Hawking HWREN1 Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Range Extender

1. Jason B / May 21 2010

   

   Review by Jason B for Hawking HWREN1 Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Range Extender Rating: I was skeptical about this product due a lack of reviews on the net but decided to take the plunge…

   My wireless network consists of a Belkin Wireless N Router (F5D8233-4)using WPA,WPA2 w/ TKIP+AES security and the Hawking range extender has no problem communicating with it.

   I chose to forgo the setup CD and went directly to the web interface to set things up. The interface is simple and pretty self explanatory. Out of the box the ip is 192.168.1.240. Login is: admin, pw:1234

   Initially I was getting intermittent and/or limited connectivity when trying to connect to the internet; this is usually due to the security/encryption settings so make sure to enter your info carefully to match your parent router exactly. To remedy this here’s what apparently worked for me (my security settings were matched up)

   -Updated the firmware. Mine came shipped with ver. 1.10 There is a new one out 1.13 that you can find on the Hawking Technology website.
   
   -In the “Advanced Wireless setup” I unchecked the WMM option…possible conflict with parent router?
   
   -Set CTS protect to auto (as suggested in manual)
   
   -Unplug the power for 10 seconds and plug back in.

   After that I was all connected!

   The am VERY impressed with how much my overall network range has increased, especially considering the 5 or so walls this it has to go through…where there used to be no signal, I have full bars and an excellent signal. In contrast, the belkin g range extender it’s replacing did little to improve my range. On a plus note is that you can upgrade the antennas if needed.

   Primary use is for my Direct TV HR-21 for VOD. As far as I know there are few marketed “N” options available to do the job…two are:

   -Linksys WGA600N- Wireless bridge that reportedly works very well.
   
   -D-Link DAP-1522- includes 4 LAN slots. (I was concerned w/ compatibility issues with my router)

   I chose the Hawking because it advertises to work with “any” AP or router and for roughly the same $$ of the Linksys, I can extend the range of my signal too. If I need another LAN port I’ll just buy a cheap 10/100 switch.

   I can’t give it 5 stars because I have no long-term experience with the product.

   In short, if you’re looking for a “N” WURE solution for your network, give it a try. I would do it again in a heartbeat!

   UPDATE 1/15/10…

   Well it has been over a year and I am still thoroughly satisfied with this product and has performed flawlessly for me. Over this time I have swapped out my parent router for a D-Link 655 and have added a 10/100 switch to the Hawking to also connect a new PS3 Slim. I am still running the same firmware since I have not had any issues with it; going with the philosophy of, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” I’m considering picking up another one when the price is right to further extend my network. On a side note, my apologies for not addressing questions over the year; I didn’t select to receive notifications for comments on my review.
2. Benjamin Nicholls / May 21 2010

   

   Review by Benjamin Nicholls for Hawking HWREN1 Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Range Extender Rating: Once you get it working it is great. My router is in the basement and the signal is not the best on the second floor. Using the HWREN1 I now have full signal for the entire second floor. My connection speed more than doubled. I’ll share a couple setup tips that will save you a headache and a call to tech support.
   
   1) the auto setup CD does not correctly set WPA passwords with spaces in them. It accepts them, then truncates everything after the space and fails. Use the web interface setup instead (see the manual on the CD).
   
   2) Don’t leave your router’s channel selection set to auto. You have to set both the router and the HWREN1 manually to the same channel. Their tech support recommend channel 2.
3. Bob A. / May 21 2010

   

   Review by Bob A. for Hawking HWREN1 Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Range Extender Rating: 2/9/09 New information to modify below review, which I gave one star:
   
   I have discovered that the extender’s inability to maintain lock occurred with WPA2-PSK (AES) security set. I reset security to WPA-PSK (TKIP) and the extender now seems to work fine. I hope this saves people the trouble I went through to get it to work. I would now rate the extender four stars. Can’t give it five, because the extender is supposed to work with any security setting, but doesn’t.
   
