3Com Home Wireless Router user reviews

Summary Purchased this in Febuary 2001. Had over 1 year of decent operation. The only issue I had was to occasionaly perform a soft reboot to get it active again. About 2 months ago, the wireless suddenly stopped working. Physically conntecting to one of the ports is not a problem though. Last week, I would be able to work on my laptop (with an Orinoco Gold PCMCIA card) in my kitchen, about 20 feet away, with a strong signal for about half an hour. Then the signal would be completely lost. Moving the laptop into the same room as the access point would still not restore the signal. Now, after downloading the latest firmware (to fix the problem of connecting to attbi), I am not able to establish a wireless connection at all. Even when I'm in the same room.

Summary Even in the massiv built houses here in Germany, this adult-toy works fine from the cellar to the roof. Up to now the friends of our kids had no chance to missuse the hot-spot.

Summary It was a very simple install. The web-based configuration tools made it simple for even the non-technical person to setup. However, that's where the fun stopped. The speed was good. But the range was awful. If I left the room that had the Gateway, then my connection was spotty. Also, 2 weeks after I bought the product (which was in December of 2001), 3-Com discontinued the product!!!! Their Office-Connect is the product they sell and support now.

Summary Getting this unit up and running was a piece of cake. I/F is intuitive and very user friendly. What really sucks is the range. Signal just doesn't cut it through any intermediate walls. Signal strength at 25 ft with a simple sheetrock & Stud non-bearing wall is < 25%; well below 50 feet with no wall between.