Linksys WUSB11 Wireless-B USB Network Adapter

If you’ve been searching for an easy way to connect any PC or laptop to your wireless network, your wait is over! The Instant Wireless™ USB Network Adapter is the solution you’ve been looking for.

The Plug-and-Play USB Network Adapter connects directly to any USB-ready PCjust plug it in and you’re ready to share data, printers, or high speed Internet access over your existing wireless network.

For desk-top installation, you don’t even have to open your PC’s case. Easy-to-use software is included to make your setup hassle-free.

Not only is the Instant Wireless™ USB Network Adapter easy to install and use, it’s also powerful. You can be sending and receiving data at speeds up to 11Mbps.

A high-powered built-in Di-Electric antenna means that you’re connected at distances of up to 1500 feet. It’s also versatile. Need to use it temporarily on another PC? No problem. Plug it into the USB port, set it up, and you’re ready to go.

So for full desktop and notebook PC flexibility and wireless convenience, the Instant Wireless™ USB Network Adapter provides an all-in-one solution!

Up to 11 Mbps High-Speed Data Transfer Rate
Your PC’s USB Port Powers the AdapterNo Power Supply Needed!
Compatible with Windows 98, Millennium, and 2000
User-Friendly GUI Setup Software Provides Hassle-Free Configuration
Plug-and-Play Operation Provides Easy Setup
Works with All Standard Internet Applications
Interoperable with IEEE 802.11b (DSSS) 2.4GHz-Compliant Equipment
Capable of up to 128-Bit WEP Encryption via Firmware Upgrade
Free Driver/Firmware Upgrades

If good things come in small packages, the WUSB11 from Linksys makes a great addition to a wireless network. Measuring about the size of a deck of cards and weighing just shy of three ounces, this little device fits nearly anywhere and is easily stowed in a notebook computer case. Simple USB connectivity makes it compatible with any modern PC, and also makes it easy to swap from one computer to another.

Provided you already have a wireless router or Internet gateway set up, installing the WUSB11 is a snap. We plugged it into a USB port on a test PC, executed the installation program on the included PC, and once the system rebooted we were connected to the network without being tethered to any wires. The unit draws its power directly from the USB port, leaving users with one less cord to lug around and one less device to plug into a wall outlet. We tested the device on a PC located 40 feet laterally and one floor above the wireless router and didn't even need to extend the tiny antenna to get good reception. Should you need to use the antenna, it extends at either 90 degrees or 180 degrees, meaning it will work whether the unit is sitting flat on a desk or mounted vertically on a wall using the included Velcro strips.

Performance was impressive. As an 802.11b product the WUSB11 supports a maximum speed of 11 Mbps and real-world speeds hovered around that mark in our tests. The signal was strong and consistent, making it great for gaming or transferring large files without worrying about a disconnect halfway through. There are only two indicator lights on the unit itself that tell you it's working--a power light and another light that blinks when data is transmitting--but the included software tools allow for a much more detailed picture. Using these utilities we were able to keep an eye on the signal strength (it never dipped below 95 percent), configure the built-in encryption settings, and perform other security and monitoring tasks.

The device is designed to fall back to lower speeds instead of cutting off trans missions completely when it reaches the limits of its range or experiences signal problems. In a normal-size home you should have no trouble maintaining the 11 Mbps signal, but if you wander outdoors with a notebook or are plagued by signal interference, overall transmission speed can step down to 5.5 Mbps, 2 Mbps, or even 1 Mbps depending on conditions. Even at the lowest speed the device is fast enough for speedy Internet browsing (most users won't see any slowdown at all in that area, even for downloads), although transferring files across the network is painfully slow at the lower speeds.

No matter what, if you plan mainly to transfer large files over your network you'll probably want the extra speed 802.11a or 802.11g devices offer. Of course, you'll also have to absorb the extra cost associated with those products. The WUSB11 is a fantastic 802.11b device for the money, working perfectly straight out of the box, and its low weight and small size make it a viable alternative to a PCMCIA wireless network card for notebook users. Just make sure the computer you want to connect it to doesn't use Windows 95 or NT, as the unit is incompatible with those two operating systems. --T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

Simple installation and configuration
Mounts either horizontally or vertically
Included software provides useful details without overwhelming users with mi nutia

Cons:

So light that the weight of the USB cord can pull it off a desk
Maximum 11 Mbps transmission speed may be too slow for some users

See a comparison diagram of the different wireless technologies.

Wireless networks are rapidly becoming more popular and coming down in price. Since they don't require cables, you can use the devices anywhere in an office or home, even out on the patio. There's no need to roll out an Ethernet network cable to each room of a house; you can network anywhere -- without wires. Outside of the home, wireless networking is available in hotspots at coffee shops, businesses, airports -- great when you're on the road and need to get some work done. For convenience, wireless networking is the answer.

What Wireless Standard is Right for Me?
Now that you've decided to create a wireless network, the next step is to figure out which wireless standard to use.

Basically, a standard is a set of specifications for a device. All devices that follow a specific standard share operating characteristics, such as the radio frequency used and maximum data transfer speed.

For wireless networking, there are three standards to choose from at this time:

802.11b

802.11a

802.11g

To learn about the differences between the standards and select the right one for your network, click here for an easy-to-understand chart.

The Linksys wireless USB network adapter easily connects any PC or laptop to your wireless network with no additional wiring. The plug-and-play USB adapter connects directly to any USB-ready PC, so you can share data, printers, or high-speed Internet access over your existing wireless network. This convenient yet powerful adapter offers data transfer rates of up to 11 Mpbs with a built-in antenna capable of connecting at distances of up to 1,500 feet.

The wireless USB network adapter provides data security and reliability with its automatic fallback rate for data transfers and ensures secured networking with 128-bit WEP encryption capability.

This adapter comes with a one-year limited warranty.

1 This is a good product..........but
I ordered the WUSB11 to connect a TIVO system to my internet. I was sent version 4 of the WUSB11, which isn't compatible with any TIVO service number. How about telling us what version of these products you're selling?

2 Good News Bad News
The Linksys Wireless-B router is a handy little device who's time has in many ways passed.

In terms of setup and software it is a cinch, run the software and plug it in and presto it found my wireless network and had me surfing in no time, much to the delight of my wife who didn't want more wires running through the house.

The downside of this device is security. The only security available currently on this device is WEP which although was good at the time of the initial release of the device doesn't cut it today. Linksys has not offered a firmware upgrade to allow WPA-PSK and from two conversations I've had with them doesn't seem to have plans to do so.

This means your system will be hackable by even the sloppiest hacker. You would be much better off going with a later model that includes native or upgradable WPA-PSK support.

Of course if you don't mind people hacking your system then this will certainly do the job. If you are doing any kind of home business or keeping financial records on the PC I'd give it a miss.

3 Warning TIVO users
Make sure you are purchasing the 2.6 or 2.8 version, 3.0 and 4.0 will not work with TIVO units. Amazon does not clearly list the different versions.

