Now you can add your Microsoft Xbox video game console to your high speed wireless network! Play Xbox on any TV in your home, with the assurance of the leading wireless security. The Microsoft Broadband Networking Xbox Wireless Adapter makes it easy to add to the 802.11g or 802.11b wireless network in your home. The Wireless Xbox Adapter (XNEWT) is a Wireless Bridge that converts the "Ethernet" signal that the Xbox uses to connect to the internet and turns it into a Wireless signal.
1 Works Great - No Lag
I was skeptical at first about this, seeing as how I had never gone wireless before. However, this adapter really works and there is not a spot of lag. Actually, I was having more lag problems when I was directly connected to a modem.
Linksys offers an alternative to this called a game adapter. It is the same price and I imagine that it works just as well. Don't make the mistake of trying to save money and buying another router or an access point, it won't work.
2 XBOX LIVE WIRELESS ADAPTER
Excellent so easy to set up less than 1 minurt i was registering for xbox live recomend it for all.
3 Took a while
well i tryied to get on to xbox live the ip and all that stuff was ok so i didn't really know what to do. So basically i upgraded the adapter's firmware Heres the link http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/broadbandnetworking/10_DLoadMain.mspx microsoft should make it easier to find stuff basically what you do is you plug in the wireless adapter to your ethernet port and install the file and it will detect and update your firmware. I tried that and it didn't work so i also updated my linksys WRT54G's firmware and it worked heres the link for that http://www.linksys.com/download/firmware.asp?fwid=201
great product after the updates its full 54mbps at two floors below
4 The Solution
We recently relocated my son's X-box paraphernellia to a kids-only area in our basement. This has been a great arrangement for everyone except we were unable to let him use the family Internet connection anymore to play his X-box games online. Well we could have strung ethernet cable from one end of the house to the other, but that wasn't an option.
Enter the X-Box Wireless G Adapter.
Well, actually, first came the the Lyksys Wireless B game adapter ($63.53, Wal Mart), which did not work after hours of goofing around with configuration, numerous calls to their outsourced tech support in New Delhi and a royal headache. Although I suspect that it could have worked with the right techno incantations, I finaly realized that saving a few bucks was not worth all the time. I took it back and ordered the Mirosoft adapter ($99.99, Game Spot, via Amazon, $7.49 S&H) and made myself at home in the age of wireless.
As other reviewers have mentioned, this thing is ridiculously easy to set up. I just plugged it in, it detected my wireless network, IP adresses and all that rigamorole and TA DAH. My son says he experiences no lag and the connection is totally reliable and I've not noticed any problems using the Internet while my son is playing on line.
For you gear heads here. My service provider (QWEST) offers a wireless broadcasting DSL modem (basically it acts as a wireles router would). All I had to do was get into the hood and turn the wireless mode on and set up a 64-bit (or 128-bit) WEP key, which already had done while I was futily trying to get the Linksys adapter to work. Security options on the X-box interface were easy to find and after I typed in the WEP key, the X-box (or the adapter) did all the rest.
You'll save a lot of time and headaches just going with the Microsoft gear in this case.
5 Xobox live fanatic
This is a great wireless internet adapter, never had any problems with it, and it also works for normal wirless internet for desk tops i tryed it when i was getting my xbox fixed, and my internet conection on my upstairs dell computer(which never had internet and was a win. 98) had a faster internet conection that my other dell which was an xp. well ive brote this puppy to my beach house and it worked on his wireless router too!
Overall its a great router and well worth the money. When playing xbox live I have NEVER lagged once.
I've also requested this to many of my friends and they all love it!!
6 Works GREAT!!
Flawless setup, I comes with all the cords required to hook it up, and delivers speeds up to 5 TIMES FASTER than a normal gaming router, it comes with
- Wireless adapter
- Setup guide
- easy install guide
- XBOX configuration CD
- Power and Ethernet cord
Its features include
- wireless gaming on a wireless-G network
- Speeds up to 5 times faster than a normal gaming router
- and easy XBOX installation
Works great with Linksys, and can add XBOX to your Wireless network! I highly recomend this item.
7 It works better after a firmware upgrade
I purchased the MN-740 because I needed a wireless solution for my Xbox. Installation was easy, ran the CD in the Xbox and the Xbox did all the configurations on it's own.
