Linksys WRT54GS Router and WPC54GS Notebook card (both w/ Speedbooster) @ Staples, $80 (+ tax) AR + AC?

[RamonesFan]

I was doing some pricing of Linksys Speedbooster gear last night, and came across this intriguing possibility (my apologies if this has already been mentioned somewhere else...):

Staples has the Speedbooster Router for $89.94, and the Speedbooster laptop card for $59.94, total of $149.88. Add a filler item to get over $150.

If you're lucky enough to have recently received a Staples 30 off 150 coupon in your email (if you don't have one, you can always try to buy/trade for one on chubby billfold), we're down to $120.00 for the router and card.

Staples' website has links to $10 rebates for each item (search under "Linksys"). The rebate submission address is in Miami, FL, and the only documentation requirements are "Your Staples rebate receipt or packing slip" (no mention anywhere of a UPC code). This brings the price down to $100 for the pair.

Linksys also has their "Go Wireless for Back to School" reabte promotion running, which offers another $10 for each item. The submission address for this rebate is in Mesa, AZ, and requires the "sales receipt plus the original UPC code(s)".

It seems to me that the Staples rebates and the Linksys rebates are independent, with differing addresses and differing submission requirements. Staples doesn't require the UPC codes, so you can use 'em on the Linksys rebates.

So, to recap, the following seems possible:

WRT54GS Router: $89.94
WPC54GS Notebook Card: $59.94
Padded mail bag filler (524090): $.17

SUBTOTAL: $150.05

Less $30 off $150 coupon: ($30.00)
Less Staples rebate #1: ($10.00)
Less Staples rebate #2: ($10.00)
Less Linksys rebate #1: ($10.00)
Less Linksys rebate #2: ($10.00)

TOTAL: $80.05 (+ Sales Tax for your state...I'm in Oregon, so there is none!)
Shipping is free for $50+ order.

Latest Linksys router and card for under $80 (+ tax) AC & AR? Tempting enough for me to go for it.

Thoughts?

-RF

 

[WRJ]

My experience is they will post a notice to cashiers about "fake" coupons with in the next couple of hours.

 

[captains]

think i'm gonna get on it....was lookin for the router at BB for 89 - 10 rebate and - 10% coupon but this is much better

 

[zxcvb]

great deal< I got G for $59.85 plus $10 rebate . this better You are allow 2rebates per item

 

[user1234]

Why do you need anything more than 802.11b , which you can get for $10 each (router and card) ?

 

[MaluMan]

does linksys have the access point w/speedboost??? anybody know?

 

[HQH51]

Faster transfer rate = cut down on lost time waiting for transfer completion = you can be more productive. Answer your question?

It is those who needs to do large (and frequent) file transfers benefits the most on faster wireless transmissions. For those who just do web surfing (which I'm guess you fall into this catagory), 802.11b would suffice. Otherwise, us who are in need for speed want 802.11g + extra transmission speed from whatever technology are came up by the radio chipset designers.

Originally posted by: user1234
Why do you need anything more than 802.11b , which you can get for $10 each (router and card) ?

 

[HQH51]

Doesn't hurt to just go to Linksys' website and look at their products doesn't it? (here)

To answer your question, according to their product list, the answer is no.

Originally posted by: MaluMan
does linksys have the access point w/speedboost??? anybody know?

 

[MaluMan]

Originally posted by: HQH51
Doesn't hurt to just go to Linksys' website and look at their products doesn't it? (here)

To answer your question, according to their product list, the answer is no.

Originally posted by: MaluMan
does linksys have the access point w/speedboost??? anybody know?

you have a very good point... sorry :-/

 

[user1234]

Originally posted by: HQH51
Faster transfer rate = cut down on lost time waiting for transfer completion = you can be more productive. Answer your question?

It is those who needs to do large (and frequent) file transfers benefits the most on faster wireless transmissions. For those who just do web surfing (which I'm guess you fall into this catagory), 802.11b would suffice. Otherwise, us who are in need for speed want 802.11g + extra transmission speed from whatever technology are came up by the radio chipset designers.

Originally posted by: user1234
Why do you need anything more than 802.11b , which you can get for $10 each (router and card) ?

Really ? oh, I didn't realize g is faster than b, are you sure about that ?

My question was if you really need the faster speed, as you said "b" is more than enough for even the fastest broadband internet connection, which is by far the most common use of wireless routers. Only people that do a lot of intranet file transfers and communications need anything more than "b". You may be surprised than over 90% of people that have bought a "g" router or better, have never utilized the additional capacity, they just bought it because they were told it's "better", and it's not really that expensive anyways.

Also note that while g is faster in close proximity, the "g" protocol transfer speed drops off dramatically after 50 feet, and at 100 ft it's no better than "b". The interesting thing about "b" protocol is that it's transfer rate is very stable and only deteriorate very slightly even over 100 ft.

 

[Engineer]

Also consider that these Linksys routers (WRT54G and GS) are linux based and, via the wonder of Open Source, have "hacked" firmwares with many nice features such as Qos, UPGRADED power levels, Antenna selection, better logs, more stability, better implementations of VPN, etc. I don't think that there's a B router "yet" with these features or flexibility.

