Wireless Pre-N Network Notebook Card
1 Forget about Linksys SRX, go with Belkin Pre-N!
I had originally purchased a Linksys WRT54GX router along with the companion SRX wireless PC card because: 1) I wanted to replace an 802.11b wireless network in my 2-story home for better coverage (I was having to use a Linksys wireless access point in repeater mode to get "complete coverage" with the old setup); and 2) I wanted a faster wireless network.
I quickly became frustrated with the new Linksys SRX wireless setup, primarily because my laptop (a 2004 HP model) wouldn't always detect the wireless card after powering up from sleep mode, and often there would be dropouts in my wireless internet connection, even when my laptop remained stationary. In addition, even though the wireless icon in the task bar would constantly indicate a connection speed of 108.0 Mbps, it was obvious that my new wireless internet connection was often far slower than even my old 11.0 Mbps wireless network connection! This problem was especially obvious with websites rich in photo-quality graphic images, like ESPN.com.
So, I contacted Linksys tech support and, with the help of a friendly tech support agent, reprogrammed several parameters on the router. The problem improved, but only temporarily. Frustrated, I returned both the wireless router and the PC card and immediately ordered the Belkin Pre-N router and PC card (based on Cnet reviews, which rated the Belkin system higher anyway).
Both the Belkin wireless router and PC card installed quite easily with the accompanying installation CD's and my system has been up and running without a hitch--so far. One other thing I have liked about the Belkin system is that (using the included Belkin Wireless Client) it displays realtime send and receive speeds of the wireless card, which are often slower than the 108.0 Mbps the wireless icon in the taskbar is constantly pegged at; but at least I know the "true" speed of my wireless network at any given point in time (the measured speeds that are displayed are constantly changing and fluctuate mainly according to distance from the router).
Needless to say, I have been impressed with my early experience with this Belkin system and won't hesitate to highly recommend it to others considering a future home wireless network upgrade. Oh, and did I mention that the Belkin system was cheaper than Linksys'?!!
2 A...mazing once you get past the installation problems
Ok, so I bought the Pre-N router and it's unreal. Then I got the Pre-N card to go with it and had lots of problems. Basically the Belkin Wireless Client Utility is buggy as you like and has crashed EVERY time I tried to use it. So I downloaded Boingo's free wireless client, et volia, it connnects first time! The only downside is it reports the signal strength inaccurately. It shows a poor connection, which after using Cnet's bandwidth meter, I found that I have anything but. I have a cable modem and Cnet rated my connection as above a T1 and below a T3. Believe me it's super, super fast.
3 great wireless card with some restrictions
this is a great wireless card with the best range/speed performance i have seen for a card without an external antenna. the only problem i have encountered so far is it will not operate on batteries in my fujitsu p series lifebook. it looks like the card simply pulls too much power and will lock up the notebook when i switch to batteries. combined with the pre n router this is a great combination for situations where it is difficult to get a good wireless signal. i live in a concrete house and was using a linksys with a repeater to get to the dead spots. the belkin pre n has allowed me to eliminate the repeater and actually get better throughput.
4 BEWARE-PCMCIA NOT SUPPORTED
Note: This is not an actual review of the product because I cannot install it.
Although it is not indicated on the Amazon website, this wireless card only works in a Cardbus slot, not a PCMCIA slot. Also, it will only work with Windows XP and Windows 2000. So I'll be sending this one back...
On the other hand, I recently installed a Pre-N router and use it with some 802.11b wireless devices, and it works great--noticeable boost in both range and throughput.
TMR
