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NETGEAR Dual Band 802.11ac Wireless Access Point (WAC104-100NAS)

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#1 ·
NETGEAR Dual Band 802.11ac Wireless Access Point (WAC104-100NAS)

Description:
The NETGEAR WAC104 is a dual band 802.11ac wireless access point for the small business, coffee shop or dental office looking for low maintenance, superior WiFi that is easy on the IT budget. The no-frills WAC104 features external antennas that provide a far reaching, rock solid WiFi signal and transfers data at speeds up to 1.2Gbps. Adding more value, the WAC104 is conveniently equipped with four (4) Gigabit Ethernet ports to further extend the wired network and comes with a segment leading 3-year hardware warranty and lifetime chat support. WAC104 - Fast, reliable WiFi that just works.

Details:
DetailValue
BindingPersonal Computers
BrandNETGEAR
EAN0606449117639
FeatureRock solid dual band 802.11ac WiFi at a combined aggregate speed of 1.2 Gbps (300Mbps at 2.4 GHz and 867Mbps at 5 GHz)
Backwards compatible with 11n devices
Factory tuned external antennas provide superior signal and far reaching coverage
Easy to setup and configure with simple and intuitive graphical user interface, WiFi Protected System (WPS) button for easy one-touch client connectivity
Four (4) built-in Gigabit Ethernet ports to connect to PC, laptops, and other wired devices
NETGEAR 3-year warranty (including power adapter)
FormatCD-ROM
LabelNetgear Inc
ManufacturerNetgear Inc
ModelWAC104-100NAS
MPNWAC104-100NAS
PublisherNetgear Inc
StudioNetgear Inc
TitleNETGEAR Dual Band 802.11ac Wireless Access Point (WAC104-100NAS)
UPC606449117639
WarrantyNETGEAR 3-year Warranty
Colorblack
Item Height1.59 inches
Item Length9.43 inches
Item Width7.14 inches
NumberOfItems1
Package Height3.9 inches
Package Length9.8 inches
Package Weight1.65 pounds
Package Width7.8 inches
PackageQuantity1
PartNumberWAC104-100NAS
ProductGroupPersonal Computer
ProductTypeNameCOMPUTER_INPUT_DEVICE
UPCList - UPCListElement606449117639
Item Weight0.84 pounds
OperatingSystemN/A
 

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#2 ·
Excellent Device for basic Wireless Access Point Needs

review by terrere

In my many travels with several companies, Wireless Access Points (WAPs) have always been a sore subject to need to broach with management. They want accessibility to be high, but also want to prevent unnecessary spending. Caution:This is NOT an enterprise device. It has the range you would likely want and the stability, but the overall use is more for a node drop or SOHO use. With my current position as of 2017, I support a fleet of tow boats that use cellular data modems and have a two points of network access in the wheelhouse and the engineers room. The need for a WAP was agreed upon by both management and my department head, so I began researching devices and testing them out. I said all this to point out two things: They are on tow boats and I needed something quick. There are obviously higher quality solutions, but for my needs I found them to exceed my requirements.

The Netgear WAC104 won out in the end based on 3 factors:
1. Ease of configuration
2. Stability
3. Cost

The first thing I did while searching was explore the settings. For the $40-100 range, the features were pretty much all the same. A couple of the WAPs didn't have a configuration import/backup function, which wasn't a deal breaker. I finally settled for a middle of the road price with the Netgear WAC104.

I then timed setup on both manual configuration and backup importation from factory. The Netgear WAC104 was easier to configure when compared to the Dlink and Cisco/Linksys WAPs that I had available to me during testing. The import/backup functionality was implemented well and I quickly had a usable config file for all of my new WAPs.

When testing stability, I did what anyone would do: I stress tested the wireless throughput on this WAP. I tested it by setting up a series of files to be passed back and forth through a basic C code Server/Client program that I automated just for this testing. Transfer sizes ranged from 1KB to 42GB and I left that going for 48 hours. When I came back it was still holding strong in our server room, which is a balmy 56 degrees Farenheit. (For those of you on metric, it's cold and anything but balmy).

I then started a warm/heat stress test with much smaller file sizes. Max file size on the hot test was 4GB because that's much larger than anything that they would realistically have. I put it in an server exhaust area that ran ~95 degrees Farenheit and enclosed it. The inside of the box only hit around 105-110 degrees Farenheit at its highest point. When I had a fan circulating air, the WAP performed without hiccup. I let it rest for a day or so and then began testing again with no airflow. Temperatures were basically the same between 110-115 degrees Farenheit at it's highest point, but I had 2 heat failures during the 24 hour testing period. Basically just needed to restart itself and give the circuits a second to lower temperature.

So long as it has good ventilation, it's tough enough to weather relatively high temperatures. I wouldn't push past the recommended temperatures though.

We have been slowly doing environment testing, but they are holding up well in the harsh environment on the boats with the oil/dust. The only negative is that you can't put them in airtight compartments because of the heat. The range is reasonable, considering the metric ton of steel they are surrounded by.

Finally, the cost was the biggest factor in selling my department head on these as they are cheap enough to be disposable and are readily available without a special order through the manufacturer.

TL;DR
They are outstanding WAPs for the price when considering the stability in harsh environments and the ease of use. 10/10 Would buy to supplement wireless when a repeater just won't do.

UPDATE June 2017:
Not a single failure with 24/7 utilization in a harsh environment after ~4 months of use.

UPDATE February 2018:
After nearly a year of use in harsh environment, I've only had a single failure across all of the devices deployed. It was not put onto a surge protector and a generator swap surged the circuit and blew the power regulation circuit on the device. These are relatively hearty devices that I'm still very impressed with. I have since expanded to 2-3 of these devices per boat that I support.

ProsCons
Relatively small, easily configurable, flexible, solid 24/7 stability, decent range, manageable UINeeds good ventilation to prevent overheating

Ratings
Overall5
 
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