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Anyone know anything about wifi adapters?

tayl5645

tayl5645

New member
Ok new to the area of wifi cards/ adapters for computers (i know a decent amount about computers). I didnt know what would work better if I need one. A PCI slot card or the kind of adapter that you run in to the Ethernet port? My guess is the USB connected ones wouldnt be the best but Idk. Im moving to college and theres a chance there wont be a Ethernet hookup in my bedroom of my aprtment and routers are not allowed. So i was looking at these as an option. Anyone thanks for the help.
 


I would get a USB one. The major benefit is that you can move them around if they have or you buy a USB extension for them.

Newegg.com - Rosewill RNX-N180UBE Wireless Adapter IEEE 802.11b/g/n USB 2.0 1T2R / 5 dBi External Antenna / Up to 300Mbps Wireless Download Data Rates 64/128-bit WEP (Hex & ASCII), WPA/WPA2, WPA(TKIP with IEEE

I bought this one for my brother to replace a PCI card he had. It has a decent length of cable to move it around and it has a larger, higher powered antenna than most others. He connects to a router about 120 yards away and gets a "good" (4 out of 5 bar) signal. His older PCI card barely managed a connection at that same distance.
 
Do USB adapters work as well as PCI or ethernet hookups? Honestly I dont see how they could be but maybe im just stuck in the old days of doing things :P. This is going to be on a stationary desktop.
 
A hard wired connection is obviously going to be best. These days I would say the USB adapters work as well or better than the PCI cards. It really depends on the signal output. Generally, the bigger the antenna, the better the signal strength.

As far as reliability, I couldn't really say. I've had several of both type of wireless adapters. Some work really well and last a long time. Others dropped the signal frequently, and died early.

The recommendation I usually make with any wireless adapter, is that you only install the drivers and not the included software. The Windows wireless config utilities almost always work best. When that's not the case, it's usually because the drivers for that specific adapter suck or need to be updated.
 
personal experience, get a USB adapter one, its simple and easy. The usb adapters that look like a thumb drive have horrible reception. if you want something with some decent range. pick your self up a Linksys WUSB54G. Best wifi adapter ive ever used. its usb, isnt a thumbdrive model, and has an actual antenna.
 


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