4 Perfect
I installed the software, plugged it in, and it worked perfectly. What more do you need to know? My computer sits under my desk, so my PCI wireless adapter I had been using got a terrible signal and often dropped out. Now, I can set the USB wireless adapter anywhere I want. I have it resting on my monitor and get a super signal. No more dropouts, even when the microwave is turned on! Perfect! I am running Windows 2000. My wireless router is also a Linksys running 128-bit encryption. Installation was a breeze. The connection is fast and reliable.

If your wireless network is set up primarily for broadband Internet sharing, Wireless-B will do the job wonderfully. 11Mbps is more than adequate for DSL or cable. If you frequently need to move large amounts of data between computers on your network, however, consider upgrading to Wireless-G components (54Mbps).

5 Works great with TiVo if you get the right version
I purchased two of these from Amazon on two seperate occasions. The first one I received was a version 2.8 and the second one was version 4. Having said that, you may want to check out the following site for a list of TiVo compliant wireless adapters because as you will see, version 2.8 works perfectly but version 4 does not. [...]
Amazon should figure out a way to identify the version number in their product description.

6 Fast & Easy
Not much to say about this adapter, which is good. Each one that I have was a snap to install and has worked continuously since. I have all my home network devices (PCs, Tivos, etc.) securely connected to my wireless LAN. It sure beats wiring a home for a network!

7 Refreshing
I tried to use a Dlink PCI card (DWL-510) to connect my desktop to my wireless access point and it was garbage! I have 10 years of IT background working with windows and UNIX servers and after two weeks no dice. So I retuned it and bought this. Wow! Setup was a breeze and reliability is amazing. I never drop signal and have a 4-5 bar signal two stories away from the touch point. I even got it to use windows wireless networking with 128bit WEP encryption. I wish I would have spent the money and not tried to cheap out on my first try. I this case I definitely got what I paid for.

8 Easy setup with TIVO
Got this because TIVO manual said it was recommended for wireless connection. We had been connecting to the TIVO guide service through the phone line, and although it did it at 2am and it was a 800 call (I think) the phone line still ran around the room!
We had a Apple Airport wireless network anyway, so I thought I would give this a try for $30! Plugged it in and within minutes it was configured and working. Tivo is on ground floor and Airport is upstairs, no problem with signal.

9 TiVo - No Go!
Don't buy this if your are a TiVo Series 2 owner. Older versions of this adapter worked with TiVo but not the version 4.0 which you'll get from Amazon. You'll now be forced to order the WUSB12 which is $20 more expensive.

10 Non Compatible
I should have read the reviews before purchasing it. Why would someone sell the item as a package when the package is not compatible? I guess I now have a paper weight that is black and blue. How about thinking before selling!

11 Wusb11 Version 4 not compatable with W98 4.10
Even though the Spec's posted by Amazon states it works with Windown 98 be aware that Linksys Ver. 4 will only work with Windows 98SE and above (Per Linksys Tech Support).
Linksys Ver. 2.6 and earler work with Windows 98 1st edition (4.10)and above.
Amazon is only shipping WUSB11's with Version 4.0
This device also will not work with Tivo series 2.

12 Not Compatible with TIVO
Beware - version 4 is not compatible with TIVO. I didn't bother to read the reviews before I ordered so now have a paperweight. Several others have pointed out that this item will not work with TIVO

13 Works great with my Tivo!
I just received the WUSB11 for Christmas, and I've been using to hook up my Tivo to my wireless network. It works great, and one thing that I love is it is MUCH, MUCH SMALLER than you'd think it would be -- it's only roughly 7-8 inches long and 4-5 inches wide.

14 Amazon does TIVO Users a Big Disservice
As someone else mentions, this V.4 Adapter is NOT compatible with Tivo. Yet, Amazon links you to this when you buy a Tivo from them. It's not a huge leap to think they'd be compatible. Worse yet, you can't find in the online info that this IS V.4 and can't link to some new or used earlier versions that are compatible.

15 Does not work with Tivo!
If you're considering this as the Tivo-recommended way to get wireless connectivity, then DO NOT BUY THIS. Linksys is currently up to version 4.0 of this unit, and it DOES NOT WORK WITH TIVO.

16 Cheap and hard to install. Ultimately functional.
I'm going to take this opportunity to fully vent on the subject. If you want the executive summary, buy Belkin or Netgear equipment, and avoid Linksys. If you like the ravings of a frustrated IT pro doing someone a favor, read on.

I hate these things, I really do. You absolutely MUST install the software for it in order to get them to work with Windows XP Home, but here's the kicker: it won't install the WLAN.INI file to the system. Oh no, you have to manually copy it to the system in the "Program Files\Crappy Wireless Lan Adapter" subdirectory yourself.

And then reboot. And then, quickly now before it notices, open up the WLAN Moniter (yes, they spell it exactly that way) and click through to "Profiles". You may get lucky and it will allow you to edit the profile, so you can finally pick the router's broadcast channel and get connected.

You might think, "Well, XP has the Wireless Zero Configure function". And it does. And Linksys defeated it for hours. There's just no tab in the Windows side for channel selection. I'd like to give a big shout out to Microsoft:
"yo, you guys missed something. Like, the ONLY THING THAT
ALLOWS THE ADAPTER SEE A ROUTER. STUPID! DUMB!"

<sigh> They're cheap, they use USB, it's inevitable someone you know will have one. Once installed, they just work. Nothing special, nothing especially cool, they do the job of hauling packets for you wirelessly. But so what? It's supposed to do that. The added value is in ease-of-installation, isn't it?

Fred

17 TIVO WARNING
WARNING - Even though this product is listed by Amazon as a "customers who purchased ... also purchased" item - THIS DOES NOT WORK WITH TIVO!!! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!! LEARN FROM MY MISTAKE!!!

18 TIVO OWNERS BEWARE!!!
WONDERFUL PRODUCT! HOWEVER, THE NEW VERSION 4.0 IS NOT COMPATABLE WITH TIVO! TRY WUSB12 INSTEAD.

19 NOT for TiVo
I bought this adapter for a series 2 TiVo, but it is version 4 which does not work with TiVo. Here's a link to the TiVo website for a list of adapters. http://customersupport.tivo.com/knowbase/root/public/tv2006.htm?#wireless
I'm giving it 3 stars because I hooked it up to an older computer running XP sp2, and it was easy to configure, but kept dropping the link. It was only a couple of rooms away from the router and had an excellent signal strength. There could be reasons for this problem which are not related to this adapter, but I have not had this trouble with a different adapter in my laptop in any room of the house. You may not have any trouble with this adapter for your PC, but do not buy it for TiVo.

20 Great Product but does not work for Tivo
I bought this for my Tivo because it was listed as an accessory
for a Tivo series 2 that I bought. Better check the Tivo website for supported wireless adapters if your going to use this for Tivo.

http://customersupport.tivo.com/knowbase/root/public/tv2006.htm?

21 Does NOT Work with TiVO
This is a good USB adapter, but it does NOT work with the TiVO series 2 DVRs (when hooking up a wireless network). The TiVOs require the WUSB11 v2.6 v2.8 or v3. The product that ships from Amazon is v4, and it does not work with the TiVOs (at least as of 15 Nov 2004). The incompatability with v4 is mentioned on TiVOs site, but its hard to find.

