Universal Dual Band WiFi Extender – Desktop/Wallplug WN3500RP Installation Guide CONNECT WIRED DEVICES WIRELESSLY 2.4 AND 5 GHz WIRELESS EXTENSION EXISTING ROUTER Extended Wireless Range Existing Router Range 5 GHz Wireless 2.
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Contents Hardware Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Place the Extender and Apply Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Connect the Extender to an Existing WiFi Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Extender Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 FastLane™ Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hardware Features The LEDs on the front show how the extender is working. Link Rate. Indicates a 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz wireless connection between the extender and a router. The appropriate LED lights to indicate the type of connection: • Green is best. • Amber is good. • Red is poor. • Off. Not connected to router. Wireless Device to Extender. This LED is solid green when the extender is connected to a wireless device. WPS. This LED indicates a WPS wireless connection. • Solid green.
The top and side panels have the following features: On/Off button. Use this button to turn the extender on and off. WPS button. Use this button to connect the extender to your existing WiFi network. For more information, see Connect the Extender to an Existing WiFi Network on page 7. Ethernet port. Use the Ethernet port on the extender to connect an Ethernetenabled device wirelessly to your network. Audio port. Use the Audio port to connect the extender to your speaker. USB port.
Insert the AC plug like this: 4
Attach the stand like this: 5
Getting Started The WiFi Range Extender extends the wireless network to include the area outside the range of your existing WiFi network. The extender supports both desktop and wall plug placement. Follow these steps to set up the extender. Place the Extender and Apply Power 1. Place the extender an equal distance between your router and the wireless device located outside the range of your router.
Connect the Extender to an Existing WiFi Network To extend the range of your WiFi network, you must connect the extender to your existing WiFi network. You have two options to connect the extender to your network. Option 1: Connecting with WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) WPS lets you easily join a secure WiFi network without typing the network name and password. The WPS button is a physical button on the WiFi router, gateway, or access point.
Connecting with WPS (Option 1) 1. Press the WPS button on back panel of the extender. The WPS LED on the front blinks. 2. Within 2 minutes, press the WPS button on your wireless router, gateway, or access point. If successful, the WPS LED on your extender turns solid green, the 2.4 GHz Link Rate LED lights up, and the extender is connected to your existing WiFi network. Note: If the 2.4 GHz Link Rate LED does not turn green, repeat steps 1 and 2, or make sure your router supports WPS. 3.
Connecting with the web browser setup guide (Option 2) 1. Once the extender is powered on and the Power LED is green, use a wireless network manager on a computer to find and connect to NETGEAR_EXT (the SSID) wireless network. Tip: You can use any wireless network manager utility on a computer or tablet to find and connect to the extender wireless network. After the connection with the computer is established, the Wireless Device to Extender LED turns green.
2. Open a web browser window from the same computer, and the browser should take you directly to the onscreen setup guide. Tip: You can always access the extender settings again by typing www.mywifiext.net in your browser address bar.
3. The web browser setup guide walks you through the following steps: • Selecting the WiFi network you would like to extend. • Entering the security password for the existing network. • Choosing the name for your new extender network. • Connecting your wireless devices to your new extender network. Extender Configuration Settings If you want to make changes after initial setup, or you wish to run the setup again, you can always access the extender configuration settings. To access the settings: 1.
Extender Performance The Link Rate LED indicates the performance of the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz wireless connection from the extender to a router. • • • • The best performance is delivered when the Link Rate LED is green. A workable performance is delivered when the Link Rate LED is amber. A red Link Rate LED indicates a poor connection or no connection. If the Link Rate LED is off, there is no connection between the extender and the router.
To improve extender performance: 1. Move the extender closer to the router or to a different location with a better line of sight. 2. As you move the extender, check the Link Rate and the Wireless Device to Extender connection LEDs on the front panel until you find a good location. These LEDs should remain solid green.
FastLane™ Technology Fastlane™ Technology offers maximum WiFi performance. It provides high-speed WiFi with a dedicated band connecting the extender and the wireless device, and a second band connecting the extender and the router. It is ideal for HD gaming and HD video streaming. To enable FastLane Technology: 1. After you have set up the extender, switch to FastLane mode by logging in to www.mywifiext.net to access the Extender Settings screen. 2.
One-Port WiFi Adapter Once the extender is connected to your existing wireless WiFi network, you can use the Ethernet port on the extender to connect a device wirelessly to your network. Simply plug the Ethernet cable from your Ethernet-enabled device (connected TV, Blu-ray player, gaming console) to the Ethernet port of the extender, and enjoy wireless connectivity.
ReadySHARE Printer ReadySHARE Printer lets you connect a USB printer to the extender’s USB port, and access it wirelessly. To enable ReadySHARE Printer: 1. Connect the USB printer to the extender’s USB port with a USB printer cable. 2. Install the USB printer driver software on each computer that will share the printer. If you do not have the printer driver, contact the printer manufacturer to find and download the most recent printer driver software. 3.
NOTE: • You must install this utility before you can use the ReadySHARE Printer feature. • For the ReadySHARE Printer feature to work, this utility must be run in the background. • When the status is Available, you can use the USB printer. • Some firewall software, such as Comodo, blocks the ReadySHARE Print utility from accessing the USB printer. If you do not see the printer in the utility, you can disable the firewall temporarily to allow the utility to work. 4.
Music Playback The WN3500RP supports the DLNA DMR function, which means you can stream your network music and play it back through the WN3500RP audio jack. • • • • Windows7 users can use Windows Media Player (WMP) to play back music. Android phone, iPhone, or iPad users can download NETGEAR genie to play back music (go to http://www.netgear.com/genie). DLNA DMR supports mp3, wave. flac, and aac file formats. The 3.5 mm stereo port supports earphones and powered speakers.
Frequently Asked Questions You can find more information about your product in the User Manual available at http://support.netgear.com. 1. NETGEAR genie keeps asking me for my wireless password, and I am sure I have entered the correct wireless password. What can I do? It is likely that the extender is placed at the borderline of the range covered by the router. To resolve this, follow the instructions in Getting Started on page 6.
5. I have enabled a wireless MAC filter (wireless access control – ACL) on my router. What should I do when installing the WN3500RP? The wireless device MAC address is translated to another MAC address when the wireless device connects to the WN3500RP. If your router MAC filter is enabled, the wireless device will not be able to get the IP address from the WN3500RP. To allow this wireless device to access the Internet, you must add the translated MAC address into the router.
6. My router security is WEP, and I entered the wrong passphrase or security key on the WN3500RP. I cannot access the WN3500RP any more. What can I do? The WN3500RP cannot check to see if the WEP passphrase is correct. If you entered the wrong passphrase, your wireless device is not able to get the IP address from the WN3500RP. You must reset the WN3500RP to the factory defaults to get the IP address back. 7.
User Manual You can get the user manual online at http://downloadcenter.netgear.com or through a link in the product’s user interface. Compliance For the complete EU Declaration of Conformity, visit: http://support.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/11621/. This symbol appears in accordance with the European Union Directive 2002/ 96 on the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (the WEEE directive).