The only thing that was weird was that it would frequently drop connection or not detect the Live Service. After searching around the Xbox.com website I found that there was a 2 stage bios and firmware upgrade for the MN-740. You had to download the package and the best way I could make this work was to disconnect my computer from the router and plug the 740 directly into my computer's NIC port. The firmware installer finally detected the 740 and upgraded the internal software.
After reinstalling the MN-740 to the Xbox, it has worked perfectly and seamlessly. I am impressed that now it never drops signal, the signal strength is always high and there is no lag. I can even host large 16 player games with my cable internet without problems.
Needless to say, once I got over the firmware installation fiasco it has been a joy to have. I'm also using the Microsoft MN-500 router to connect it with and there was never a problem with the router. On the router's control screen it even shows a picture of an Xbox when it's receiving information from the MN-740. The MN-740 supports all the security standards including the hiding of the network channel and 128bit encryption. I did discover a small problem with using MAC filtering but after some research on the internet I discovered that you need both the 740's and Xbox's MAC address for a proper MAC filter.
I like this product.
8 this is not the wireless device you want
Don't waste your money on a single purpose device. Instead buy a Cisco Linksys WRT54GS and install the latest Sveasoft Alchemy firmware to use it as a multiport wireless ethernet bridge. W42 supports WEP while later versions are sure to support WPA or better. Since the Cisco Linksys firmware was released under GPL anyone is free to distribute the firmware so long as it includes the source. Google for "sveasoft theindividual" to grab your legally-free copy today.
9 Works great including Netgear Router
Some of the reviews state that this doesn't work with Netgear Routers. I have a Netgear WGR614v5 and it works with it no problems. Two floors away.
I originally got the Linksys Game Adapter (WGA54G) to work with my son's XBox. However, two days and three hours on the phone with Linksys support failed to get it working. I have a lot of networking experience and knew what I was doing. It was clear that off-shore tech support was just reading a script. So I decided to take it back and get the Xbox Adapter instead.
Setup was a breeze. Just pop in the CD-Rom and it detected my network. Originally, it saw but couldn't connect to my network. I have both WEP turned on and MAC Address filtering (one of the main reasons I went with the Netgear router). I had to initially turn off the MAC filtering and then it connected fine.
Upon examining the attached devices, I noticed that the MAC address of the adpater showed up as the MAC address of the hardwire port on the XBox. Ahh, that was the clue I needed. The adapter clones the MAC address of the XBox. However, you can not just allow that MAC address. The key is you have to allow both the MAC address of the Adapter and the XBox. Then everything works fine even with MAC filtering turned on.
In short, first hook up you XBox directly to the router and check the MAC address (or turn off MAC filtering to start if you need to connect with the wireless first). Then enter both the MAC Address of the Adpater (on the bottom of the adapter) and the MAC addess of the XBox. If you allow both addresses then you can turn on filtering on and it should work.
In all, if all you want is a XBox game adpater, this is the one to go with.
10 Excellent quality, performance and ease of installation.
This adapter was way to easy to setup. Opening the box was the worst part. Plug it into ac outlet, plug the cat5 into the xbox and pop the disk into your xbox. 10 to 15 minutes later i was online fighting little brats in the rumble pit.
in contrast, my friend opted for the netgear wireless, which is cheaper. i believe it works well for him, however you need to install stuff on a pc, that's wierd. Using the adapter it works as an independent device that gets a ip from your dhcp enabled router.
This is a must have for xbox, if you want to be wireless.
Cheers...
11 Works great! But your router is the key.
Bought this for my son for Christmas. The key to an easy setup is to have a compatible wireless router. I also wanted to avoid as much configuartion as I could. I happened to need to upgrade my router at the same time I was going to purchase this so I first checked the Xbox site at Xbox.com. Here you can find a list of known fully compatible routers and those that are known to have problems - others may also work, you just may need to configure them to be compatible with the Xbox. I went with the DLink DI-524 which Xbox says is fully compatible. Was I surprised on Christmas day when the Xbox wireless adapter setup was quick, easy, and problem-free.
As far as range, our router is located in our basement, my son hooked up his Xbox in his room on the second floor and it worked so well you wouldn't know it was online.
In short, well worth it, but check the router compatibility first or you may be in for frustration.
12 when all else fails
I worked with xbox live for hours trying to get my wireless xbox up. Finally they refered me to microsoft and they resolved it in 10 minutes. The first thing I think you should do when you get the xbox gaming adapter is to go to microsoft, download any updates, unplug your computer from the internet and plug in the rj45 from the adapter into the computer and download the new software. It was up and running 3 minutes later. Now my only problem is when someone is on xbox live, no one can use the internet on the computer!!!