22 Hang it on the wall
Just purchased and installed this little guy. It works great in both windows 2000 and xp. From a distance about 1500ft, the signal reads low but the connection remains strong enough. The benefit is you can hang it on the wall and adjust its height, which may be critical if you are far away from the Access Point. Very nice product.

23 BEWARE -- v4 not compatible with TIVO!
Amazon is now shipping WUSB11 v4, not currently compatible with TIVO series 2! Huge bummer. There is no way to order a v2.6 or v2.8 and know for sure what you are getting. This is nothing against this product -- just another problem with Tivo and their support. They may eventually support this unit, but for now the Tivo doesn't recognize the adapter.

24 No longer works with Tivo
I was one of the lucky ones to by a v3.0 of this product which did work with my Tivo. Amazon now ships a 4.0 version that does not work with Tivo. You can go to a store and try to find one that does, but good luck since the version number does not appear anywhere on the box (only inside).

I am leaving the rating of 4 stars, because that is what it is for me (v3.0). But do not buy this product now for Tivo.

25 What version?
This took me a while to figure out:

The linksys website says this adapter (WUSB11) supports WPA wireless security ... but it has to be version 2.8. I looked on the one I got and it says version 2.6. I'm not sure if there's a downloadable update or if this is actually part of the hardware.

So anyway, after puzzling over why I couldn't get "WPA" security turned on, I switched to a different flavor of security and that works. Now I'm up with 2 computers and a TiVo.

Configuration was simple, including activating security, once I figured out that I couldn't use "WPA".

Unfortunately the quickstart guide that came with my Linksys router didn't even mention security, so 1 point deduction for that. If you don't turn on security, anyone with a wireless connection can share your internet link with you. For example, your neighbors. (They still can with security, but you'll have to tell them the password!)

26 Very Competitive Price
This is a relatively cheap adaptor. Install is very simple. I prefer the USB adaptor to laptop card because laptop wireless cards can easily get knocked or damaged as they stick out the side of the machine (problem if you travel regularly). I damaged both Orinoco and linksys cards in this way (that said I travel alot and my laptop etc. is put through its paces).

Two nice features arial retracts flat to device. If you are using from one location there is a handy sticky pad on back.

Support - I've not needed it for this product, but contacted Linksys by phone for a router problem (real pain). Email support is good. Like half of corporate America support is outsourced overseas (past month dealt with Dell, Phillipines. Even AMERICAN express is now using Indian call centres for US transactions. The previous reviewer has a point on this, but emails appear to get processed quicker. Apologies for off topic rant on outsourcing. Easy to use product, competitively priced.

27 Works well with TIVO
I bought a series 2 40 GB TIVO recently. I had no phone lines near my TV. My computer is upstairs and had a wireless router from lynksys to connect to another computer at the other end of the house. So I bought this adapter and hooked it up to my TIVO. I set the SSID and password. It started working right away with a good connection (75%). I set up the TIVO desktop on the computer and published by photos and MP3s. I could then view my photos and listen to my MP3s downstairs. It worked great. 5/5 rating.

28 Failed Within Warranty Then Co. Jacked Me Around
Worked fine for the first several months and then failed. I tested carefully by swaping out with another unit on another machine. I called to request a RA number and instead got jacked around for about 15 minutes with an offshore technician who was very hard to understand and didn't listen. I gave up, hung up, tossed the unit and vowed to NEVER BUY FROM LINKSYS AGAIN!

29 Overall pretty good
I have bought two of these - one for my sister and one for myself. The USB adapter had troubles from the very first day I installed it on my sister's computer. It drops the connection every few minutes and has a lot of trouble finding networks. I got it to work well for a few months, but it's been a big fart the last few months again. The one I installed on my own computer works like a charm. I never drops out and gets very strong signals. The speeds are just as fast as if it were wired. I even play FPS games using it and the pings are great. From my experiences, the USB adapter is fairly good, but has given me some headaches.

FYI. The router at my place and my sister's place is the exact same (Netgear MR814), so that's not the problem.

30 It is inexpensive, easy to set up , and works flawlessly.
I bought this device because I wanted to connect a PC to my home network without having to run wires up the wall and through the ceiling to reach an upstairs bedroom. I am using this network adapter to tie into a Linksys wireless-B broadband router (my Internet connection comes from an Insight Digital Cable modem). Once I got the router and the modem to work with each other, installing and using this network adapter was literally a five minute job. It works just fine for our purposes. We mainly use the remote PC to surf the web and play games, and the speed of net surfing on that machine is barely below that of the PC that is hard wired to the router.

If all you want to do is typical web-surfing stuff, I highly recommend this item.

31 A case of the slows, asks non-techie?
I bought a WUSB11 ver. 2.4 used on eBay. This was for a new HP Pavilion a550E (with 64-bit CPU)desktop, running Windows XP Home edition. The pre-existing set-up was: a wireless ISP offering

32 Old Tech required for Tivo
I was forced to buy this thing because Tivo is too cheap to make a box that can use 80211G. Adding a 80211B to your network forces the wireless hub to work at B speed. For you techno-whizzes, you can set up separate networks, but for plug and play people, this thing is a square peg in a round hole.

33 Not enough power?
I got a couple of these along with a Linksys router. It was a bit of a pain to get everything going - more than I expected. But it all seemed to work OK. But over time, one of my machines consistently had slow internet response. I checked and was getting dropped packets. The that worked OK was one room away through a wallboard and 2x4's wall - about 10 feet. The one that didn't work was a couple walls and a plywood floor away - about 18 feet. I finally replaced it with a PCI-based card which is working fine. I can only guess that the USB-powered WUSB11 just doesn't have enough power. It was unacceptable at a pretty short distance. I'm continuing to use the other one OK.

34 Quirky - but they all are...
I have three different types of wireless adapters - two by Linksys and one by Netgear. None of them are perfect but if all is right with the world and your computer, this one is relatively easy to install and usually works well signal-wise, particularly with a booster on your router (bought the Linksys booster for their wireless router and there was a huge improvement with all of these devices).

Take note of the installation procedures since each OS has different steps to follow. On a few computers, the software doesn't seem to install but actually does. And once in a while, Windows decides it doesn't recognize it and you might have to go through the whole installation again if unplugging it and plugging it back in doesn't work. As I said, quirky, but they all are.

35 it works, but isn't the best for all scenarios
this device works as advertised, you can use it where you would expect to. we use ours on our tivo (series 2, 80 hour device). works great there. setup was painless.

sometimes we see some packet loss or some lag, and that's where the complaints start. this device works well for loss tolerant situations, but i wouldn't dare put my PC or my laptop on it. the signal quality isn't what you need, and you'll drop more packets (and hence lose speed and waste time) than you care to.

so, for something like a tivo, this is great. for something like your home PC or laptop, keep shopping.

36 A complete nightmare of a product!!!
Linksys was constantly causing my PC to reboot. Anytime I tried to get on the internet, my PC would shut down and reboot ... sometimes 5 times before it would let me on. When I called for customer support, I spoke with people in India who gave zero help. They blamed it on Microsoft or AOL. I finally bought a different brand and have had NO problems with rebooting ever since I removed Linksys.

