TRENDnet 5-Port Mini Gigabit Switch, TEG-S50g, GREENnet Technology, NDAA + TAA Compliant, Desktop Metal Ethernet Network Switch, 5 x Gigabit Ports, Fanless, Lifetime Protection, Black

I have never had occasion to use a dedicated Gigabit Ethernet Switch like this Trendnet procured 5-port switch that I bought at Amazon.com for a ridiculously low price, and Kudos for that! We just got FIOS TV, Phone, and Internet from Verizon, and contrary to what most people do with their networks (wanting everything to be wireless in general, if possible) I wanted to wire up all of my PC's of consequence with the Verizon Dual Core CPU-controlled Router/Modem for the FIOS system, which is a most remarkable system to put it mildly.When the technician first wired up the FIOS network we picked my main PC as the No.1 "system PC" which we based all of the network settings on, cloning them to each PC desktop. I have three dedicated Folding@Home (Stanford research program that crunches proteins to simulate "protein folding" in order to study how diseases propagate, mature, and change amongst other things) rigs, which are Core i7 CPU-based desktops and I wanted each to benefit from the FIOS system's raw speed for transmitting the vast array and substance of data that they necessarily work through each day...literally many hundreds of millions of bytes of data transferred from Stanford to my PC's, and then after synthesis and the "folding" is complete and a Work Unit is done, the resulting 100-million+ byte files get transmitted back to Stanford.Using wireless with my previous system, Time-Warner Cable internet and TV, resulted in transmission times of up to 25 minutes for the largest Work Units which are called "Big Advanced Work Units",that is just plain unacceptable. The Cable network had a grand total of 1MB/sec or "megabits per second" upload speed, which is typical of cable modems and services. However the new FIOS system has 35MB/sec upload and download speeds both, a most remarkable thing to use I'll tell you right now, and I wanted the PC's to be hard wired to take advantage of this unbelievable speed for uploading my files day in and out. Hence enter the Trendnet switch for including all of my PC's, my network printer, an external backup USB HD, my twin RAID system for PC No.1 which communicates through the network also, so I had a need for exactly 4 extra ports, and this switch is exactly what the doctor ordered.Wiring up the system with Cat-5 Ethernet wires was simple, and our technician cut the cables to be exactly the correct length for each PC in the room, with fresh, brand-new, clean and nicely colored beige cable to match our carpet, a nice touch. The Verizon FIOS Router had the usual 4-ports for use, typical there, and combined with the Trendnet switch I had just enough ports to include all 4 PC's including the PC No.1 which is my server also on the PC side. On the Mac side (entertainment and AppleTV mostly used for that system) I have one PowerMac G5 M9591LL/A Server to run on the network also, and an AppleTV system also with a line from the Mac to the ATV system, so the technician cut wires for that application also, thanks Verizon!The Trendnet Gigabit switch works a treat in practice, as I didn't lose any of the FIOS network speed to cable or switch loss, to speak of anyway, with upload file speeds approaching 1000 bytes per second, a most welcome change from the cable system! Typically now using the FIOS system we are averaging 1.5 minute transmission times for the biggest files now, and as little as 20-30 seconds for the nominal sizes files from the PC's to Stanford's servers at the FAHome Labs in Palo Alto, CA. My network printer works perfect using the switch also, so no pain there at all, it's just simply perfect through the switch. My RAID systems are also working 100% through the switch, without data or packet loss to speak of, so on all fronts this switch is as perfect performing as I could have imagined, and then some!I like the design especially, a very strong point, with a steel case, albeit small but sturdy and strong, and having the LED indicator lights on the front of the switch, and the connections on the rear of the switch is ideal. Very nicely done, Trendnet! The switch comes with a 3-year warranty also, a nice touch from Trendnet to compliment this high-quality switch that looks ever so KUHL with its green LED's flashing off and on, indicating activity through the PC's and the network and RAIDs. This is a very high quality switch from all angles, and I don't think it's necessary to spend $100 or more on some fancy Gig E switch when this little switch does all you want and then some.Overall I'm rating the switch 5-Stars for fantastic design, performance and functionality par supreme! I can't think of anything I'd change about it, since Trendnet thought it all out thoroughly before marketing this switch series in several configurations, so Kudos to Trendnet. I have nothing but compliments for this thing, as it is seamless, does its job 100% of the time 100% effectively without any speed loss or packet loss through