AOL HG532 Router

Hello,

First post so hoping someone can shed light on this technical problem.

AOL sent me a new Huawei HG532 router free of charge to replace an older D-Link router which had developed a fault. I connected everything up as instructed and then searched on my desktop which runs on Windows 7 for the wireless Network Name. My PC could detect all of the surrounding neighbouring networks but not my new one. I can connect via an ethernet cable and the router seems to work fine, ie all the lights are on and I can get internet access. However when I try to get into the router on Internet Explorer to check the settings via 192.168.1.1 using admin for both the username and password the log in page just bounces me back requesting the username and password again and again.

My son has a small netbook and Kindle both of which can sometimes detect the signal from the router however at times it's signal strength and reliability varies with it disconnecting frequently and then being reported as being out of range. Even when they can detect the network however and connection is attempted on some occasions an authentication failed or unable to connect message is displayed.

To my mind it seems as if the wireless signal is either very poor and intermittent or just not functioning properly.

Interestingly enough if I connect his netbook via cable to the router I can get past the log in page of the router so there might be a chance of adjusting the router settings that way. Why can I be able to acheive that on his device but not my own PC?

Help from the AOL/Talk talk side has been unsurprisingly unhelpful, with the majority of them saying if the lights are on the routers working fine and the fault lies somewhere within my PC or wireless adapter. How can the fault be within them if I can connect to a neighbours unsecured network but not one 10m away and I could last week on my old D-Link?

It's not always the case that somebodies at home even if all the lights are on!

AOL are sending me a replacement router but I'm tempted to buy one of my own and to hell with any future support issues via AOL.

Help!

Some routers have a hardware switch for the wifi which can catch you out, so double check the wireless light is on.

Issues accessing the GUI of the router may be due to browser compatibility issues, or if the relevant PC can't access the internet either check to see if it's TCP/IP settings are all at "automatic" to use DHCP.

Some routers use other passwords than admin as default, and some ISPs are personalising them too. It might say on the bottom.

Always best to do the wireless stuff initially from adjacent to the router. If you can log in you can check that the SSID isn't hidden and perhaps choose a different channel in case something else is blotting it out.