37 Not Exactly as Decribed...
I've used this product for about 5 months or so and was a bit disappointed with the signal strength of my computer connected to the adapter after the first hour of using it each time. When you first plug in the adapter to the network, its signal strength is described as "excellent". Not too long after, it drops to "good" to "poor" in a matter of 20 minutes. After that such time, the signal would constantly cease to work, but then to kick back up to the "poor" signal strength every few minutes.

I would have to make the prediction that my router and adapter are no further than 100 ft apart and one floor difference in my house. The product details on this site describe it to having 300ft range. I would expect that the signal strength would not fade to minimal or none after viewing that description, but after short usage or minimal intereference (i.e. a person walking by the adapter) the signal should not (but does) lose most if not all its signal strength.

However, a month ago I decided to try using the LinkSys Wireless-B Signal Booster (WSB24) in the attempt to boost my signal to the adapter. It was an extremely easy "piggy-back" set up to my Wireless Router, and wouldn't you know it, the adapter has been working like a charm ever since. The average signal strength is now mostly "very good", every now and then rising to "excellent" or falling to "good".

I give this product 3 stars because it probably works great 75-50 ft or less from the router to the adapter, but it's irritating and aggravating that I have to spend more money and more time to improve this product's performance ($50 for a booster!). Unfortunately, I don't think Amazon sells this product anymore. I got mine at Circuit City.

38 very good reception, but has severe lag problem!
I own this adaptor for 2 years, it's version 2.6 (the cable has same style plug both sides)
I use xp, driver install is easy, just follow the special instruction for xp users
it has EXCELLENT reception, 20-30 meters more distance than other pc card adpators
but it has SEVERE problem, that it disconnect and re-connect every several minutes under "low" reception, makes bad lagging, espcially when listening streaming radio and watching streaming video, this is very annoying
other that, the antenna is so fragile, luckily the reception don't change when in recessed position (probably because of its plastic finish)
if you're planning to get it for xp, get MS MN710USB instead, the reception is not as good as this, but no lag problem

39 Stay away from it!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well, bought it connected it to thee machine. Have linksys router too. Thee DHCP just wouldnt catch on...Have been trying for thee paast 6 months for thee DHCP to work doesnt work So I am now working on static ips.

The tech support is as good as non existant. The max knowledge they do have is if you have pluged in the the aadaaptor right.

The neeeetowrk adapor software that comes doesnt eeven show the signaal strength in grpahical representation..

I will never ever buy a linksys product.. Will next time buy from netgear they seem to be the best. The only reason I boughtt the linksys was because it had cisco on it.

In the end stay away from IT!!!!!!!!!

40 DO NOT USE FOR ONLINE GAMING WITH WinXP
The configuration utilities that ship with Linksys wireless products will not install/run properly on WinXP, Linksys requires you to use the WinXP Wireless Zero Configuration (WZC) service. One feature of WZC is that once every minute it will drop the current signal in search of a better one, resulting in constant, annoying interruptions to your online play. Thus, if you try to use Linksys wireless products for online gaming, prepare to be VERY annoyed. Otherwise, the product seems to work fine for normal web browsing.

41 Got TIVO? Got WIFI? This is the adapter for you!
If you have a Series 2 TIVO and you want to hook it up to your home network, this is what you want to buy. Just make sure you have downloaded all the updates for your TIVO or it won't work.

42 My Tivo Companion
I got this for one reason, to eliminate the Telephone cable to my Tivo. After plugging this in and doing a little setup and testing on the Tivo, I was up and running and disconnecting the 100 foot telephone cord! Yay!

43 Works Incredibly Well With TIVO Series 2
The Linksys WUSB11 wireless network adapter worked flawlessly within 10 minutes of my inserting the USB cable in the back of my TIVO Series 2 DVR. The first thing I did was contact TIVO to find if my Linksys' G speed router would be compatible with the WUSB11's B speed. I was assured by the TIVO customer representative that the WUSB11 would work with TIVO even though my router was a G. Well, all I did was plug in the WUSB11, follow directions as offered by TIVO and there was nothing else to do. It just worked! Out of the box, it just worked!! The reasons I bought the Linksys router and USB network adapter were two-fold: 1) Two computer Geeks I know recommeded Linksys... My remarks in this review are related to hooking up the WUSB11 to a TIVO Series 2 device... The WUSB11 is totally compatible with my TIVO Series 2. No doubt about it.

44 Excellent for short range projects
I have had one for about one year and have some complaints, but it does function as promised. Once you manage to get the thing connected it works fine but it does have some flaws.

If your looking to have a simple solution for short range wireless networking needs, flexibilty of moving furniture in offices around with out wiring changes, or having a back up wireless adapter for travel this is great.

If your looking for an accross the house device, you should probably look elsewhere. It can provide excellent networking support from a range of about 50 feet, including through walls and doors, without any lag in the connections. However anything further and you are subjected to up and down connections and dropped signals in mid transfers.

I rate this as an excellent piece of equipment for a business traveler, who might have a company supplied travel laptop that wants cross platform connectivity, but for home use covering big areas there are better alternatives.

45 WUSB11 v2.8 DOES work with TiVo
Folks, I got a new WUSB11 v2.8 for Christmas, and I had read all of the reviews concerning the limitations of v2.8. Needless to say, I was really bummed that I was not going to be able to get TiVo on-line. However, all you need to do is logon to your account at tivo.com, tell them that you have a WUSB11 v2.8, and they will push you an update to the TiVo software. It took a couple of days, but after they pushed the new software, I was up and running. No more phone cords, and now I have the Home Media option as well.

As for only 4 stars, I'm having a heck of a time getting one of these up and running on an old Win98 machine that I have. I've followed the directions with no luck...

46 When it works it's great, but frustrating when it's down
This adapter is the most frustrating piece of hardware I've ever come across! Beware when using with WinXP....very touchy! Sometimes it works perfectly. Other times it won't connect to the Internet even though it is receiving a perfect signal from the router, which is also Linksys. My Netgear card that I use in my laptop has always worked fine and was cheaper than this lightweight piece of plastic. I would recommend passing on this unless you don't mind spending hours browsing the Linksys website trying to solve your XP compatibility issues. Ack!

47 Very flakey device, works...sometimes.
Let me start by saying that I have the version 2.2 of this device, so hopefully the later versions fixed some serious problems.

This device works, some of the time. I used it about 30 feet from a Linksys WAP11 device, and it gave me 100% signal strength. Throughout the day, that signal strength would jump radically from 100% to 10% to 0% to 50%. It is extremely flakey, and very very frustrating.

I replaced it with a Linksys WET11 device which has a bigger antenna, and so far has worked like a charm 100% of the time. I am in love with the WET11. It's one-time configuration can be daunting to the layman, but once configured, you can connect it to any ethernet equipped device, and not need any other drivers.

Do not get the WUSB11 if you can afford the WET11.

48 Great solid product!
I bought one of these nifty devices just to check it out and it worked fine on XP. It was easy to install. In fact, I liked it so much that I bought another for an older ME machine. I was not disappointed with this product, even though it cost more than comparable wireless USB adapters.

