If you look around the forums (including Netgear's own), you'll find the technical explanation. After the usual resetting, rebooting, etc., I finally called Netgear tech support. As I called them 3 in the a.m. EST, it only took me 36 minutes and 2 techs to determine the unit was dead and to issue a return number for ONLY $17.00. The new unit came quickly. I've hooked it up and now am suffering from repeated dropped wireless connections. Given this items track record, I figure it will only be a few more months before I have the opportunity to purchase a new router -- this time after reading the forums.