Just bought the lousiest LinkSys WRT54G model which has firmware v7.00.01. Too bad retailers doesn’t allow you to open up the box unless you have bought it. This version uses Atheros chipset while all other version including v8 uses Broadcom. The hardware is a striped model and uses only half the memory of firmware v4 and below.
One incompatibility of its wirelesss connectivity is with PlayStation Portable (PSP) firmware version 3.71 (Other PSP *might* as well be compatible). Me and my cousin who own’s the PSP tried all combination to try to make it work. I later found out the there are issues on this specific Linksys WRT54G model. Checking Linksys main website (www.linksys.com) would not even tell you that this firmware exists (there are listing of version 1 to 8 but skipped on v7). Google intensive search functions help though, and I was able to find that this firmware exist on their UK domain (http://www-uk.linksys.com). Latest official firmware for v7 is v7.00.4 which fixes several issues on this WRT model including the PSP and the occasional drop of connection (every couple of hour or so).
Now we are able to connect the PSP with WPA-PSK (TKIP) mode. Linksys and Cisco quality product seems to be going down and down the drain with this specific new model.
Update:
For us unlucky home users of this version of WRT54G, a new firmware from Linksys has been release that fixes several issues more specially torrent and dhcp disconnection which are common on Cable providers. Firmware for Linksys WRT54G Model 7.00.8 is now version 7.00.8. This maybe the best firmware for this specific model as dd-wrt and open-wrt is not compatible on this specific model. This release fixes the following issues:
Firmware 7.00.8 (build 8) - Resolves issue with not being able to block IPSec pass-through. - Resolves issue with router disconnecting from several particular online game servers. - Resolves issue with user not being able to get incoming video and audio when video phone is connected to the LAN hosted by the router. - Resolves issue with WEP 64-bit key not being properly validated when user enters the key. - Resolves issue with disabling UPnP not being effective until the router is rebooted. - Resolves issue with Wireless MAC Filter not working properly when there are more than 32 entries in filter list. - Better handling of TCP packet with invalid option field. - Resolves issue with router intermittently losing internet connectivity (DHCP) with a particular ISP - Updated TZO.com DDNS service support.
geekster techblog 