Neat Netgear 5 port gigabit switch

Advantages: Cheap, reliable, simple to use
Disadvantages: None.

...I liked this switch so much, I bought two of them. Netgear have a reputation for cheap and reliable networking equipment, and this 5 port unmanaged switch is no exception. When I bought my two, they were retailing online for approx £35 each - but these days you should be able to get one for approx £25 (inc VAT.) The switch is more or less the size of my hand (yes, I have big hands). With 5 ports on the back - all are auto-sensing, as is the gigabit standard, so you don't have to worry about crossover cables if you're daisy-chaining switches... The only other port on the back is for power, which is the usual "wall-wart" plug in transformer you get with most home networking equipment. Given the switch is unmanaged, you can just plug desktop computers, laptops, XBOXes, network printers straight into the switch, and not worry...

sjhill 20.08.2007 · Read review
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Review of NETGEAR GS605 5-Port Gigabit Desktop Switch - switch - 5 ports

Netgear GS105 5 Port Gigabit Switch

Advantages: Easy installation, small, sturdy, quiet, auto uplink
Disadvantages: Runs quite hot

...This is a 10/100/1000Mbps switch with 5 auto-sensing ports Visual Description A compact unit measuring 16cm x 10cm x 3cm (approx) Housed in a very sturdy blue metal casing with venting slots on the side and back Looks very professional 5 Front mounted UTP sockets Rear mounted PSU socket (12 Volt, 1.2 Amp, Centre Positive) and Earth tag LED indicators to display 10Mb, 100Mb, 1000Mb connection, Activity, Full Duplex, Collisions and Power Installation The GS105 switch comes supplied with manuals, 12 Volt (1.2Amp) PSU, ethernet cable, and the unit itself. Installation is very simple and requires no configuration as this is an un-managed switch. Simply connect your existing CAT5 cables from your PC to the switch, it will detect the connection speed and cable type. No need to worry about using cross-over cables or straight through...

sj19uk 11.09.2005 (04.12.2005) · Read review
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Review of NETGEAR ProSafe GS105 - switch - 5 ports

Linksys, links my systems just great.

Advantages: Cheap, Easy Install, Fast Connection, 4 ports
Disadvantages: Wired. Not always a disadvantage though.

...I decided to write this review today, after helping a friend of mine choose what type of router to go for. Having had only two routers in my lifetime, I'm not the biggest technicality whiz, but I know enough stuff to get me going. After my first router (A mentor, which by the way, you shouldn't buy) broke, I needed a new. I'd heard a lot of praise about Linksys routers. And the praise was true to it's word. The router packs the following statistics, which may mean more to some of you that others, but listed her for simplicities sake when you read reviews on it. Built in Modem. No need for both a router and a modem. ADSL2. You can connect up to 25 mb per second with this 4 ports. You can connect 4 PC's, Routers or other Ethernet devices to this. Wired. Means no wireless troubles and better security, but more wires. As...

Smeep 12.07.2006 · Read review
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Review of Linksys ADSL2 Gateway with 4-Port Switch AG241 - router

Belkin 2-Port KVM Switch With Built-In Cabling

Advantages: Advantages: Cheap, all in one solution
Disadvantages: No manual overide or audio support

...stops autoscanning and lets you use the currently selected PC. The Belkin claims support for scrolling mice but I did find sometimes one PC would start up without recognising this facility if it wasn't the currently selected one when booting up and in extreme cases, wouldn't recognise the keyboard and mouse at all. Previous KVM's I've used send the PC fake 'There's a keyboard and mouse here' messages when not selected and it seems this unit does not, which is a pity. Conclusion The Belkin 2 port KVM is a well built unit that works nicely and provides a great way to save desk space and the cost of a second monitor, keyboard and mouse. The long leads are useful and despite the niggles with scrolling mice and the lack of manual switch. I'd say this unit is worth considering at this price if you can live with those shortcomings...

ilaskey 21.03.2007 · Read review
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Review of Belkin 2-Port KVM Switch with Built-In Cabling - KVM switch - 2 ports

Linksys Router

Advantages: Can hook up a few computers to it,can have a password
Disadvantages: slow transfer of big files between computers

...The last review was very good but I thought I would give one more about the product itself. After purchasing a laptop it became apparent that I wouldnt want to run a cable from my broadband box to my laptop in order to use the internet especially when this is already plugged into my PC. The next logical step? By a wireless router and i'm assuming that if your are reading this then you will either be in this position or just cant be bothered with having cables all around your house anymore. As the title says this is a Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless Access Point Router with 4-Port Switch. Fore this router to work you need to make sure that your broadband has an ETHERNET port otherwise you will need to find another router as you plug your broadband into this router via an ethernet cable in order for it to be able to send out the signal...

