[OpenWrt-Users] ASUS WL-500g Premium -- tying up some loose ends

[Lucas Yamanishi]

Robert P. J. Day wrote:
>   if i might just summarize the responses i got here regarding a
> replacement for my current linksys WRT54GL running white russian 0.9,
> what i wanted was a unit with as much functionality as i could get in
> terms of not just working but in terms of recreational hackability.
> to that end:
> 
>   * kamikaze-based, 2.6 kernel
>   * full wired and wireless operation
>   * at least 1 USB 2.0 port
>   * the ability to build the images myself and customize them
>     along the way if need be (with the SDK and ImageBuilder)
>   * JTAG would be nice, but not essential
> 
>   from what i've been told, the ASUS WL-500g Premium sounds like a
> good choice, provided i replace the mini-PCI Broadcom 4318 with an
> Atheros chipset.  apart from that, everything else looks good:
> 
>   * 8MB flash
>   * 32MB RAM
>   * 2 USB 2.0 ports
>   * no JTAG, but i'll live without that
> 
> (and i'm assuming that those USB ports will support my USB external
> hard drive, right?  so i can turn that router into an in-house network
> storage device.)
> 
>   and given that the CPU chipset is a broadcom 4704, i'm assuming that
> the images i'm interested in would be here:
> 
>   http://downloads.openwrt.org/kamikaze/7.09/brcm47xx-2.6/
> 
> right?  the fact that i'm replacing the broadcom wireless with atheros
> shouldn't affect the flashable image, that will be a configuration
> change, yes?
> 
>   and that unit appears to even be available locally:
> 
> http://canadacomputers.com/index.php?do=ShowProduct&cmd=pd&pid=013038&cid=NT.489
> 
> have i missed anything important?  unless there are any gotchas i
> don't know about, this looks like the best choice for me.
> 
> rday
> --
> 
> ========================================================================
> Robert P. J. Day
> Linux Consulting, Training and Annoying Kernel Pedantry
> Waterloo, Ontario, CANADA
> 
> Home page:                                         http://crashcourse.ca
> Fedora Cookbook:    http://crashcourse.ca/wiki/index.php/Fedora_Cookbook
> ========================================================================

I just bought one of these, too, for the same reasons.  Here are a few
points I also noticed:

	* The CPU speed, flash space and ram are among the best for
	  low-end devices.
	* CPU is underclocked by default / overclockable.
	* RAM is upgradeable to a maximum of 256MB.
	* USB host controller supports 2 additional ports.
	* 1 UART pinout is marked on the PCB and the chipset supports
	  second yet-to-be found port.
	* Hardware hacks from the WL-500g Deluxe are compatible or
	  nearly compatible, providing a good base of documentation.
	* Antenna on the back is replaceable with standard RP-SMA
	* There is enough room on the back to add two additional
	  antennas for 802.11n or a/b/g frequency diversity spread.
	* Space inside the enclosure is sufficient to add MiniPCI IIIA
	  cards, cooling, and the kitchen sink.

I've been reading http://wl500g.info for a lot of initial support.

Happy hacking!

lamawithonel


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