Netgear N Series (WNDR Models)

[Metspitzer]

This says the Netgear N Series (WNDR Models)

I just bought a Netgear N600 The box says Wireless printing. Tech
support says I need an Ethernet connection. My printer is only USB.

If I read correctly, the Netgear N Series (WNDR Models) will allow you
to plug a USB only printer into the router and be able to print
without having a computer in the room.

Is this right?

http://lifehacker.com/5920709/five-best-home-wi+fi-routers

Netgear's own firmware offers quality-of-service controls, advanced
access and parental controls, support for dynamic DNS, advanced
wireless security options, and offer support for NAS devices and
printers connected via USB.

 

[Pen]

This says the Netgear N Series (WNDR Models)

I just bought a Netgear N600 The box says Wireless printing. Tech
support says I need an Ethernet connection. My printer is only USB.

If I read correctly, the Netgear N Series (WNDR Models) will allow you
to plug a USB only printer into the router and be able to print
without having a computer in the room.

Is this right?

http://lifehacker.com/5920709/five-best-home-wi+fi-routers

Netgear's own firmware offers quality-of-service controls, advanced
access and parental controls, support for dynamic DNS, advanced
wireless security options, and offer support for NAS devices and
printers connected via USB.

Netgear says USB Printing.
http://www.netgear.com/home/products/wirelessrouters/high-performance/WNDR3700.aspx#

 

[SC Tom]

This says the Netgear N Series (WNDR Models)

I just bought a Netgear N600 The box says Wireless printing. Tech
support says I need an Ethernet connection. My printer is only USB.

If I read correctly, the Netgear N Series (WNDR Models) will allow you
to plug a USB only printer into the router and be able to print
without having a computer in the room.

Is this right?

http://lifehacker.com/5920709/five-best-home-wi+fi-routers

Netgear's own firmware offers quality-of-service controls, advanced
access and parental controls, support for dynamic DNS, advanced
wireless security options, and offer support for NAS devices and
printers connected via USB.

I just got through, about a month ago, helping a friend set his up (same as
yours, WNDR3400v2 N600). He wanted to access it wirelessly with two laptops,
print through it wirelessly, and access a shared USB HDD for storage.
Unfortunately, he's got ALS and is confined to bed (he uses Dragon Speaking
for PC control), so he asked his neighbor to do the hardware hook-up of it,
and neither one of them is very knowledgeable (or patient) about that kind
of set up.

By the time I got there, I had to reset everything to factory and start from
scratch. The PC hook-up went OK, and so did the storage drive. The printer
(an HP OfficeJet of some flavor; I don't remember the exact model) went
fairly well. Once I had setup the IP range for the router, I had to re-enter
the IP for the printer, then told it to connect. It worked fine, and each
laptop "found a new printer" when prompted to. So that was fairly easy, too.
I never had to physically connect the printer to the router or to any of the
laptops (running Win7) to make them all see each other.

The problem we had with the router (and the reason he returned it) was that
the internet side of it was very flaky. It worked fine the whole day I was
there, but the next morning, wouldn't connect. He had his wife power off
everything, then start the power on process (like in your other post) and it
worked OK for about half the day. I went back over and spent time on the
phone with Comcast and Netgear, and of course, all they did was blame the
other. I brought him my old Netgear (WGR614v9) to use temporarily (which
worked fine for him the whole time he had it; just no USB port for his
storage drive), and took the N600 home and set it up for me to use. I had
the same problems with it that he had (I have Charter, so it wasn't totally
the ISP fault ), so we concluded that the router itself was flaky.

He brought it back to Staple's and they traded him for another router (same
one). I set it up at home with the IP addresses and everything that he had
before, went over and plugged it in, and it worked just fine- for two days.
Then, the same problems as the old one; periods of limited or no
connectivity, having to start rebooting everything a few times daily. He
brought that one back, too, and got another model (also a Netgear, but I
don't recall the model) that was so easy to set up, he didn't even call me
until he was done. His wife and neighbor did the legwork for him, and he did
the rest from bed.

All in all, I like the Netgear line, but that model just was not good. If
you are wanting to plug a non-wireless USB printer into it, I don't see
where you'll have a problem with that aspect of it. Depending on the
printer, you may have to temporarily connect it to each PC to install the
software, but then it should be recognized as a network printer once it's
connected to the router. I had to set up my DeskJet 3050 that way, but once
it was recognized in Windows, I have it across the room, accessible
wirelessly.

 

[SC Tom]

I just got through, about a month ago, helping a friend set his up (same
as yours, WNDR3400v2 N600). He wanted to access it wirelessly with two
laptops, print through it wirelessly, and access a shared USB HDD for
storage. Unfortunately, he's got ALS and is confined to bed (he uses
Dragon Speaking for PC control), so he asked his neighbor to do the
hardware hook-up of it, and neither one of them is very knowledgeable (or
patient) about that kind of set up.

