So I finally got the router I wanted (Linksys WRT54G) back in January. But this damn thing has disconnect problems when transferring large files wirelessly from PC to PC (or PC to Xbox in my case, sometimes), which defeats the whole purpose of why I got it in the first place. This only seems to happen with versions 2.2 and 3.0 of this router and also with versions 1.1 and higher of the SpeedBooster version (WRT54GS).
Here are a few threads to read about people’s problems:
Official WRT54G High Throughput Connection Drop Issue (I posted my experience with my WRT54G in this thread)
WRT54GS High throughput causes disconnect
Disconnect when copying large files on WRT54G/GS
And the worst part is, Linksys doesn’t even seem to want to admit that there’s a problem with the hardware. 😐 So I’m pretty much SOL unless Linksys finally decides to do some sort of recall on these defective routers and replace them with working ones that don’t have this problem. It doesn’t seem like a problem that a firmware (software) solution will be able to fix.
Anyway, for people who still want this router, try to look for version 2.0 or previous (or if you want the SpeedBooster version, look for the 1.0’s). You can tell by looking at the first four characters of the serial number (S/N, underneath the UPC and MAC on the box):
Known serial numbers (first 4 characters) vs versions:
CDF0 = WRT54G v1.0 ADM6996L Chip
CDF1 = WRT54G v1.1 ADM6996L Chip
CDF3 = WRT54G v1.1 ADM6996L Chip
CDF5 = WRT54G v2.0 ADM6996L Chip
CDF7 = WRT54G v2.2 BCM5325EKQM Chip
CDF8 = WRT54G v3.0 BCM5325EKQM ChipCGN0 = WRT54GS v1.0 ADM6996L Chip
CGN1 = WRT54GS v1.0 ADM6996L Chip
CGN2 = WRT54GS v1.1 BCM5325EKQM Chip
CGN3 = WRT54GS v1.1 BCM5325EKQM Chip
Anyway, friends (and foes, if I have any), avoid Linksys if you can for now. I hope they’ll fix this problem someday or replace the crappy routers with good ones.