49 good adapter disaster utility software
it's the best adapter that i've tried so far. it picked up the network instantly and it didn't lose connection upon restart or wakeup of windows, which had been the problem w/ an smc and microsoft adapter. give it 4 star is b/c of the utility software that came w/ it. it's simply a horrer. first after double click on the install.exe it just flashed, and didn't show the typical installation screen. then i found it in the "all programs" menu. but when i tried to start it it claimed that a file was missing, wlan.ini. i copied the file from the cd to the installed folder. the utility program started. but, it insisted that it couldn't find an access point even though it's connected! turning off windows wireless zero configuration didn't help. somebody had said that simply forget about the utility program and use windows to manage it. he's quite right. w/ one caveat though - every few minutes windows would get confused, disconnect me and say that "there's more than one network available". uncheck "use windows to configure my wireless networks" seemed to have solved this problem (i did assign ip etc. manually in the first place).

50 Perfectly Wonderful
We just got this a few months ago, and it works perfect! I've been happy with it, and have had no problems with it. The router is on the second floor, and this adapter is 3 floors below in the basement, and we have never had a reception problem at all. I recomend it to anyone I see talking about networking their computers.

51 Buyer be aware
I've been on the phone over four hours with customer support and I still have problems with this wireless device. About once a day, the wireless connection disappears for no reason and I cannot reconnect unless I reboot. Customer support has informed me to download a new driver from the website, but it still does not work. Then they suggested that I reinstall Windows XP (a very long process for those who are unaware) and it still does not work. I am installing this wireless device on a new computer that I bought from one of the top two computer manufacturers so I know the problem does not exist with the computer. Please do your research before purchasing this device.

52 For those having problem with WEP
For those having problem with WEP, why don't you give it a try to use HEX instead of ASCII. As far as I know, there are Network Key incompatibility issues among wireless network adapters and access points of different brand names. This usually can be taken care of by using HEX in the Network Key. I understand that this could be a little bit troublesome. But you'll just have to set it up once.
The only reason that I didn't give it 5-star is because sometimes my pc could not recognize the device at boot-up and I had to connect/disconnect the usb plug. But this sympton seems went away since I updated the misc. motherboard drivers last month.

53 good stuff
This worked very well with my Series2 Tivo. Just remmeber that you have to update your Tivo software first (over dialup, whick took 90 minutes) to 5.1b BEFORE the Tivo will recognize the adapter.

54 Bad software, QA, and support
My installation came back telling me I was missing files. Tech support walked me through uninstall and reinstall -- which as a software engineer I already tried several times. Finally she said it was bad and I needed to exchange it. I knew it wasn't but figured I'd give it a try anyway -- wasting my time and their money. Same problem with new one, er rather, that wasn't the problem in the first place. I checked that my system was current (win2k SP4). Tried again. Missing files. Try to call tech support... 1 hour and 18 minutes later STILL NO ANSWER. Every 30 seconds a "thank you for your call" message repeats, ad nauseum. So I searched the online support http://www.linksys.com/support. No results turned up for a search on "missing files". I tried all combinations from the error message that I thought might return some results. Nothing. Surely this can't be the first time ever this error has popped up?! Not to mention the typo in the error message! I will never buy linksys again. I am taking both units back tomorrow and trying NetGear.

T Shane Bostick
Boise, Idaho
tbostick78@yahoo.com

55 Worked Great With TiVo
Set up was a breeze and everything works great. Two TiVo's in the house and had to hook the one up in the bedroom to the network. Plugged it in, rebooted the TiVo, entered the network information and bam... No cables. Very Very Easy.

56 Horrible! Don't buy!
Don't waste your money on this piece of garbage!!! I've had so many problems with this things it's ridiculous! Despite calling customer service three times, this this just doesn't work properly. It constantly finds "new networks" around my neighborhood and kicks me offline each time. I'm throwing mine away and buying from a different company! My friend has the same problem with his. Also, the User Manual is completely useless!!! Stay away from Linksys

57 Almost worked with xp
I had it going for about 36 hours. Unfortunately when I returned after 4 hours, it was unable to send. Yet I was able to ping my computer using both a computer on the same network, and even using my cell phone. But not even my firewall was able to detect any outbound activity. So I returned it.

Some other problems I found was xp seemed to lose the card, and using detect new hardware would not even detect it. I ended up having to uninstall and reinstall. There are just way too many issues that were similiar to when I tried version 2.6 with 98.

58 It is NOT COMPATIBLE WITH XP -NO CUSTOMER SERVICE
If you know the workings of computers intimately, this might work for you. It is NOT easy to use this adapter with XP. I spent 7 days trying to reach Linksys through online and phoneline - never got through. I used every technique in their support pages and it still didn't work. XP keeps defaulting, you have to disconnect integrated components, reconfigure settings and change channels and that's just the tip of the iceberg- it finally worked for about 10 minutes then crashed. I had two PC's working beautifully using NetGear's adapter but the third PC that I tried to add to my network with this Linksys adapter - forget it! I feel like they owe me money for my frustration.

59 XP and this Linksys USB just don't get along
After struggling with the installation setup for a day and waiting for the Technical support, I finally went on the Linksys support website via my wired LAN connection. The Knowledge database indicated that this device has some technical issues with XP and requires "try and error". I have another XP at home with D-Link PCI wireless adapter and it is working just fine. So I decided to not spend more time to troubleshoot this one anymore and return the adapter instead.

60 Good device, some Windows 2000 frustration
Summary:
1) If you get v3.0 of this adapter, it works great in XP with the built-in "Wireless Zero Config"
2) If you get v3.0 of this adapter and you're having trouble in Windows 2000, read below:

I had been wrestling with a problem with the WUSB11 v3.0 adapter for the last 3 days. I was finding that it first worked in Windows 2K, then in XP, then never again in 2K. The behavior was that the WLAN monitor kept saying that the device was "not installed" or "inactive" even though Windows clearly saw the adapter (it showed up as installed correctly in the Device Manager).

I noticed that I was getting an error message in the Win2K Event Log from the PCANDIS5 service that "path is invalid". The registry key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\PCANDIS5\ImagePath had a directory that did not exist! It was "\??\C:\PROGRA~1\WUSB11~1\PCANDIS5.SYS". This appears to perhaps be an old location of PCANDIS5 maybe in an older version of the driver. I changed the value to "\??\C:\WINNT\system32\PCANDIS5.SYS", rebooted, and the WUSB11 works perfectly now on all my Win2K machines!!

I hope this helps someone else out and prevents them from having to spend 3 or more days on this problem. Besides this, this USB adapter seems to be very good.

61 5 Minute Setup
I set this up on a PC running XP in less than 5 minutes. Just follow the installation directions on the card for XP. In summary, plug in the USB cord and the XP installation wizard asks for the CD to install the driver. Next you type some requested information on security settings and you are up and running.

I'm using a Linksys wireless access point located about 50 feet away on a lower floor. This is a lot easier than running CAT5 cable all over your house. Very good connection speed. Great product, highly recommended.