By the time I got there, I had to reset everything to factory and start
from scratch. The PC hook-up went OK, and so did the storage drive. The
printer (an HP OfficeJet of some flavor; I don't remember the exact model)
went fairly well. Once I had setup the IP range for the router, I had to
re-enter the IP for the printer, then told it to connect. It worked fine,
and each laptop "found a new printer" when prompted to. So that was fairly
easy, too. I never had to physically connect the printer to the router or
to any of the laptops (running Win7) to make them all see each other.

The problem we had with the router (and the reason he returned it) was
that the internet side of it was very flaky. It worked fine the whole day
I was there, but the next morning, wouldn't connect. He had his wife power
off everything, then start the power on process (like in your other post)
and it worked OK for about half the day. I went back over and spent time
on the phone with Comcast and Netgear, and of course, all they did was
blame the other. I brought him my old Netgear (WGR614v9) to use
temporarily (which worked fine for him the whole time he had it; just no
USB port for his storage drive), and took the N600 home and set it up for
me to use. I had the same problems with it that he had (I have Charter, so
it wasn't totally the ISP fault ), so we concluded that the router
itself was flaky.

He brought it back to Staple's and they traded him for another router
(same one). I set it up at home with the IP addresses and everything that
he had before, went over and plugged it in, and it worked just fine- for
two days. Then, the same problems as the old one; periods of limited or no
connectivity, having to start rebooting everything a few times daily. He
brought that one back, too, and got another model (also a Netgear, but I
don't recall the model) that was so easy to set up, he didn't even call me
until he was done. His wife and neighbor did the legwork for him, and he
did the rest from bed.

All in all, I like the Netgear line, but that model just was not good. If
you are wanting to plug a non-wireless USB printer into it, I don't see
where you'll have a problem with that aspect of it. Depending on the
printer, you may have to temporarily connect it to each PC to install the
software, but then it should be recognized as a network printer once it's
connected to the router. I had to set up my DeskJet 3050 that way, but
once it was recognized in Windows, I have it across the room, accessible
wirelessly.

Sorry I got so long-winded
I guess the N600 I worked on may not be the same as yours since there
appears to be numerous WNDR models of the N600.

 

[Metspitzer]

I just got through, about a month ago, helping a friend set his up (same as
yours, WNDR3400v2 N600). He wanted to access it wirelessly with two laptops,
print through it wirelessly, and access a shared USB HDD for storage.
Unfortunately, he's got ALS and is confined to bed (he uses Dragon Speaking
for PC control), so he asked his neighbor to do the hardware hook-up of it,
and neither one of them is very knowledgeable (or patient) about that kind
of set up.

By the time I got there, I had to reset everything to factory and start from
scratch. The PC hook-up went OK, and so did the storage drive. The printer
(an HP OfficeJet of some flavor; I don't remember the exact model) went
fairly well. Once I had setup the IP range for the router, I had to re-enter
the IP for the printer, then told it to connect. It worked fine, and each
laptop "found a new printer" when prompted to. So that was fairly easy, too.
I never had to physically connect the printer to the router or to any of the
laptops (running Win7) to make them all see each other.

The problem we had with the router (and the reason he returned it) was that
the internet side of it was very flaky. It worked fine the whole day I was
there, but the next morning, wouldn't connect. He had his wife power off
everything, then start the power on process (like in your other post) and it
worked OK for about half the day. I went back over and spent time on the
phone with Comcast and Netgear, and of course, all they did was blame the
other. I brought him my old Netgear (WGR614v9) to use temporarily (which
worked fine for him the whole time he had it; just no USB port for his
storage drive), and took the N600 home and set it up for me to use. I had
the same problems with it that he had (I have Charter, so it wasn't totally
the ISP fault ), so we concluded that the router itself was flaky.

He brought it back to Staple's and they traded him for another router (same
one). I set it up at home with the IP addresses and everything that he had
before, went over and plugged it in, and it worked just fine- for two days.
Then, the same problems as the old one; periods of limited or no
connectivity, having to start rebooting everything a few times daily. He
brought that one back, too, and got another model (also a Netgear, but I
don't recall the model) that was so easy to set up, he didn't even call me
until he was done. His wife and neighbor did the legwork for him, and he did
the rest from bed.

All in all, I like the Netgear line, but that model just was not good. If
you are wanting to plug a non-wireless USB printer into it, I don't see
where you'll have a problem with that aspect of it. Depending on the
printer, you may have to temporarily connect it to each PC to install the
software, but then it should be recognized as a network printer once it's
connected to the router. I had to set up my DeskJet 3050 that way, but once
it was recognized in Windows, I have it across the room, accessible
wirelessly.