While I may not nead such functionality, they are indeed "fun"!

Visit www.linksysinfo.org or Broadbandreports.com (forums for both) for better ideas on "hacked" (upgraded) firmwares.

 

[RamonesFan]

Just noticed something on the rebates, which hopefully won't cause any problems, although you may have to argue with a rebate CSR somewhere down the road...

If you go to linksys rebate info site (http://www.linksys.com/bts2004/ ) the page clearly states "These Mail-In rebates are valid for purchases from ANY Linksys Reseller in the U.S. and canada, including:" and the Staples logo (along with several other major chains) is prominently displayed (I saved a copy of the page, just in case I need to use it later)

On the rebate form, however, it says that purchases from Staples ore staples.com are excluded.

So, while it seems like there's more than enough ground to stand on to force both Linksys and Staples to honor their rebates, be aware that this may be a YMMV situation, and you may eventually need to argue/complain/etc...

(I'm still going for it, though!)

 

[nj873]

Just found similar deal at Amazon and published it in another thread

 

[ECartman]

Originally posted by: user1234

Really ? oh, I didn't realize g is faster than b, are you sure about that ?

My question was if you really need the faster speed, as you said "b" is more than enough for even the fastest broadband internet connection, which is by far the most common use of wireless routers. Only people that do a lot of intranet file transfers and communications need anything more than "b". You may be surprised than over 90% of people that have bought a "g" router or better, have never utilized the additional capacity, they just bought it because they were told it's "better", and it's not really that expensive anyways.

Also note that while g is faster in close proximity, the "g" protocol transfer speed drops off dramatically after 50 feet, and at 100 ft it's no better than "b". The interesting thing about "b" protocol is that it's transfer rate is very stable and only deteriorate very slightly even over 100 ft.

g is totally needed for transfering an .MP3 (for burning) or ripping a DVD to another computer or a server on your wireless net, or moving any other big file. My 78 year old mother in law rips MP3 on her home wireless network, and plugs into mine when she visits. g outshines b by far for these common tasks.

Additionally, I have cable broadband (4000/365) with a normal download speed aroun 2.8mbs. With the overhead in b my actual network throughput is now the bottleneck in my surfing, not the internet.

It is amazing how much faster g is on large files.

 

[STotaro]

you think thats cool, wait till you see this....

http://openwrt.ksilebo.net/

 

[VirtualLarry]

Originally posted by: user1234
Really ? oh, I didn't realize g is faster than b, are you sure about that ?

My question was if you really need the faster speed, as you said "b" is more than enough for even the fastest broadband internet connection, which is by far the most common use of wireless routers. Only people that do a lot of intranet file transfers and communications need anything more than "b". You may be surprised than over 90% of people that have bought a "g" router or better, have never utilized the additional capacity, they just bought it because they were told it's "better", and it's not really that expensive anyways.

Also note that while g is faster in close proximity, the "g" protocol transfer speed drops off dramatically after 50 feet, and at 100 ft it's no better than "b". The interesting thing about "b" protocol is that it's transfer rate is very stable and only deteriorate very slightly even over 100 ft.

That's what I understand as well. I found that very interesting about the distance/speed thing between 'b' and 'g', it actually seems that 'b' is better for longer distances. A review roundup on ExtremeTech seems to indicate that quite well. It makes some sense though, DSSS I always thought was more robust than FHSS, but I'm no RF engineer. (Doesn't the military use DSSS in their gear though?)

Also, even with a 'g' setup (LinkSys WRT54G and USB2.0 'g' adaptor here), just between two rooms, the connection bounces between 24/54Mbit/s (quite a big stepdown from the top speed), and sometimes as low as 1-2Mbit/s. Real-world, 'b' is just as good, for basic internet-sharing, 'g' offers pretty-much zero advantage, as far as I can see from real-world testing. The only thing is, the hardware behind the 'g' is generally faster, more RAM, etc., and thus can offer more features and have less lag.

I also manager to find a 'b' kit, a "Network Everywhere" 'b' router + CardBus 'b' card, for $50. Turns out, it apparently *also* runs Linux, on a Realtek 8181 SoC chipset, which is a MIPS R3000-derivative at 200Mhz. So that little 'b' router is easily pretty-much as powerful as the larger, more expensive, LinkSys WRT54G v2 model.

The other interesting thing is, that I'm currently investigating, is that LinkSys/"Network Everywhere" don't even show or mention this model on their site anymore, and no GPL Linux kernel source+mods can be found on LinkSys's "GPL code" section on their web site.

It is my uninformed opinion that LinkSys is, or was, in violation of the GPL because of this device, as well as what happened with their WRT54G device. Except that instead of offer the source, they pulled the firmware updates for this model. (if you don't distribute the binaries, are you forced to distribute the source, even if you used to distribute the binaries in the past?)

The even more sad part is, the OEM Realtek updates, include things like WDS support for this hardware, in all three firmware model configurations (router, acess point, bridge), and the LinkSys doesn't support that. I was personally hoping to get this and the WRT54G to talk to each other in WDS mode, if possible.

 

[ls1chevelle]

Has anyone tried this offer?