62 Is this thing on?
Bought this product about 3 months ago. I got it to work for about a week. It worked on Win2K and XP, on laptops and PCs. Then one day it started having problems communicating with my wireless router. Keep in mind, I have a top of the line WRT54G (802.11b/g) Linksys Wireless router. So you would think it would certainly be compatible with the same brand Linksys WUSB11 802.11b. Well maybe, but it hasn't made up it's mind yet. I am getting "can't associate with access point" in the WLAN "Moniter" software, despite having no WEP encryption and SSID broadcast enabled on the WRT54G. The WRT54G router is squawking all default settings and NO WEP (yet), and the WUSB11 is set up to accept everything just as the WRT54G broadcasts it...BUT... All I get now is "cannot associate with access point" message in the WLAN "Moniter". It would appear to me that since the WRT54G can communicate with any other wireless device I have, that the WUSB11 has decided it's not talking with my router any more, no matter what laptop or PC it's installed on. It is so frustrating because the WUSB11 will see my wireless home network/SSID just fine (considering it's only 10-20 feet away in my apartment at any given time it should work darnit!) - even after I hit Refresh in the "moniter" console several times. It's when I hit "Connect" that I get the fateful "cannot associate with access point" again. Hmmmm.... Linksys also spelled "Moniter" incorrectly by the way, not like I care so much about that though. It would appear that this device is prone to unpredictable behavior, especially in the clear absence of any RF interference on the 2.4 band, and given the fact that I can put the WUSB11 device within 5 feet of the WRT54G router - and it STILL won't work now. This irritates me to no end because I am a computing and networking professional, so you would think this wouldn't be a problem for me...well the joke's on me, and this device and/or the "Moniter" software certainly is far from perfect.

LINKSYS, *WHAT* kind of product is this? Will it ever work again? It cost me $52.00, please tell me it will!

1 star for the fact that it worked, for a while. 1 star for the fact that I like the WRT54G router, so I'll throw that in because I'm feeling hospitable.

63 Works great with XP
Installation was a breeze. I got a brand new machine with XP home. The install instructions for 2000, ME and 98 are different and XP are a bit distinct but both easy. I had it running and connected to my home entwork in less than five minutess. I get great reception and am very happy.

64 A clever and delightful little device
So far, I've bought three of these (two version 2.6, one version 2.8). The first two worked flawlessly with Windows ME, Windows 98 SE, and Windows XP. The wireless monitor program (included) actually works better on Windows 98 and Windows ME than does the built-in wireless network software in Windows XP (at least with this device), but both WUSB11s worked well in both environments. The third one (version 2.8) had a problem of some sort; it would work for a while, then drop off the network (while still thinking it was connected and working fine, but even pings wouldn't get through, outgoing or incoming) then reconnect and work for a short while, then drop off again, and so forth. It did the same on two different systems (Windows 98 SE on one, Windows XP Home on the other), so I arranged a swap via the Linksys web-site, and the replacement unit is now working flawlessly (so far, anyway). Very easy installation (just follow the directions, and notice they're very different between pre-XP versions of Windows and the various flavors of Windows XP).

65 Worked first time. No Hassles.
Title says it all. plugged into new Vaio desktop, Windows XP Home. Loaded driver. And it worked. An easy way to wireless, if you have free USB port....

66 Top notch product!
Before purchasing the WUSB11 v2.6, I read the many reviews on this site. I cannot understand how anyone could have trouble with getting this up and running. It took me all of 5 minutes and that's because I actually read the QuickStart guide!

I purposely stayed with Linksys because I also use the AccessPoint Router + wireless card for our laptop. The setup on these were as painless as can be as well.

The range on the WUSB11 is remarkable - way better than the wireless card on the laptop (as there are certain places in our house that the laptop signal is dismal). I have the AccessPoint in my second floor office, the laptop with the card on the first floor and the WUSB11 in the basement on an old computer. So far, I've received nothing but very good to excellent reception in the basement. Sharing files seems to work just fine too!

I realize that configuring this for specific tasks or settings may be contributing to other people's woes but if you're looking for a simple wireless way to share your internet connection and swap files amongst your home network - Linksys is the way to go.

If my wireless card for the laptop ever dies, I would seriously consider buying another one of these to replace it - despite that fact that it's a little bigger than the card.

67 Disappointed!
Marketed as working with XP. Can't disable SSID broadcast on the router because it won't be able to see the router any longer. Can't use the Linksys application to fix this because MS doesn't want you too, and MS Zero Configuration doesn't work with full function. So in what way is it XP compatible...should say 90% XP compatible.

That aside I've never had it up and running for more than a few weeks at a time without total meltdown and reinstall.

I'm going to wires........

68 Works fine but not the WEP under XP
It took me 5 minutes to set up the unit on my XP Pro machine. Everything worked fine if WEP was not considered. However, security is a big thing these days - at least to me.

After spending almost 4 hours - resetting my SMC router, network settings, etc. It simply would not work with WEP enabled.

The unit itself is good. But if you want WEP on XP, you might want to try something else. That's what I am going to do.

69 Ugh.
Works fine with my Win98SE comp, the total install took about 5 minutes.. The WEP stuff is a little messed up, you cant define 4 different WEP keys, they all change back to the same one if you try.
Don't even try to use this with any operating system other then windows.. there are no drivers for this version. Find the v2.6 adapter, not v2.8. I've tried OS's ranging from FreeBSD to Slackware.. and have yet to get anything working with this.

70 DOES NOT WORK WITH TIVO
Do not buy this item if you are planning to use it with your TIVO. Only Version 2.6 works with TIVO, not the above version 2.8.

71 Great performance in a small package!
This is a small gem. It works better than the Ornioco PCMCIA card, quite a bit more signal. I used the velcro to attach it to the back of the LCD on my laptop and it brings a marginal signal on the Orinoco to full signal with the WUSB11. Install was flawless, configuration was fairly easy. The only flaw I have found is the slide on bracket. It held firmly for a few days then the small (read that SMALL) tabs that appear to be the only thing to keep unit engaged would not hold tight. I dumped the slider and just went for the velcro to the body of the unit. The WUSB11 also shares duty on a desktop system, I just used velcro to attach it to a letter tray next to the monitor. Good signal from opposite sides of the house from the AP. I will be ordering another one soon!

72 Causes hardware crashed on High end XP system
I recently bought a new high end PC system and installed the Linksys WUSB11 wireless adapter.

Occassionally my system would freeze completely mostly when I loaded it with intensive disk tasks like combining defragmenting with copying data. At first I suspected outdated drivers and the like, but after almost two weeks of updating, trying and testing I figured out that the system crashes only when the Linksys is attached to the USB port. When I disconnect it my PC becomes 100% stable. I believe these crashes are more frequent when the signal available to the Linksys is in the medium to low range (i.e. when it tries to establish or re-establish connections).

Ever since I removed the Linksys WUSB11 my system has been stable as a rock. So I'd advise people to look at other vendors' solutions like Netgear.

The silver lining: Linksys got me to update every single driver for every single part of my PC, thank you Linksys.

73 Not fully compatible - poor support
I bought this to add to my current 802.11b network. I have advanced technical knowledge, saint like patience when it comes to troubleshooting small office/home networks, and provide technical support as part of my job.

My current Trendware PCMCIA card took 5 minutes to install - including the 128 bit WEP encryption - and has been running smoothly for over one year. I wanted to expand my wireless network and bought the WUSB11.