I guess I will be taking it back

Thanks

 

[Paul]

The problem we had with the router (and the reason he returned it) was
that the internet side of it was very flaky. It worked fine the whole
day I was there, but the next morning, wouldn't connect. He had his wife
power off everything, then start the power on process (like in your
other post) and it worked OK for about half the day.

On modern equipment, the easiest explanation is overheating.

Network boxes can burn up to 10 watts.

The boxes have poor air holes for cooling. Air doesn't "rush out"
of a 1 mm gap.

Sometimes, the heat affects some subsystems more than others,
perhaps wiping out the Wifi interface, and leaving other parts
still working.

A second possibility, is the box needed a firmware upgrade. When
buying that kinda crap, your first step would be checking for
downloads on the manufacturer's site.

Returning the product, is the right answer, because eventually
they either go out of business, or they get a QA department.

Since the netgear.com site "goes into a loop" for me right now,
I won't be buying any netgear products, until they fix their web
site. If I needed a manual or a firmware file, I'd have a hard
time navigating to it. My log is filled with attempts to
access "netgear.where-to-purchase.us" over and over again.
If I was desperate, I'd have to edit my "hosts" file, and
try blocking IPs like that one.

Paul

 

[Metspitzer]

On modern equipment, the easiest explanation is overheating.

Network boxes can burn up to 10 watts.

The boxes have poor air holes for cooling. Air doesn't "rush out"
of a 1 mm gap.

Sometimes, the heat affects some subsystems more than others,
perhaps wiping out the Wifi interface, and leaving other parts
still working.

A second possibility, is the box needed a firmware upgrade. When
buying that kinda crap, your first step would be checking for
downloads on the manufacturer's site.

Returning the product, is the right answer, because eventually
they either go out of business, or they get a QA department.

Since the netgear.com site "goes into a loop" for me right now,
I won't be buying any netgear products, until they fix their web
site. If I needed a manual or a firmware file, I'd have a hard
time navigating to it. My log is filled with attempts to
access "netgear.where-to-purchase.us" over and over again.
If I was desperate, I'd have to edit my "hosts" file, and
try blocking IPs like that one.

Paul

I only tried to access the manual from the CD once. I got message
saying "manual coming soon" or something similar. I won't say the
manual is not on the installation CD, but I do say I was unable to
display it. There is no printed manual, but I prefer the online
version anyway.

I don't have a smart phone (my nephew has), but it would be nice if QR
codes were on the box for the product's firmware and manual. Instead
of having to check and double check model numbers a QR code would
really take some of the trial and error out of my installations.

I found the manual online in a few seconds.

 

[SC Tom]

On modern equipment, the easiest explanation is overheating.

Network boxes can burn up to 10 watts.

The boxes have poor air holes for cooling. Air doesn't "rush out"
of a 1 mm gap.

Sometimes, the heat affects some subsystems more than others,
perhaps wiping out the Wifi interface, and leaving other parts
still working.

I thought of that when I first got there, but he has it in a nice open area
with nothing within 6" of it, and air circulating through the room from a
ceiling fan he leaves on all the time. And in my place, it was sitting on my
desk with air from the A/C duct hitting it whenever it's running (I like my
desk location ), and when the A/C is off, my ceiling fan runs on low
24-7. It's still possible it was heat, but with two different ones
exhibiting the same behavior, what are the odds?

A second possibility, is the box needed a firmware upgrade. When
buying that kinda crap, your first step would be checking for
downloads on the manufacturer's site.

Fred had already flashed it with the latest and greatest, but said he
thought there may have been a problem with the process. I re-flashed it to
the original release, then tested it (it appeared to be working OK), then
upgraded the firmware from a fresh download. The second one was already at
the latest version.
One other thing I don't like about that model is that even though it's
flashed to the newest version of firmware, the web access page has a message
at the top stating there is a newer version available. But when you click on
the link, it says there are no newer versions, returns you to the previous
page with the 'newer version available' message reappearing after refresh.

Returning the product, is the right answer, because eventually
they either go out of business, or they get a QA department.

I agree 100%. I have three older WGR614v9 that are a/b/g compatible that
work just fine for me and anyone else that I let connect to them. There is
one of them that gives me a problem with one of the laptops I own, but I'm
still not convinced that it's not a Vista problem rather than a router one.
Since I don't travel with that laptop, I just use one of the other routers
that does work with it, and use that third router when I travel with my
Gateway laptop that seems to work with everything

 

[Bug Dout]

I never had to physically
connect the printer to the router

To clarify, did you connect the printer to router via USB cable?
Or was the printer a wireless printer?

 

[SC Tom]

To clarify, did you connect the printer to router via USB cable?
Or was the printer a wireless printer?

It's a wireless printer that I print to through the router. My desktop has
no wireless capabilities.