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   I initially gave this product a favorable review. However, after using it for a couple of weeks, it is now evident that there is a problem: the range extender loses internet connection very easily. My router is a Netgear WNR2000 N router. I verified the problem is with the extender by placing the extender close to the router to insure high signal, as required for proper operation. The internet connection still dropped out frequently. When connected directly to the router without using the extender, there is no problem. So, there is either a problem with the unit I received, or this extender does not work with my router. I will have to return this unit, as it is useless.
4. Boris K. Arloff / May 21 2010

   

   Review by Boris K. Arloff for Hawking HWREN1 Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Range Extender Rating: Prior to purchasing I reviewed the comments here by others. Seemed like outside of setup problems most had a good experience with this extender. Hence, I decided to purchase it and so far so good. I am posting a setup configuration step by step for others in the future to avoid such headackes.

   Before posting such steps, I also noticed a few comments complaining about dropped links. I have not experienced dropped links. If anyone experiences drop links consider that the extender may be just on the border of the access range to the AP. This could be caused by distance (too far); a semi-blind spot between extender and AP; or some interferring devices such as microwave ovens or cordless phones in the path between extender and AP. Consider relocating the extender or changing its default channel setting (mine was set to operate on channel 6; while I have the AP on channel 11). If the extender and AP are in the same room in perfect line of sight of each other, with no interference then disregard this recommendations; you may have a bad device.

   Now steps for configuring your HWREN1 extender, with the least headackes:

   1. As many others suggest, diregard the CD and easy setup instructions. I tried it and does not work. A number of custom settings are needed, which apparently the CD based install cannot do.
   
   2. If your AP is configured to filter by MAC addresses then you need to add the MAC address of the extender to your AP MAC filter. As someone else pointed out the MAC address provided in the bottom of the extender is not the one you need. Use that same MAC address, but increment the last digit by one. If the last digit is 8, then use 9; if the last digit is 9 use A; these are hex numbers. If you do not understand any of this, then you have not setup your AP to filter by MAC and no need to worry about this step, skip it.
   
   3. Now, if your network is setup with an IP starting as 192.168.1 then you can use your network to connect to the extender. Mine is on 192.168.10. You can check your computers IP and if the first three digits are 192.168.1 then you are good to connect to the extender. You can follow the instructions provided in the provided “Start Here” poster to connect the cables and power up the extender. Because my network is on 192.168.10.0 I decided to connect differently. I used a hub as described in step 4 below, which you can skip (or not), if you are on a net with IPs starting as 192.168.1 (typically your AP will be at IP 192.168.1.1).
   
   4. To avoid any problems with my current network I used a laptop and manually changed its IP to 192.168.1.2. Again if your computer/laptop IP already starts with “192.168.1″, you do not need to make this change; unless its last digit is 240. In such case change the IP of your computer as I did from 192.168.1.240 to 192.168.1.2. I have an inexpensive hub. With a network cable I connected one of the hub ports to my laptop (obviously you need to disconneted the computer first from the home network), and then connected another hub port to the extender with a second network cable. If you do not have a hub you can connect your computer/laptop back-to-back to the extender with a cross-over network cable (the one provided with the extender will not work). What this connection does, is it takes the home network out of the picture while configuring the extender. This step 4 is not necessary, but recommended.
   
   5. Once the connections are completed by step 3 or 4, proceed to bring up your IE browser and type in (go to) http://192.168.1.240/. The extender’s login should pop up and proceed to type in “admin” for user id and “1234″ for password (without quote marks). If that does not work type admin for user id and leave the password field blank. Once you press OK you are presented with the extender’s configuration Web page.
   
   6. The Status tab presents configuration information, nothing to set here. You can come back here after done with changes and review. The Basic Setting tab allows to configure the Wireless Setting of the extender. Set the Main ESSID (do not use the same SSID of your AP) to whatever name you want. Here is where you can change the channel number (I left the default setting 6). Click on “Select Site Survey” and after the scan completes, select your AP from the list. Make sure after all selections are made you click the Apply button.
   
