ZyXEL Wireless N Pocket Travel Router and Access Point (MWR102)

• Pocket-sized router/AP for internet access on-the-go
• 3-in-1 Functionality ? Router, Access Point, and Client Bridge
• Wirelessly share a wired Internet connection with multiple friends, colleagues, or devices.
• 802.11n wireless connectivity for data transfer rates of up to 150Mbps
• USB or AC power provide flexibility for any situation

Uses:

WiFi Access point (adds a wireless connection to a network)

Wifi Router (works like an Access Point but also shares the connection with multiple devices)

Wireless Client Bridge (connects to an existing wifi network and bridges the connection to TWO Ethernet ports)

Thoughts:

In the short run, I bought this to add wi-fi to my Xbox 360 on the cheap, and I wanted something that could take the place of a wifi card in a new computer I'm halfway finished buying parts for. I had a little trouble setting up Client Bridge mode at first, but when I asked ZyXEL they responded helpfully through both email and an English speaking native on phone support. As an unexpected bonus, both the WAN and LAN ports function to bridge wifi to Ethernet in Client mode, so I'll be able to give both my Xbox And computer wifi at the same time. Right now, I just have the MWR102 hooked up to my Xbox via Ethernet and USB, and the short included cables keep everything tidy. If you would like to see the steps I used to set this up, visit Tom's Hardware (the website) and search for the product.

This will also be useful to add wi-fi during travel, the main advertised use of this product, though I don't travel as much as I used to.

As far as 150mbps wireless N bandwidth goes, that's several times faster bandwidth than any personal consumer connection to the Internet, and my connection signal is strong from the basement game room with no lag created from my end. I have not had any sudden dropped connections so far, I am confident that this is a quality product.

Update:

Router still working great as of April 6th. I have it set up in my very concrete-y basement (super challenging for wi-Fi), with both the Xbox and a desktop computer plugged in. For some reason I have no lag playing Call of Duty 4, but a really bad connection that gets me kicked out of games frequently in Left 4 Dead with my friends from Penn State... Of course nobody wants to take responsibility for it being their end, lol. I also started a job that puts me on the road, so I'm super glad I chose this solution because I just flip a switch on the side over to the other mode, plug it in and I have a private WiFi network in my motel room. Flip the switch back when I get home, and the settings for client mode are reactivated with no hassle. I'm still thrilled I did my research and found this!

Update July 2012:

Working fine with both my PC and XBOX hooked up to this in my bedroom, at the same time. Left 4 Dead just has bad lag problems, everything else is working smoothly. I don't know if I've said so before, but my home is served Internet by Verizon's FiOS service and their provided gateway/wifi router.

Buy ZyXEL Wireless N Pocket Travel Router and Access Point (MWR102) Now

The ZyXEL Wireless Router worked great! My wife and I traveled to Guam and Hawaii and she brought along her ipad. Once I got the ZyXEL connected her was able to stay in contact with friends and family while relaxing in bed or on deck. Plus traveling with the router was extremely easy and simple. One of the best purchases I made in quite a while.

Read Best Reviews of ZyXEL Wireless N Pocket Travel Router and Access Point (MWR102) Here

This thing is pretty small and USB powered but the interface/software is very minimal and there isn't a WIFI client to allow it to connect to other WIFI connections as a WIFI repeater or bridge which is useful when travelling and at a cafe or to pick up a signal without having to wire in an internet connection. For a real travel or portable router, I would recommend to others the ASUS WL-330N or ASUS WL-330N3G since I know that portable router has the option to connect to other WIFI connections built into the software. This little pocket router is a great product but I honestly would not pay more than $20 bucks for the somewhat limited functionality it provides. It's a good deal for the price though compared to other similar products which are usually around $40 bucks or more.

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Ideal for international travel, the supplied wall charger accepts 110-240v input and it packs away nice and small. The small cloth bag which was included is really too small for the unit, charger and cables and only really useful for the unit itself and helps protect it. The box it came in is excellent for packing it all away for travel.

Setup:

Easy to set up, the unit is able to clone a MAC address (and save up to three MAC addresses) which is handy for connecting to certain modems, it is also able to save configurations (which should allow for easy reloading). Having an ethernet option as well as wireless allows a bit more flexibility, it took about 10 minutes to add the router between an existing computer and cable modem, change the defaults and configure the MWR102, clone the existing computer's MAC address (ISP limitation) and TCP/IP settings and have it working with no negative impact on the existing computer and enabling wireless for other computers to connect.

Performance:

Performance is surprisingly good for such a small unit, with a good connection possible at 10m through 2 walls. Best performance is found when raising the unit high and keeping it flat, as the unit is so small and light a little tape or blu-tack may be needed to prevent kinks in the cables from twisting the unit off the table! The supplied ethernet cable is very short (cat 5e) which may not be an issue if the ethernet connection is up high, I bring a longer cable to allow more flexibility in positioning of the unit, the power cord has plenty of length. I found that some devices (android phone) had a harder time staying connected than a laptop, a reboot of both devices seemed to sort this out so now I power cycle the unit every few days or so.

Overall:

Excellent device for USD$30, apparently it also acts as a connection to a wireless network and when not travelling I intend to use it to connect a DVD player to the internet.

[update]

Configuring the device in Client mode works with the latest firmware (download from the ZyXEL international site, not the US site) and can successfully connect two devices at once in client mode BOTH ethernet connections pass through the internet connection.

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I bought this because I needed a 2.4GHz compatible wireless access point, and this does that and more. very well

on the side of this very small router is a switch for Router or Access point, which is handy for taking it on a trip.

in the box:

router

carrying bag

AC to USB mini-B adapter (5V .6a)

USB cable

cat 5e cable

documentation

setup is easy, all the info is written on the bottom of the router (default admin login, ip address, SSID and WPA password.)

the router, in access point mode indeed does let both the LAN and WAN ports work as LAN ports. the speed is excellent and the latency is as good or better than any other dedicated access point I have used to date. the range is good for the physical size, but I don't think this is a MIMO router (who cares, no big deal)

in router mode, it just plugs in, boots quickly and WORKS.

a relief that this unit does exactly what it claims to do and does it well, with little headache.

I absolutely recommend this, I'll probably buy another.