NETGEAR GS308-100PAS - Discontinued by Manufacturer

How did I live without this before? I love being able to do my own network engineering. I am a Home Theater enthusiast and have to hard wire (network cable, e.g. cat6, etc.) all my audio and video equipment, and computer equipment (actually, I don't anymore, since my ISP speed 176 Mbps down, and my wifi is often above 100 Mbps, but I still like the reliability of a wired connection). I liked this product so much, I got my parents one. Solved a lot of their networking problems. And please, trust me, just get this in the metal case instead of the plastic case; that little solid detail says this product will be in working order for hopefully a decade or more. If you need to do hard-wire cat6, or cat-latest, networking within your home or business, this thing will make your life so much simpler.In simple terms, it works like this: following a network cable from your router to where it terminates, you can put a switch-box like this to that point. From that point, you plug in your cable into this box (any slot will do), then you have seven other ethernet ports to continue use to get to anything in your home or business that would significantly benefit from being hard-wired. In my house, I like to hard-wire anything that streams video, such as game consoles (PS3/4, Xbox), Roku devices, Apple TVs, Network Attached storage, DVRs, and desktop PCs.Additionally, I like to point out that wired connections, so long as they are within your homes walls, are more secure than wi-fi, even though in this case your "hard-wired" connections will only be as secure as your router and it's configuration, since your router is the outward, internet facing piece of your network. In other words, make sure your router is secure and configured with security in mind, and DO NOT run your ethernet cables outside your house, or if you do, or if you must, realize your network is significantly more exposed to potential infiltration.This product has so many potential uses and benefits, it is difficult to encapsulate them all in a review. For instance, this product would be great for someone that simply has run out of and needs more ports in their router; you could set this thing right next to your router to provide it with more ports. To use this very inexpensive product is to really understand it. I think to many, previously including myself, it seems to fall in the Not-That-Necessary category. But after you use it, I think you'll agree that it is way more necessary, than most non-IT professionals think, and necessary more often everyday as everything becomes more networked and connected... meaning more and more devices, boxes, dongles, etc. need to be connected, and connected reliably. I think I used to think you had to have thorough knowledge of network topology, or be MCSE credentialed, in order to use this thing... But that is NOT the case. I would recommend anyone looking at getting a switch to make sure it is GIGABIT for maximum speed.

I bought this Netgear switch to hardwire a few devices to my home network back in November 2018, and it's still running with no issues as of today (January 12, 2023). I'll occasionally power cycle it (turn it off and back on again) every once in a while, though I know I don't have to. It's a solid piece of home networking hardware. Easily worth the twenty bucks.

This review is for the GS308 model.This is a 8 port (1 needed for the internet source and 7 other ports to feed your devices) 10/100/1000 speed switch and I purchased the metal finish rather than the plastic. For me the metal enclosure seems more robust and durable especially if you are secreting this little beauty out of the way in your router cupboard or a basement or attic.I particularly like the "unmanaged" aspect of this switch versus routers that I have used in the past. The routers need initial setup and maintenance and inevitable rebooting. This excellent product just works out of the box. plug in the power, attach your WAN source and connect your LAN device. Done!Another excellent feature is that any of the ports can be the WAN source. Here's why this is important to me. I have two houses in my grounds and to save cable/internet bills I have a CAT6/Coaxial Supper Cable running between the two. I keep my cable contract on one house until they inevitably put up the price and then I close the account and open a new one on the second house. In my router cupboard I connect my WAN and my “house to house” CAT6 to the switch. When the internet comes from the main house it feeds the CAT6 as just another LAN connection and the second house has internet from the Main House. When I cancel the cable on the main house it works in reverse. Now the WAN is entering the second house and the main house becomes part of the LAN. No cables to mess with, the switch handles it all. Awesome.My current internet connection tops out at 22 MBPS. (Like most of you I pay for better service but I NEVER reach 30 MBPS that is advertised), I therefore cannot attest to this router actually handling 100MBPS let alone 1000 MBPS. What I can say is that I can stream Netflix on my TV , iPhone and iPad at the same time with no buffering at all. This device definitely does not cause any deterioration in the signal as it beams it all over my two houses.The price and features of this beauty of a device make it my go to product for internet switching.Thank you NetGear!

This switch has done well by me, overall im satisfied with what I paid for but a 3year warranty has left me on the hook for a new switch since i am almost to the day exactly 4 years of ownership.Worked great for my numerous at home connections but a rival brand switch which also died within a similar timeline came with a lifetime warranty and is currently in process of being replaced with a newer model. I ordered a netgear managed switch (lifetime warranty) to replace this, and have no quarrels with the brand itself just the warranty.

This lasted five years and one of the ports died. It's been acting glitchy lately. I'm going to try a different brand.

Rock Solid - well made, All metal switch.Because of the metal case this switch is smaller and more compact than similar Plastic switches.There are two holes on the bottom of the switch for wall or under desk mounting and an external "Wall Wart" power supply.The switch has LED indicators lights and flash and blink to indicate power and data transfer and a Kensington lock slot on the back for a security tether.Performance of this switch is exceptional with gigabit speeds being maintained even with all 8 ports in use.I purchased this switch on a one day sale and my only regret is that I didn't buy another one or two.Overall this Netgear 8 Port switch is well made with consistent reliable performance ... highly recommend

Purchased this for our home network. Works as expected and I'm happy with it. Bought the metal version over the plastic as it looks nicer, is potentially more durable, and is a square box. I realized when I got it that the Metal version is designed more for rack mounting. The network plugs are on the front and power plug is on the back. Not ideal for my situation and if I had considered that before buying it, probably would have got the plastic Netgear switch as all the jacks are on the back. Something to consider when choosing a model.

Love this little switch. Performance is fantastic, and it's really simple to use. If you're looking for a simple, unmanaged switch, I recommend this one. Even in my dusty environment, it's been running steady for quite a while. My only regret is not getting one with more ports, as I'm slowly running out due to the number of systems and devices I'm now running.I've got this uplinked into a Qotom mini PC running pfSense, and have 6 active clients plugged in at any given time: 3x Laptops, 1x Desktop PC (as a server), 1x Raspberry Pi, and 1x XBOX One.

A necessary tool for your home network if you prefer wired over wifi (and you should :-). I bought a five port switch, but it was an error, today if you have a Roku or/and an android box, a few computers, a DVD player and a game console you quickly get over the four available ports of a 5 port switch (one is needed for the up-link!) so an eight port is, in the long run, a better choice. This one with its metal case can be hooked on a wall, the leds are essential for any diagnostic. Install it and forget about it.

My wireless router had run out of Ethernet ports and I needed another for my new Arlo wireless security cameras base-set. This Netgear switch solved the problem quickly and affordably. It has 8 ports and after you use one to connect it to your modem, you still have seven free. With two desktop computers, an Ooma VOIP phone system, Arlo, and a smart-home lighting controller plugged in, I still have two ports free, plus 3 of the 4 on my wireless router. It has been working flawless since I hooked it up (almost 8 moths ago). It is the perfect solution for my situation.