I spent over 2 hours (my saint like patience) trying to get this WUSB11 to connect to my existing network without success. I then called Linksys tech support (the only thing good I can say is they provide 24 hour a day tech support). After one hour they told me my router was the problem (US Robotics 802.11b) - yeah right.

I took the Linksys back to Best Buy, exchanged it for the Microsoft MN-510 (USB). I was up and running in **5 minutes**. If you don't have a Linksys Wireless Access Point/Router, I wouldn't touch their products.

74 Bad, very bad, very very bad
In three months, have had four Linksys routers, and three adapters due to faulty equipment. It took hours on the phone with abrasive, sarcastic tech support to figure this out. And, to add insult to injury, it's a toll call to get authorization to send this crap back. Stay away from Linksys.

75 WARNING to TIVO users
Despite TIVO's recommendation of this wireless adapter, they don't support version 2.8 (which is apparently the latest version -- and the one that was delivered from Amazon). The TIVO software won't recognize it for whatever reason.

The one I ordered previously (version 2.6) works great.

76 Cured my wireless network problem
I put a new computer onto my wireless 3 computer network using a Sieman's USB wireless adapter -- and suddenly the router was crashing at odd intervals. As a professional sf/f writer with new books coming out on a tight schedule, I found this to be more than merely annoying.

I replaced the Sieman's adapter with this Linksys one. I already had this Linksys USB adapter on one computer. With two computers using this Linksys adapter, and a notebook using a Linksys wireless card, with an SMC router, I no longer have intermittent network crashes. Oh, and it's true, this Linksys adapter has a better range. I now get "excellent" signal strength steadily where before the usual signal was "good" at the most.

Both computers are running Win XP Prof on Dell Pentium 4 machines, and the notebook is a Compaq Armada. I did not have to do any tricky configuring. They just work.

77 Works great with my XP computer
I have the WUSB11 (v2.8) on a XP Home v5.1 machine in the basement of our house (533 Mhz, 512 mb ram). The other computer connected to the Linksys BEFW11S4 router on the 2nd floor is also on XP. The WUSB11 replaced a Microsoft MN-510 USB wireless adapter, which I decided to swap out since I changed my router to Linksys and I'd heard that the Linksys wireless USB adapter had better range than Microsoft. The MN-510 worked fine, i was just hoping for better speed.

So I detached the MN-510 and uninstalled its software. I then followed the directions that came with the WUSB11, including setting up all the network parameters like SSID, workgroup, etc. It worked. I haven't experienced the problems other XP users have reported. It immediately did what it was supposed to, and has ever since I installed it.

I don't know if the range is any greater, but the signal quality is definitely better. With the MN-510/BEFW11S4 combination the best download speeds via wireless I got were about 70% of what the computer connected directly to the router was getting. With the WUSB11 instead of the MN-510, I can get better than 90%! And that's through 2 floors and a wall or two.

Works great, quick install, couldn't ask for more.

78 At least it doesn't work with my Dlink router
It can't get the correct IP from my Dlink wireless router-DI 614+.(I also have 2 other wireless adapters which work very well)

While the monitor software always said it had been connected to the router,but it was not the truth.I have to reboot my computer for many times to make the connection correctly,although once it starts to work everything looks good.
After past 3 days' configuration,I found the problem can't be solved,so I decide to return it.

79 Don't get this for Tivo
I bought this USB adapter to connect a second Tivo to my home network. Tivo is VERY fussy and requires the 2.6 version of the WUSB11. The Amazon.com picture appears to be the ver 2.6 adapter, but the adapter I received has different markings. My old WUSB11 has the version on the outside of the box, but this one did not. I called Linksys, and they couldn't determine the version number. They guessed it was 2.6. So, I disconnected my old WUSB11 from my networked Tivo and connected the new adapter. It was not recognized. I rebooted, no better. I reconnected the old WUSB11, the one from the box marked ver 2.6, and it worked immediately. I suspect that Amazon now has a different version (2.8?), and it Tivo does not like it. If you are buying a WUSB11 adapter for your Tivo make sure it is ver 2.6, or it probably won't work.

80 Won't work with TiVo
Linksys somehow broke compatibility with TiVo with this current version of the WUSB11. TiVo says and discussion boards confirm TiVo just doesn't work with this product because TiVo supports only the older 2.6 version; Amazon (and most everybody else) sells the ver 2.8. What a shame.

81 WHY NOT MUTI FREQ
THIS IS A GOOD PRODUCT BUT YOU NEED TWO OR MORE FOR IT TO WORK . THEY SHOULD MAKE A PACKAGE DEAL LIKE FOR 4 OR MORE SO YOU CAN CONNECT TO MORE THEN ONE COMPUTER.

82 Great product... except for Tivo user
This is a great product... good signal, very compact... easy to install. The only problem is that I bought it to use with my Tivo DVR and it is not compatible unless you get version 2.6 specifically. Amazon is currently shipping 2.8 so if you're looking to use this on anything other than Tivo... enjoy!

Tivo users look elsewhere.

83 not working on XP, 2000, 98SE
i tried to install this USB wireless adapter, but i could not make it. i exactly followed the instruction, and also tried installation on many different machines (Compaq "new" presario w/ windows XP, eMachines celeron old one-win98, and Intel-MB w/P4-win2000pro i assembled). After following all steps in the instruction, i plugged in the USB cable, but no machine acknowleged this device. But this device is cute, so use it as a toy. I recommend d-Link USB adapter(it works fine.)

84 Good connectivity, good product
I recently bought the wireless G router but didn't buy any cards for my laptop or desktop. I borrowed a laptop card to test the range in various rooms and was pretty dissapointed. I finally bought this USB device and the difference was huge - great signal everywhere, even the garage. I installed it on a desktop running Win98, laptop running XP Pro, and another XP box that had beed upgraded from 98 and it works fine in all cases. Installation wasn't supersmooth, but mostly it was my inexperience - once I did one, the others were quick. Updating the firmware to the router and downloading the latest drivers were key steps. Setting the adapter device properties in control panel takes some writing down of router settings first, but it's pretty straightforward. Very happy with performance to date.

85 Did Not Work
I was attempting to set up a desktop comptuer running Windows XP in a room separate from my office. I originally bought the Linksys PCI adapter and it never installed properly. After 6 hours on the phone with text support and 2 PCI units, I was recommended to try this unit by a sales person at the store. I brought this home and installed it. It was very simple to install and detected my router. However, it would not connect to my router. After another 3 hour with text support (who were clueless people and had very poor customer service) with this unit, I decided to return the WUSB11 and decided that maybe wireless was not going to work with this particular computer and decide to go with the Netgear XE102 Powerline Adapter. Which, I highly recommend if you are setting up a desktop or a computer that does not need to be mobile. Linksys puts out poor products and equally poor customer service. I will never buy another Linksys product if I do not have to.

86 Check the Cable!
I am using this with Windows XP and a Linksys wireless router. The adapter works great, as long as you connect it properly. What Linksys doesn't tell you is that you have to push the USB cable into the adapter until it CLICKS. If you don't hear a click, the computer will not recognize it. Calling Linksys tech support won't resolve this problem either. They'll tell you it's dead and to send it back. But trust me, just push until it clicks.

