TRENDnet TEW-640MB N300 Wireless 4-Port Media Bridge TRENDnet TEW-640MB N300 Wireless 4-Port Media Bridge

Pros: Seems to work well after difficult setup

Cons: Very confusing setup, requiring doing Trendnet's job for them.

Do not buy if you aren't network savvy.

Other Thoughts: I received a reply from Trendnet which was a cop-out. This appliance ships with a static IP address and wants you to fill in the IP of the default gateway. Well, the default gateway is your router.

Of all the lame excuses I've seen, Trendnet's takes the cake. I explained below how to set it up, but it shouldn't be necessary. It would plug and play if it had a dynamic IP selected in setup.

If your system goes down and this unit won't work, once you have rebooted your modem and router and your internet is working, simply unplug this unit and plug it back in. It needs to be rebooted too. That's it.

Just be sure that when you first get it you follow my suggestions below, log into it using Internet Explorer and change it to "Auto."

Now reboot everything and mine works fine.

Trendnet should ship the unit set to auto and it would plug and play.

Pros: It works fine once connected to the network, which almost takes a network engineer which fortunately I am.

Cons: It shipped with a static IP address which isn't part of any subnet I've ever seen on any home router.

Plug it directly into any computer with a network cable and log into it using only Internet Explorer, and change it to "auto" for IP address. Then the DHCP server in your router can assign it an IP and a default gateway IP which will work on your network. The instructions for logging in are easy in the manual, and the user/pass are both "admin" without the quotes.

Now unplug it and plug it back in and you should see it on your network. Now you can take it to where you need it and plug it in and use it.

Shipping it with a static IP is ridiculous. It needs a router in the building to work, and every router will assign a proper IP and do NAT translation. I have no idea what Trendnet is thinking. If I weren't a network techie, it would have been a fail and a return. I knew immediately that the assigned static IP wouldn't match my subnet.

If they'd change this it would plug and play. This is something my wife bought for a network enabled movie player, and she would never have gotten it to work.

Other Thoughts: We haven't had it long enough to know if it's stable and some reports here say it isn't. We just hooked it up last night.

Manufacturer Response:

Dear James,

Sorry for any inconvenience it may have caused you. You are right that every router will assign a proper IP and do NAT translation. TRENDnet’s concern is that if TEW-640MB can’t make wireless connection to a router or AP via WPS for any reason. Then, either http://tew-640mb.trendnet or http://192.168.10.110 can be used to log into the unit via browser from a direct connection to your computer. Of course, it’s recommended to change static to dynamic IP so that management of TEW-640MB can be in the same subnet. Meanwhile, wireless connection profile can be built, activated and saved to restore wireless connection when power cycle happens. Please contact me at Adrian@trendnet.com with “Newegg TEW-640MB” in the subject and I will contact you immediately to assist. Look forward to your reply soon and hope to restore your faith in TRENDnet’s products.

Warmest regards,

Adrian

Pros: When you first have it and it actually works, it's pretty awesome. Had a faster connection speed than my USB dongle and the PS3's wifi/g connection.

Cons: This hardware fails, and it fails hard. At this point, it drops my connection multiple times per day, and if I attempt to use the internet or stream Netflix using my PS3, it crashes and needs to have the power reset in order to see the wireless signal and the physical connections.

The worst part is that TrendNet does not care about their customers. They told me to flash the firmware and assign a static IP in order to fix the problem. (Pro tip: that did not fix the problem.)

The problem is not with the wireless signal, as the product has been working for several months flawlessly. The problem is strictly hardware based, and flashing the firmware and setting a static IP will not fix that.

Furthermore, I never even got an email that my support ticket was updated. I had to go to Trendnet's site and sign in.

They obviously do not care about their customers. I spent $60 on this, and I will NEVER buy another one of their cheap products, when they won't even stand behind their own warranty.

Other Thoughts: Don't bother with this company, because they won't replace your unit if it fails.

Manufacturer Response:

Hello TRENDnet Customer,

Thank you so much for taking the time to review our product. We deeply apologize for this matter. We at TRENDnet take great pride in our products and testing procedures. Please contact me at adrian@trendnet.com with "Newegg TEW-640MB Review" and I will assist you immediately with our hassle free return process.

Warm Regards,
Adrian, TRENDnet Sales Team

Pros: This is faster than using my Tivo usb dongle. Easy to setup but....

Cons: it needs to be constantly rebooted. Keeps losing connectivity to my main router. very light and feels cheap.

Other Thoughts: i do have the latest firmware. It's great when it works, but looks like i got what i paid for.

Manufacturer Response:

Valued Customer,

We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Please contact us at sales@trendnet.com, reference "New Egg TEW-640MB product review" and someone will contact you immediately to resolve the connectivity issue. We look forward to working with you directly and restoring your faith in TRENDnet products.

Warmest regards,

TRENDnet Sales Team

Pros: On my laptop's wifi I can barely get 1-2 Mbs, on this device I get 10-11 Mbs. I am able to move my desktop anywhere in my home now without being stuck to the router. Setup was dead easy, even without wps.

Cons: Wish it had a better power adapter, its a massive space hog.

Pros: Works perfectly with my 40/5 internet connection if IPv6 isn't enabled.
Small and sleek

Cons: Resets every 3 minutes if IPv6 is enabled

Pros: One touch setup.
4 ports.
not much else to say. it works good,.

Cons: it use to be 39.99............

Pros: Worked well, stayed connected. Small.

Cons: Died after 1 year and 11 months of 24-7 use.

Other Thoughts: I first reviewed this in Feb of 2011. Now, January of 2013, almost two years later... I come here to bury the TEW-640 not to praise it.

Really two years, is that all you get. I paid $70 for this back in the day.

Manufacturer Response:

Valued customer,

We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you. It's still under warranty please e-mail us at sales@trendnet.com, reference "New Egg product review", and someone will contact you in an expedited manner. We look forward to working with you directly and restoring your faith in TRENDnet products.

Warmest Regards,

TRENDnet Sales Team

Pros: Works when it's connected
Doesn't have an issue with high volume

Cons: Every time I need it to work it drops out and I have to unplug and plug back in several times. This happens 3 times per day or more at random times. I contacted support and got blanket response of update firmware. Interface to access wizard works sometimes. Support doesn't respond back.

Other Thoughts: If you get it cheap maybe worth it. If you need it to have a connection for gaming not recommended.

Manufacturer Response:

Valued customer,

We are sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you. Please e-mail us at sales@trendnet.com, reference "New Egg product review", and someone will contact you in an expedited manner. We look forward to working with you directly and restoring your faith in TRENDnet products.

Warmest Regards,

TRENDnet Sales Team

Pros: Boosted network performance of Xbox Live and Blu-Ray Player

Cons: No Cons- but if you dont have a WPS router it can get tricky.

Other Thoughts: These were on sale for $29.99 on Cyber Monday. I wish I wouldve bought the max limit of 5 not 2! These will come in very handy if you dont want to wire/rewire your entire house!