13 Fast easy setup, no lag, works with my dell router
I was very skeptic about this item but let me tell you it is:
1) A very quick (5 minutes if that), very easy setup.
2) Playing xbox live there is NO lag (well not anymore than usual)
3) I was concerned it wouldn't work with my router, but it worked perfectly and in no time.
The details: More so than ease of use and setup, I needed to know about lag and I didn't see it much covered in reviews so... I played dead or alive ultimate 2 which of all xbox live games had the most lag ever. Well with this wireless gizmo, I could sware there was no lag (no more than the usual), heck I might even say less than before. FYI: I have sbc yahoo dsl service, I did a speed test at dslreports.com and I came up with 278kbps download speed / 285kbps upload speed. So in the end, THIS DEVICE CAUSES NO LAG FOR ME. I installed the device via the easy steps and was done in like 2 minutes. I thought about it and went back and put security in my wireless connection and put a wep password on it too. The xbox was automatically disconnected and said it was, so I put the setup disc back in and changed the settings to match that I had made on my computer and it connected right away no fuss, no problem. Oh ya FYI: This works perfectly on my Dell TrueMobile 2300 Wireless Router.
If you're still having trouble getting over the high price on this thing here are a few suggestions to help you:
a) Try trading in a bunch of games to bring the cost down.
b) Just imagine how cool it will be when your friends come over and you can show them just how cool you are.
c) If the modem is upstairs and yer xbox is downstairs eh?
d) c'mon you (your girlfriend especially) don't want to see those ugly cables running all through the house right?
If you are reading this, obviously you are at least semi-serious about getting the thing SO GET IT!
14 Almost Great! But, Still Easy.
**READ THIS IF YOU ARE HAVING TROUBLE CONNECTING TO XBOX LIVE**
Well, I read everything I could find on the Microsoft MN-740 Xbox Adapter and the Linksys WRT54GS Wireless-G Broadband Router w/ SpeedBooster to prepare for installation. Hours reading before I even had the units in my hands. I was a bit worried after reading this review list. So, I did what I could.
The setup of both units was near automatic and needed little in the way of help from me. I got everything in order following the instructions the Xbox adapter and the Linksys Router were talking to each other. But, when I tried to get into Xbox LIVE...'bummer' the Xbox Adapter would not connect to LIVE. I thought it might have been an SSID problem, channel junk, or ISP information missing... So, I sat and tried to find out the problem for about 4 hours. Opting not to call customer services (feeling it to be jokeful). Frustrated and sleepy, I got online and re-read something tucked away at the Xbox site that I knew was not in any of the manuals. One setting change (see excerpt below) and it was running fast and the games began to fly with no lag what-so-ever!
If you have a Linksys router try this link and fix your Xbox LIVE connection problem.(...)
Excerpt: "Note: The UPnP implementation on the Linksys WRT54g with firmware 2.02.7 has been discovered to prevent users from being able to connect to Xbox Live. If a user is unable to connect to Xbox Live with this specific router model/firmware, they may get connected by turning off UPnP in the router's settings. Microsoft is working hard with Linksys to repair this issue as soon as possible."
Other than the one setting problem that they are working to correct... I am a bit disappointed with the weaker WEP security the Microsoft Xbox Adapter needs. Not cutting edge. But, for the ease of use this unit offers I'll take what I can get to get LIVE while my wife is online.
I hope this helps. If it did help you please click the "YES" button below.
15 Once Connected its Great but Getting there is the Problem
I bought this product under the impression that it would work right out of the box. In some ways it did and in others it didn't. It connected to my network and then ran into a road block. After spending a few hours with custormer service the problem was finally iorned out. It turned out to be that the channel on the router needed to be changed but that was not in the troubleshooting guide. After setup it worked fine but after buy plan a few hours to get it up and running.
16 NOT COMPATIBLE WITH WPA ENCRYPTION!!!
Based on other reviews I had high hopes for the Microsoft Wireless G Xbox Adapter. Unfortunately this model MP-740 does NOT support WPA encryption standard. While it does support WEP encryption, WEP is extremely insecure & crackable thereby putting the entire network at risk. While WPA is susceptable to dictionary attacks when the encryption key is weak (less than 20 characters), keys between 20-63 in length are (for now) considered the most secure way to go without installing a VPN server. For anyone truly concerned about the security of their network, this product is unacceptable. If all you do is play Xbox games & you have no other computers connected to the network, then this product would be fine.
