ASUS (EA-N66) Dual Band N450 Ultra-Fast Wireless 3-In-1 (AP, Repeater, Ethernet Adapter) Adapter With High-Power

First off, I should say, I really expected this thing to be bigger than it was. When I opened up the box and saw this tiny little pyramid shaped thing, I started to second guess my decision. I'm not sure what to compare it's size to but it's small. I was wondering if it was going to be strong enough to create a network large enough for the job ahead.It literally took me 5 minutes to get this up and running in Access Point mode. It took me quite a bit longer to troubleshoot the cabling problem in my brand spanking new house. I have CAT5e running from a high plant shelf in the living room (vaulted ceilings) to my basement. The cable just wasn't crimped correctly by the builder. Once that was fixed, and considering it's central location, the signal coverage was awesome! It covered the main floor of the house which is about 1,300 sq. ft and the basement which is another 1,300 sq. ft. All locations indicated a very strong signal from my cell phone and some other wireless analyzers I use at work. I walked around the house and the signal was "good". I also walked out to the street and it indicated a "fair" signal. The distance from the WAP to the street is approximately 240 feet when using 2.4 Ghz. So, I thought that was pretty good.I haven't had a lot of time to do a bunch of internal testing. The tool I used didn't show the transfer rate unfortunately, but I transfered a 1.5 GB movie from a Windows machine connected to the network via Ethernet cable to my Macbook, which was on the wireless network, using the 5 Ghz band. The transfer took about 30 seconds. By my calculations that's pretty close to 400 Mbps. Switching over to 2.4 Ghz, transferring the same movie, took over 2 minutes.My Roku and other wireless devices connected to the network easily and quickly. I was able to stream HD videos/movies without any problems. If you understand networking, you'll know that it's a gimmick when the description talks about using the 5 Ghz band for online streaming for the increased speed. My internet connection is 8 Mbps so my streaming is largely dependent on that fact. My internet connection is the bottleneck in the network. Both 2.4 and 5 Ghz bands will both support HD streaming just fine. If you are streaming video from your local network then you'll see some amazing speeds from this device. The real reason to use 5 Ghz would be for connecting to other machines on your local network and downloading/uploading content or for moving to a band that is less crowded because of interference problems caused by your neighbors on 2.4 Ghz.I was looking for a WAP with PoE, considering it's location I didn't want to worry about power outlet accessibility. I purchased this thinking it had PoE but when I attempted to power it with PoE it didn't work. Looking over the details online and the user manual turned up nothing about PoE. I made a mistake. This isn't the fault of the unit or ASUS but my own oversight. Fortunately I do have a power outlet kind of close by but it's an eye sore stringing the cable over to it. I would like to see this unit use PoE in the future. I would certainly buy one.I forgot to mention, I had a small problem when I first connected some devices to it. I remember reading a review that suggested upgrading to the latest firmware (I can't remember the firmware version off the top of my head). I did so and the problems disappeared. Now it seems to be extremely stable.I have only used this in Access Point mode, so I can't say much for the other modes. So far I like this little WAP. It's small but it packs a big punch! I would definitely recommend this to others and will probably buy more in the future.

Update 3: 4/21/2013. After several days using the EA-N66 as a repeater, I can say it's a great product.I am using the EA-N66 to extend the signal to my living room from my office where my router is connected. I am currently using the 2.4 Ghz band.Reasons for my Use:My walls that separate my office to the living room are extremely dense and do not provide line of site view from the router to the devices in my living room (Roku, TV, Blu-ray player) thus providing a very week Wi-Fi signal and constant drop outs. Prior to hooking up the EA-N66: Even at the lowest resolution (480 P) It was next to impossible for me to watch anything streaming from VUDU. My experience with Netflix and Amazon prime through Roku was just a little better.After hooking up the EA-N66 and connecting my devices to it:I am now able to watch movies in HDX through VUDU. All devices connected to the EA-N66 are receiving strong signal strength and a no more drop outs on video streaming services.Other thoughts:This device does not support Dual bands use in parallel, meaning you can only use one band at a time 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz. I've really not had the chance to use the 5GHZ as the Roku 2 XS only support 2.4GHZ (Roku 3 supports both)It really is easy to set this device up (Providing you don't receive a defective EA-N66)Recommendations if you should buy one:For the sparse manual that comes with this device. There are sites on the web that provide video tutorials on how to set this device up in the various modes it supports. You can find these videos by searching "Videos on how to setup the EA-N66" or you can go to EA-N66 setup videos - SmallNetBuilder Forums.Download the updated firmware prior to connecting this device to your PC or laptop.Use the Ethernet cable to attach the unit to a laptop to configure. ( If your laptop or BC has a wireless connection, Disable it prior to connecting the cord from the device to the port on the laptop.)When connected to the laptop via Ethernet cable, take a look at the status lights by the cable on the back of the EA-N66. When troubling shooting with the ASUS tech I noticed that the left light was a solid red, meaning it was not communicating. After a few more efforts, we determined the original unit I had was defective.I CAN FINALLY RECOMMEND THIS DEVICE TO OTHERS AS A REPEATERUpdate. 4/16/2013. I received my replacement device this evening. Plugged it in, attached it to my laptop. Accessed the GUI, ([...]) set up repeater mode and flashed the firmware. took 10 minutes. Once Firmware update was done, I paired it to my router(ASUS RT-N66U). Device displays full solid blue light, indicating a solid signal.Devices connected via this device all have full signal access. So far so good. Seems stable. I have raised my rating to 4 stars.Update. 4/15/2013 I've reached ASUS technical support. After running through the gambit of trouble shooting. (connecting to 2 different computers,swapping Patch cords and resets) It is determined the item is defective. I am requesting from Amazon a replacement in lieu of a refund and try my hand at the replacement device. Hopefully, I look forward to a better experience. I will provide an update within the week.Trying 2 days now to set this up. Unable to access the GUI to configure repeater mode. The manual enclosed is useless, Asus Discovery tool is useless as it does not detect the device. Tried to reach Tech support and was placed into the Hell of holding Queue. This item is going back. Until now, I was a fanboy I own a few other ASUS products and have been lucky up to now and never needed an in depth read through of their tech product manuals or technical support. In my opinion they fell down on both.I think Asus needs to focus as much time, money and effort on ensuring a positive customer / user experience as it does in producing hardware.ProsEasy setup and configuration ( Providing that the device is not defective)Looks really niceNice blue lightsReset buttonNice big WPS buttonConsMay not be suitable for setup for some in a sleeping area due to the blue lights.No dimmer or off switch for the blue lights - ( I know a bit nit picky)Power cord plug,sits horizontally in socket. Takes up two outlets in surge protector.Manual in the box poorly written. (Check the Asus website for an updated manual)Didn't come with a disc. It would of been nice to have the utilities, updated manual and their short help video on disc, etc.

Asus dual band wireless repeter, no problem setting it up as a repeater. Bought this item to help push the signal from ATT from the living room to one of the bedrooms so I could use the wi-fi on my computer. work well sending the signal to my son's bedroom, but my computer room must have something blocking the signal. I'm paying the 18 mgs download and only gettong 2-3 mgs thru the repeater. I don't think the repeater is the problem, its my house and the walls and corners the signal has to traverse.