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TP-Link TL-WR1043ND
3.0
final rating

reviewed on
this review has been viewed 910 times

Criteria Comments Rating
  • Ease of use No comments poor
  • Speed / throughput No comments so-so
  • Configurability / networking features No comments so-so
  • Reliability Wifi signal dies for no reason every couple of hours. Only a full restart will fix it awful!
  • Range No comments so-so
  • Durability No comments so-so
Detailed review
Bought this as a replacement to my DLink DIR-635 that died after 5 years use. Good reviews on Amazon and a good score here swayed me to go for the TP-Link.

After setting it up basic setup web page, I was impressed for the first couple of days. Upnp works (great with portmap for mac), and there is a WPS one-touch button that is a nifty feature (although my Samsung printer still refuses to connect).

Then for no reason the wifi signal will just die for no reason without any warning, every device on the network disconnected and network disappeared. Only way to get back online is pull the plug. Then all is when for the next couple of hours, then reset and repeat.

(I think this a unit problem, so a firmware update or full restore doesn't kill the problem)

For the price I'm amazed at some of the features for the money, but considering it can't keep a wifi signal constant for more that a couple of hours it fails at its job of being a router.

At this rate it will be going back to Amazon in the next couple of days

Comments (6) subscribe to this review's comments

groovechicken

groovechicken

Just curious, did you try putting dd-wrt firmware on it? It is possible it is a bad unit, so trying another firmware would be a good way to confirm that. Of course, if it turns out to be a bad unit, I'm not sure if you can get warranty support on it or not after putting the alternate firmware. It is also possible that the TP-Link firmware just isn't very good, so dd-wrt may solve your problems entirely.
ryan10ad

ryan10ad

Well playing about with the settings again today it held a steady connection today for a good 14 hours when I did a factory reset on it (but it was left wide open security with no security). I then added back my iMac and wireless printer to the network and enabled WPA2 (plus dymanic dns, changed the SSID and setup the clock). A couple hours later I'm back to square one. At the moment I'm hesitant to pop DD-WRT on it incase the hardware is shot - but I think I'll end up returning it back to Amazon tomorrow (although do I go for an exchange or go for another router?)
groovechicken

groovechicken

Did you change the SSID when you changed the security mode and added a WPA key? I have found with a number of routers that if I connect computers to the router, then add security, then connect again, I will have a lot of issues with dropping connections at random. I find that anytime I change the security mode, it is a good idea to set a new SSID as well and then the computers all treat it as an entirely new connection without trying to reuse any saved settings. Sounds like hokus pokus, I know, but I have seen it enough times that I just don't even bother trying "just to see" anymore and always create a new SSID if I change the security mode, encryption key, or even the channel. Speaking of which, you may also want to try setting a static channel of 1, 6, or 11 instead of letting it channel switch on the auto setting.
ryan10ad

ryan10ad

When I tried to set it up a second time I switched the SSID also (from Adamnet to Adamnet testing), and tried WPA instead of WPA2. Regarding the channel I only use channel 6 as my neighbour's wifi just kills anything below channel 6 and for some reason the other neighbours DSL modems default to channel 11.

Any more ideas?
groovechicken

groovechicken

I have had enough issues with using spaces and special characters in the SSID of some routers that I added "spaces and specials in SSID" to my blacklist and only use letters or numbers. On some models, I have had major problems with specials in the keys as well, so I have resorted to only using alphanumeric there too, but making them pretty long to add to the security. On my current Netgear, I updated to the new firmware and then had tons of problems until I took the period out of the SSID. O_o

Lastly, there is always the possibility that the chipsets in your devices just don't play nice with the one in the router. I have seen that most often with Apple devices. Isn't wifi fun?
TPLINK

TPLINK

Dear Ryan10ad,

We are sorry to hear about the issues you’ve had with the router.
Recently we released a new firmware to fix some bugs and improve the performance. If you still have the router on hand, I recommend you upgrade the router for another shot.

www.tp­-link.com­/en­/support­/download­/­?model­=TL­-WR10...

And both Amazon and TP-LINK USA are responsible for the product's warranty.
We would like to offer you a replacement if the router is proved hardware defective.
You may contact me personally for further help: howard.he@tp-link.com


We appreciate you taking the time in trying out products and hope you check some over our newer stuff out.

Thanks again,

TP-LINK SUPPORT FORCE.
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