17 works great with modded XBox
This works wonderfully right out of the box with a modded (evoX) XBox, linked to a Linksys WRT54G. I originally tried to use the Linksys Wireless Game Adapter, which really sucked and never worked. Took a chance on this thing, worried that it would not be configurable enough with the network. Piece of cake. And 30-50 dollars cheaper than the Game Adapter. It found the network just fine and can now transfer files back and forth from the XBox from both the wireless PC and the Mac on our network via FTP. Hate to say it, but a really nice experience from MS.
18 Awesome
This thing is great. It did not take long to set it up and when it was all hooked up it has not given me any problems. The connection is fast and I have not experienced any lag. This thing also works with playstation 2. I use it to play Socom 2 and it works great, just takes a little time to comfigure for the PS2, also works on my other computer. A great buy!!!!!!
19 Wow
I held off buying this for awhile and now that I have it I don't know what I was thinking. This is one amazing product that works to perfection with my wirless network at my house. I am in amazment at how easy it was to set up and I was online and playing in no time. If you have an Xbox there is no reason you should not have this product, wow.
20 Horrible Compatibility Problems
I just received my adapter in the mail today, and will be sending it back tomorrow. It turns out, the adapter is not compatible with ANY ROUTERS made by NetGear. In fact, Microsoft reccomends that you ONLY use a LinkSys or Microsoft router. Since I don't have the money to throw away my old router and buy a new one, this product is totally useless to me, and probably will be to you unless you have a LinkSys or Microsoft router.
21 Fast XBox Wireless Gaming quickly Up & Running!
The Microsoft XBox Wireless 802.11g adapter has been soooo easy to setup. Plug a patch cable (included) from the adapter into the network port in the back of your XBox, plug the AC adapter into the wall, and your XBox is connected to the Internet... Quick & easy to setup with no problems. You might have to orient the adapter and its adjustable antenna to optimize the speed of the wireless connection -- the XBox Network Setup Control Panel has a Wireless Connection Manager to help you see the speed of your connection & signal strength. My wireless router's downstairs signal goes through 50+ feet through one ceiling, and three solidly built walls, and the XBox adapter is still able to pick up and utilize an 18-54Mbps wireless signal (36Mbps most of the time). I have a 1.5Mbps DSL service, and setting up Wireless XBox Live gaming is a breeze. It beats stringing CAT 5 network cable between floors and rooms.
22 under 2 minutes
Now THAT was fast! I probably could have help my breath in the time it took me to set this up. I do have a Microsoft router that I chose to work with this adapter, and I'm sure that probably made things easier, but I'm enjoying Xbox Live now!
23 Customer support drops the ball and rude, returning adapter
After reading the rave reviews, I went to pick up a MN-740 to go with my wireless G setup.
Needless to say, it fails to log into the router. I have setup 3 devices to hook up flawlessly to the router so I know the router configuration.
I called Microsoft support hotline and the rep was very rude. She noted that the Netgear WGR614 router was not supported and I should have read the xbox online website for a list of compatible router. The tech rep requested I return the adapter to the merchant.
Not putting a list of routers that do not work with the adapter is borderline advertising fraud.
Do yourself a favor, check out the website before buying the adapter.
http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live/connect/wireless_connect.htm
24 Great Device...WORKS FOR ALL SYSTEMS
Easy to set up adapter that works fantastic. It's great being able to play wirelessly without dragging cords! Fast connection, even without direct line of sight. Also after you program it using your XBOX all the connection info is saved to the adapter, which means that you can connect it to your PS2 (or other computer) and it will connect to the network. Only downside is that you can only program it using the XBOX dashboard, but do that once and you're all set for all of your systems. I use it with the MN-700 wireless base station so I had no problems with compatibility. Great buy for anyone looking for wireless fun!
25 difficult conection
While my family enjoys xbox, relibility and compatibilty problems are typical microsoft. I used the set up disc and made the conection to my wireless router with no problem. I then tried to use that conection to run a game and the xbox could not use the conection that had already been created on that very device. Of course the technical support people told me there was a compatibility issue with my linksys router or the isp delivery and I needed to visit their website. This was after advising the tech--several times--that a connection was already proven possible and had been made.
