Linksys WRT SE4008 Eight-Port Gigabit Switch Review

TweakTown's Rating: 89%

The Bottom Line

The WRT Gigabit switch is a great add-on for those that have the WRT1900AC. Linksys has taken every detail in account to make sure this solution fits as seamlessly as possible.

8

Back in April, we ran the Linksys WRT 1900AC wireless router through testing. Now six months later, Linksys is releasing a rather interesting switch that fits the aesthetics of that wireless router.

The WRT eight port gigabit switch is the latest solution from Linksys built from the ground up to be paired with the WRT1900 wireless router. For those that have the WRT1900AC solution, you know it requires a good amount of cooling, due to its high performance nature. With that in mind, Linksys has designed this WRT switch to allow adequate cooling to still reach the router when stacked. The WRT or SE4008 gigabit switch features eight auto-sense LAN ports allowing you to add to your wired network.

MSRP of the Linksys WRT SE4008 is set at $79.99 with a one-year warranty.

8

Packaging for the SE4008 shows an image of the switch on the front of the box, down below we find several features listed.

8

Scope of delivery includes the power adapter, reading materials, and the switch.

8

Our first impression of the switch is it's slightly taller than the WRT1900 wireless router. Adding to that, as you can see, the aesthetic has been perfected to match the router down to the smallest detail. The front of the switch houses a series of white LEDs to denote everything from power to network activity.

8

The back of the switch is rather simple. Here we have eight gigabit ports with a power switch to the left and input to the right.

8

In the image above, we stacked our WRT1900AC on top of the SE4008 to see how well they match up. As I stated before, everything down to the finest details were taken into account, and as you can see, the distance between the router and switch is matched with the distance between the switch and the ground.

8

Here we have the backside of each unit while stacked. One thing I would have liked to see was some forward thinking and a way to power the switch without setting up another power adapter. Making the WRT1900AC capable of PoE and the SE4008 accepting of the tech would have been an excellent option.

The Linksys WRT SE4008 switch is a great solution for those that purchased the WRT router and want to add to the existing four ports of gigabit connectivity. Build quality seems to be quite similar to that of the router, though the switch does carry much less weight to it, albeit slightly larger from top to bottom. For those with space restrictions, the WRT switch adds about three inches of height to the overall footprint, when in a stacked configuration.

Performance of the switch seems to be on par with what I expected. In my home network, I was able to remove a sixteen port switch and add the WRT without any noticeable performance issues. For those that use QoS, Linksys says this switch is capable of passing through the commands for that as well. Another great feature of this solution is the auto-sense ports on the switch can shutdown to save power when they are not in use.

PRICING: You can find the Linksys WRT 8-Port Gigabit Switch for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The Linksys WRT 8-Port Gigabit Switch retails for $69.99 at Amazon.

8