Netgear DG834 - might be a good router but lousy support

I bought a DG834 from a local computer outlet to increase the security of my 4 node SOHO. This box is actually a modem/router/firewall/switch all-in-one. It had a simple and very easy to use web interface into its configuration, status, and monitoring screens. If the router could be made to work it would be well worth it. Sadly, however, that was not the case. I am very network literate and hold several Cisco Certifications, but nothing I did could make the modem achieve an ADSL Link. Calling their technical support got you someone, obviously in India, who barely spoke english. That, along with a terrible phone connection made the conversation almost impossible. This isnt a slam on Indian tech support... I have had some outstanding experiences with well trained and well spoken representatives from India. This, however, was one of those experiences that people make jokes about.

The first guy I tried to talk to, after being on hold for 30 minutes, instantly decided that I had an SBC/Yahoo connection that was "Actaully DSL and not ADSL". I am dead sure that my SBC legacy connection (not Yahoo) is ADSL; as the old modem I was replacing clearly stated that it was ADSL. A later phone call to SBC Network Support confirmed that. However I couldnt convince this tech support guy of that. After about 15 minutes of arguing he summarily hung up on me. I called back and spent another 30 minutes on hold. This time the person I talked to spoke marginally better english, and insisted that there were no known problems with SBC and that if the modem didnt work I should take it back... BIG help there as well. I finally called an old work buddy, who now worked in the 2nd line of support at SBC. Together we tried every conceivable test and configuration and could not get it to work. I then went back to the netgear support line a third time, this time only spending 20 minutes on hold, but also getting a woman who spoke so quietly and spoke such broken english that I finally gave up.

I tried to look for settings advice in a number of places... in the skimpy print manual that comes with the unit, on the CD that comes with the unit, and online to netgear techsupport website FAQ's; but to no avail.

My final solution, reluctantly, is probably going to be to take this netgear unit back and purchase the Cayman (Netopia) 3346 instead. Its a little more expensive, but I know that it will work out of the box and if it doesnt, SBC tech support will actually support the device and help you set it up if you need it.