   7. The Security tab presents first “MAC Adress Filtering”. If you have set MAC adress filtering (which you should) in your AP (see step 2), then you want to enable this same security feature here. There is no point of having MAC address filtering at the AP and allowing someone to break in thru the extender. Add all the same MAC adresses that you have in your AP here again, with the exception of the extender’s MAC address added to the AP in step 2. Instead of the extender’s MAC address add the AP MAC address. This is important, otherwise the extender will not allow connections from your AP. Make sure to click on Apply button after done with entering MAC adresses, also verify for typos.
   
   8. Move on to Wireless Security, while still under the Security tab. Provide the pre-shared key used in the AP. All security parameters should be the same as in the AP.
   
   9. At some points you may be asked to press Continue or the Apply button while making the above changes. Each time press continue, except after this last step; press Apply which will cause your extender to reboot.
   
   10. Once it reboots, connect back with the browser if your connection was lost. Use again the http://192.168.1.240/ link to reconnect and if necessary login again as admin and whichever default password worked before. We need to make one last change.
   
   11. Move on to the Advanced Settings tab. Leave alone all setting under Advanced Wireless Settings as presented; and move over to System Utility. Here you want to change the device admin password. Unfortunately, this device only accepts a 4 character password (very poor security), nonetheless change it to something else than the default password known by everyone in the World. Click on Apply and when prompted login back with the new password.
   
   12. When presented with the System Utility page again, you may want to change the IP of the extender to something that works on your network. Again, if you are on a network where all IPs start with “192.168.1″, then you may leave the default IP as “192.168.1.240″. I changed mine to 192.168.10.8 to work correctly on my network. This way I can make future changes over the wireless or wired network without having to connect the extender to a hub. This IP is not necessary for the wireless connection to work, it is only necessary if you need to connect back for administrative and configuration changes using a browser.
   
   13. If you changed the IP then press Apply once more and again if presented with the “Continue” and “Apply” options. If the IP changed you may see a warning that you need to reconnect using the new IP.

   After this you can disconnect the network cable from your extender and relocate it to wherever you need to. Connect power to the extender at its new location and whola!, you should be able to connect to it. If it does not work, you may want to review the steps above and verify that everything entered was correct. I made a mistake in typing one MAC address incorrectly in the MAC filter option. Your security key needs to be also correct if using wireless security. If not sure you can start over by resetting the extender to factory defaults. Reset the extender by pushing the small resesed button on its back and holding it for 10 seconds.

   If you changed your computer/laptop IP as I did, you need to change it back as it was originally. You also need to diconnect from the hub if you used one.

   That’s all folks; hopefully this helps future buyers of this extender. I gave the product 4 starts instead of 5 because of the above setup complications, the worthless CD included and the useless tech support (as reported by others).
   
   
5. MN-Tbone / May 21 2010

   

   Review by MN-Tbone for Hawking HWREN1 Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Range Extender Rating: Received the extender today & configured it up. Didn’t use the wizard because it didn’t work (it couldn’t find the wireless network even though this worked directly from the browser). I have a lot of wireless security including MAC authentication, which it turns out caused some issues. The extender could be seen be remote PCs but they couldn’t acquire an IP address. I called Hawking tech support (India-based) which was a total waste of time. The person had me walk through basic configuration from a script. I couldn’t go outside the script or she became confused. She couldn’t answer any questions – only work through the script which was everything that I already did +. When I asked about MAC level security, the answer was that she had no script or knowledge about that. There was nobody else to escalate to. Very disappointing.

   Anyway, I removed the MAC security on my gateway & behold, everything worked. In retrospect, all that had to be done was to add the MAC address of the extender to the MAC access list on the router & this would have corrected the issue. ***NOTE however, that the MAC address is NOT what shows on your extender; the final digit for the extender is +1, so if you end with C8 you really need C9.

   The unit itself is good & extends the network nicely. Just know that if you need anything more than very basic tech support, you won’t get help.

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