87 Very small, works fine
This adapter is smaller that I thought it would be. I am using it for my Tivo DVR and it seems to be working fine.

I had some trouble with the initial setup, as Tivo (and my Win XP laptop) refused to recognize the device at first. But (and I know this sounds crazy) when I *reversed the included USB cable* everything worked like a charm. I know this sounds crazy, but what can I say.

With a ten dollar rebate, this is a good value for the price.

88 it works
This adapter works very well, after a very simple installation process. (I am running Win2K. Results might be different for other operating systems.) I really like the software monitor that comes with this item, which allows you to visually locate and select the access point. Nices adapter, painless setup.

89 Not XP compatible, buyer beware!
I grudgingly use Linksys Instant Wireless series products for my wireless b/g network. This adapter worked fine on my Dell Inspiron laptop running Me, but that was not the computer I purchased it for. The whole point of a USB adapter is to be able to easily move from one machine to another. With different operating systems and this adapter, that is impossible. And Linksys' "tech support," don't even get me started on that nightmare...

90 DOA--practically from day one
This adapter was great when I first got it and installed it. However, after about 2-3 months, I started having problems with it. Imperceptibly, I started getting slower and slower connections to the Internet--especially when switching pages. We tried everything: moving and relocating the wireless router and the wireless adapter, changing channels. You name it, whatever Linksys asked me to try, I tried. Soemtimes the problem seemed to go away for a brief while but it always returned.

Tech support was superb when it came to giving advice trying to fix the problem. Tech support was NOT superb when it came to recongizing (or at least advising me) that I might have an intermittent problem and/or a failing unit.

After thinking I had a OS problem (Win 98 SE) or software conflicts, I finally re-formatted my hard drive and installed Win XP. In the taskbar, Win XP showed me that my adapter had excellent signal strength but it alternated in also showing me that a "Network Connection is not available". The tech representative today first advised me that that means I have a defective unit and the symptoms I was describing were classic "defective unit".

And guess what? I think that I'm now just out of the warranty period.

Long and the short of it: If you experience ANY problems with this product, insist on an RMA IMMEDIATELY. Don't assume that the problem is OS-related or "signal strength" related or being caused by an RF signal conflict or is being caused by a popular web site's server is being overloaded with viewer requests.

I'm very disappointed in my experience with this product and the Linksys support since it was obvious from the start that I probably had a defective unit and Linksys did not suggest an RMA anyway along the way.

91 XP
won't work with Windows XP
installs on 2000 pro without any problems

92 Good Product
I just bought my second WUSB11 (ver 2.6) network adapter becuase the first installed without any problems on a Windows XP machine. The second will also be installed on Windows XP machine. The only issue you really have to worry about it using XP to load the drivers for the adapter. The instructions actually tell you not to use XP to recognize the hardware. If you do, you have to make sure you use the drivers provided by the CD and the ones from XP. Once you've loaded the drivers, I made sure the eithernet card and modem were disabled (to avoid any unexpected conflicts with XP) and the security features set up. I Made sure my wireless router (WRT54G) was broadcasting and the adapter so it quickly. I consistently had excellent connection status from the adapter. The tricky part is making sure you actually have a connection with your router before trying to play with the security settings. The WEP security setting can also be tricky because you force the user to put in the access code to access the network. Many people don't play with it because its more trouble than it's worth. I also found that the adapter works even after I have gone back to my router and disabled the SSID broadcast. I went ahead and added the adapter's MAC ID to my router so it could recognize the computer when it tried to access the network. The only thing I have to figure out is out to allow the computer (with the adapter) to access my network without having to broadcast the router's SSID.

93 Seamless
I had this adapter installed in about 10-15 minutes and after testing for speed on the net, found it just a tinch slower than my wired connection downstairs. I pull in about 1.6 mbts downstairs (wired to wireless router) and I'm pulling in about 1.4 mbts upstairs (distance about 80 feet). I recommend it highly.

94 Connection Losses
Every 5 minutes or so, the connection just ends and starts. It works as advertise but these disconnections are annoying, i cannot download anything at all. Does the same for all my friends.

95 Excellent and easy for windows users
The Linksys WUSB11 is a singularly unassuming-looking device, but it actually works very well. Since it is not a USB 2.0 device, even if you get an 11Mbps connection - unlikely if you have even one wall between you and the AP, even a Linksys AP like the WAP11 - you will not be able to fully exploit that connection. On significantly older systems, like my K6/2 300MHz test system, the connection is quite slow, as the machine just can't quite keep up with the load from the USB controller.

On my Windows 98 and XP systems the device worked quite well, but I had only limited success with the device under linux. The primary driver does not play well with SMP, so those users with SMP turned on in the kernel for whatever reason will not be able to use it. The alternate driver does not support most of the extended status information, and as such is not able to roam well between APs.

96 USB Flexibility
I use it on both my desktop and my laptop. Its nice because you can move the antenna around to get better signal strength...which can't necessarily be done with a PCMCIA card. The plastic antenna arm recently broke at the hinge, though. It still works, but its hanging by the antenna wire.

97 A cheap and quick way to take your desktop wireless.
I bought one of these for my neighbor so he could connect to my DSL and I was very pleasantly surprised how well it worked. Since he was using Windows XP the setup was completely configuration free. Just plug it in and Windows does the rest. As for the range it was going past 4 walls and a breeze way; 3 apartments down with barely a loss of signal strength. I would seriously recommend it.

98 no problems here, but...
I had to set this up work with one Windows 98 PC via wire, and a Windows XP Laptop, via wireless card.
It all worked probably within 20 minutes, and my laptop gets very good reception clear across the house.
4 stars though because the manual/setup guide is very sparse and so any problems and you pretty much need to try different things until it all works, or struggle through technical support calls.

99 Not Compatible
Linksys is a famous company in the network world. They have good routers, good wireless pc cards, but.. This product is a very good choice if you want to use it with windows 2000, me, or so. If you have Xp or 2003 server on your computer, then you got a problem. This product is born to be incompatible with windows xp. I bought this product recently and it used to work fine with my Windows ME. Last week, I upgraded my system to xp, and my problems started to show up! This product shuts down the whole network down. I had to turn off my Netgear router and restart it again in order to get any kind of connection! I did it over 20 times.I thought My router was something wrong with it so I replaced it with Microsoft's one. But the problem still remains. So I changed this one, and my network is working like a charm. Be ware! If you have Linux or Solaris on your machine, look somewhere else. This product is good(?) if you have win2000 or Me. If You are Using Windows Xp or Linux or Mac OS you better forget about this one, and buy a more flexible one! I personally recommend Microsoft Product Mn100 and so for Windows users.

100 Warning: do not buy this product for Windows XP
Many reviewers have commented on the ease of use of this product. This may be true for OS's which are not Windows XP. I have spent 3+ hours on the phone over two days with Linksys tech support trying to get this thing working and at the end of it the best answer they could give me was "reinstall windows". Some of the problems I have had include failure to install drivers, failure of the wireless to work properly unless the router is set to perpetually broadcast the SSID, and the fact that it just plain stopped working at one point.
During the tech support process the tech had me install it on my W2K machine and it worked fine there and the setup was fairly easy...so maybe it's an OK choice if you don't have XP.