the network that I can tell of anyway.Of course we kept our laptops (2 MacBook Pros and one PC notebook+ a PC netbook) wireless for the new FIOS system, and they are getting 20MB/second upload and download speeds, most remarkable there also! Between the FIOS 35MB/sec and higher (we measure typically up to 45MB/sec speed during downloads, and 31-35MB/sec upload speeds in the network so far) speeds and the Trendnet switch's ability to work with the FIOS Router to bring the speed of this new network to each component is superb and I can't find any fault with this switch, it just performs 100% and then some again, seamless in the network.That's the story of my uses for this switch, and I am totally satisfied with its design, performance and utility with 5 effective ports for use. Give Trendnet a big Thumbs UP for the switch that costs a pittance and performs like the multi-hundred $$ switches. You won't be disappointed if you purchase this switch, it looks great, performs 100% and then some, and I highly recommend its use for any type of network duty, be it for PC's, Macs, printers, full duplex RAID systems and the like, it all works great with this switch in the mix. Best of all? It' silent and runs cool no matter what the load is, in my observations so far.Trendnet's 5-port Gigabit Ethernet Switch is a solid value, and performs with the best switches out there for a very inexpensive price, so get yours today! Don't hesitate because of anything to do with price or performance, this one's together 100% and more!

Build quality: This model is all metal, and is built like a tank. The LED's are bright enough that you'll know at a glance which mode (10/100/1000) your individual connections are operating in. Even after running constantly for days, this device isn't even warm to the touch, and I have no doubt that heat won't be an issue even during the summer. The LED panel at the front displays the link information (what speed, if any, a port is connected to) which makes it easy to see if your connection is properly auto-negotiating to the full speed of your network interface card, or if something is keeping that from happening (a bum ethernet cable, for instance)Ease of use: This device couldn't be simpler to use. You plug (this isn't wireless) an ethernet cable from your modem or router into the switch, and the switch essentially multiplies that connection by four. I suppose the switch is technically "5-Port" (you could connect five computers together with crossover cables probably, for instance) but really, with the one taken by the connection coming from the router/modem, you've got four effective ports to be used to connect anything with a standard ethernet jack. This device is auto-negotiating as well, which means that it will automatically select the highest speed available on your network card (as long as your card supports auto-negotiation). Connecting the device to my computer, a connection was instantly established between the switch and the computer at 1gbit (1000 Mbps). Plugging in another computer, I was able to use the full 1Gbit speed to transfer files between them. Connecting to an Xbox 360, I was greeted by the 100mbps LED on the switch, which instantly let me know the speed of the connection. All devices were instantly able to connect to the internet, and take full advantage of the 23ish mbit download speed, and 3ish mbit upload speed of my internet connection. If you need to ask about some of the advanced features of the device (like jumbo frames, which I believe this device supports) you definitely don't need to be using those features. Run one ethernet cable between your modem/router and the switch, and one between the switch and each of your devices, and you should be ready to go without having to do anything else (use CAT5E or CAT6 ethernet cable for Gigabit LAN)My Uses:We recently switched from Comcast cable internet to AT&T U-verse. With Comcast, any room in the house was capable of housing the modem (as long as it was wired for cable TV) and as such, I was able to place the modem in my office, where it directly ran multiple devices (computers, game consoles, etc). After switching to U-Verse however, I found out that the residential gateway (the box that controls U-Verse TV/Internet/Phone) could only be located within a short distance to a box outside where U-Verse enters the house, which is located far away from my office. This didn't work for me, as I have too many devices without wireless adapters, and I didn't want to go out and spend the money to buy some. The solution I came up with, was to run a CAT5E cable through the wall, terminating it on both ends with a wall plate. With a hard line now run into my office, all I had to do was split the connection somehow, and run ethernet cables to all of my components. This switch has been working perfectly in that regard, with everything auto negotiating properly. I couldn't be happier with this device, and for the price compared to the quality of the construction, I would definitely recommend this to others (as long as they don't need the features of a router).