sum41rule 11.05.2007 · Read review
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Review of Linksys BEFW11S4 Wireless Access Point Router with 4-Port Switch

Affordable 10/100 Switching

Advantages: So Easy installation, Simple and effective design
Disadvantages: None of which I know

...GENERAL OVERVIEW This 3COM OfficeConnect switch is considered my best. It has simple yet effective design and so easy to use and configure: just plug the cables and it is on. It is very useful for home networks and small business networks, as it can connect up to 5 computers with the 10/100 Mbits per second speed. FEATURES Five autosensing ports automatically detect the speed of the attached device to maximize network performance With plug-and-play installation and no configuration needed, the switch fits easily into your unmanaged network Full-duplex feature supports two-way data transfer, doubling the effective bandwidth of the network Compact, fanless design ensures quiet operation in small office spaces Connectors at rear help reduce cable clutter FCC Class B switch is approved for use in small office and home office...

mraouf101 21.11.2004 · Read review
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Review of 3Com OfficeConnect Switch 5 - switch - 5 ports

Switch it !

Advantages: Performace at an excellent price
Disadvantages: 4 ports may not be enough

...to that one port only. To add to this, Switches can support "Full-Duplex" networking, which means sending and receiving data at the same time, effectively doubling your network speed under the right conditions. >>> So what? So, that's immensely more efficient, and particularly in a high-traffic environment (even online games played no a LAN qualify here) it can have a perceptible positive impact on performance. >>> What's the FS-105 then? This is how you get this wonderful technology into your home! This £69 beauty is half the cost of its competition, will auto-detect 10 and 100Mb/s connections and has 5 ports, one of which can be used as an uplink. Even a good hub will cost £50, and for the larger office, the FS-108 (8 port) version can be bought for only £88 (if you can find one in stock anywhere!)...

one47 09.07.2001 · Read review
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Review of NETGEAR ProSafe FS105 10/100 Desktop Switch - switch - 5 ports

Belkin 2-Port KVM Switch With Audio Support

Advantages: Cheap, all in one solution, audio support
Disadvantages: No manual overide

...It's surprising how many people have more than one PC at home although even more surprising is that many of them each have their own screen, keyboard and mouse. In many cases this makes perfect sense but sometimes, you know you'll only ever use one or the other - perhaps one is your general PC and the other your music workstation. In these situations you can save a lot of space and money by investing in a KVM switch. KVM stands for Keyboard, Video and Mouse and allows you to use one keyboard, mouse and screen shared between two PCs. This particular unit from Belkin is unusual in that it also includes audio support and also comes with all the leads permanently attached instead of being supplied as a separate cabling set. Wiring it Up Installation is simply a matter of taking each of the two main cables and plugging the sets...

ilaskey 26.01.2007 · Read review
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Review of Belkin 2-Port KVM Switch with Audio Support and Built-In Cabling - KVM / audio switch - 2 ports

3Com OfficeConnect Dual Speed Switch 5

Advantages: Simple, dual speed, small size
Disadvantages: Only 5 ports (?)

...Not much to say about this really. I bought this for a pound (!) on Ebay to connect to my router giving me 4 more ethernet ports to connect stuff to my network. That's all it does, gives you more connection; there's no firewall, DCHP, nothing, but then that's all in my router. Its 5 autosensing ports (Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX - RJ-45)automatically detect the speed of the attached device to maximize network performance - with a data transfer rate of up to 100 Mbps. It really was a "plug-and-play" installation with no configuration needed, it connected straight into my network - I didn't even ned to read the manual ! The auto-sensing feature means that you can plug the "in" cable into any socket - another 3Com switch I have has a specific "in" port. It's nice and small (Weight 0.6 kg, Height 4.2 cm, depth 13.5 cm, Width 22...

matt_fantastic 24.03.2006 · Read review
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Review of 3Com OfficeConnect Dual Speed Switch 5 - switch - 5 ports

Switch to Netgear

Advantages: Easy to use, easy to install
Disadvantages: closeness of the ports.

...Netgear are well known for their networking equipment and it is for this reason I want to tell you about a great piece of kit. The 24 port switch. 24 ports of networking capability.... But what does that all mean??? Ok, let me tell you about what a network is. Even the internet is just one big network. it is simply just a collection of computers that are connected together and can communicate. Simple! But, how do you connect them together? Its not like they shake hands and have a chat is it? Well in a way, that is what they are doing but using some extra hardware to do this. To put a computer on a network, it needs a Network interface card or NIC. This plugs into your computer's motherboard. Its basically similar to installing a graphics card or sound card. You then need to connect the computer via the NIC card to...

andycharger 02.06.2003 (04.06.2003) · Read review
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Review of Netgear 24port 10/100 Switch