Its obvious to me this was a microsoft inter-software compatability issue. PS2 is much easier to use and more reliable. They also have more live games available. I am glad others have not had this problem, but if you do, I recommend not wasting your time to attempt a resolution. Unlike operating software on PCs, Microsoft does not enjoy a virtual monopoly on video games. I doubt their long-term viability in gaming. Its unfortunate as I have been cheering microsoft's attempts.
I spent 2 days on this futile effort. The things we do for our kids.
26 No Problems
I bought this product because I was having issues with the Linksys Wireless B Game adapter for my Xbox. All I can say is
Microsoft's Wireless-G Xbox Adapter works great. The only downside? Its good only for the Xbox.
27 Microsoft does it again with their Xbox
Let me start off my stating that I've had bad hardware experiences with Microsoft. From their wireless optical mice, keyboards, and just recently their 802.11G card for the computer. All of the products mentioned I have had serious problems with. However, I am plesently surprised with the way that the XBOX adapter is working. I have a netgear wireless G router and this adapter runs smoothly off of it. There is little to no lag. Set up is a snap and I highly reccomend this product to anyone looking to play on XBOX live.
28 i'm a skeptic
i have to admit, i'm a skeptic. i didn't feel like running wires, so i got one of these. i'm computer savvy, but i expected an annoying installation.
the installation literally took 30 seconds. it was done so fast i didn't realize i had set it up. very cool. kudos to microsoft on this one.
i have a d-link b router and i see no lag hosting games on xbox live. very cool product. would highly recommend!!
29 Worked Right The First Time
This product does exactly what it is advertised to do. It was my first wireless device so I was a little worried. But I followed the instructions and it was up in running in under 10 minutes. My only problem was entering my WEP code wrong...so be careful and double check your entries. I just wish they would lower the price.
30 Wireless gameplay made easy
If you want wireless online gameplay on your XBox, and have an existing wireless 802.11-G or -B network, this little baby is the perfect ticket. As an avid gamer and a games retailer, I've seen my fair share of wireless networking problems, with few solutions offered that made sense. There are other wireless game adapters out there, but none of them perform as well as this one. Not only does it solve problems, it doesn't CREATE any! (A show of hands: How many of you have found the cure to be as bad as the problem when it comes to wireless networking?) This thing is simplicity itself when it comes to setup and orientation. Your XBox will take care of most of the setup process on its own. The Adapter has an auto-sensing feature that detects your existing network and then configures and aligns itself. Just follow the instructions and let your system take care of the rest.
How good is the signal strength? At home, it maintains a perfect signal, with no stalling or lagging, of 54 mbps across three rooms separated by two floors. At work, we moved one fifty feet away, with some large wired hubs and three solid walls in between. Still no lag or disruption. The adapter features both internal and external antennae that allow for extensive range and maximum signal strength. There's even an upgrade option that will allow for increased security. This adapter takes the worry and aggravation out of setting up wireless gameplay, leaving you more time for games...which is always good. Highly recommended.
31 Works great - no fuss
Just installed two of these, one for each of my Xboxes, and they work great with no hassle getting them connected up with my Linksys WAP54G access point. They come with a cd that pop in the Xbox that adds some functionality to the dashboard to support these things.
Note: There is a firmware update for these things on Microsoft's website that is supposed to fix some issues - I downloaded the file, and it installed the update to both my adapters in under 10 minutes.
32 Effortless installation, works wonderfully!
If you have any doubts about this product than it will be erased once you see how easy and smoothly this works. I have it networked between my hacked xbox and pc to stream mp3, divx, jpg, and other files, all have worked with no problems. I couldn't ask for more!
33 Good, reliable, easy to set up adaptor, needs two things
I purchased one of these units about 4 months ago and have had reliable performance with this unit when connecting to an old 802.11b router.
Over time I noticed that the router was having problems with signal strength with this adaptor and with other wifi cards. I purchased a D-link WAP 2100AP which did not work due to compatibility problems (see my review for that unit), and then a Linksys WAP54G. It was a bear getting the two units to talk together, so I thought the problem was due to a firmware issue with the adaptor.
Trying to upgrade the firmware on this MN-740 adaptor was next to impossible. Eventually I found info on a newsgroup which said that the firmware upgrade would fail if started on a PC with an ATI video card. After finding a newly built machine with an NVidia video card, the firmware was upgraded easily. However, the problems still persisted.
After much troubleshooting where the Xbox network adaptor
(MN-740) would drop the network connection as soon as I attached the XBOX itself to the network adaptor, I realized that the reason this was happening was the MAC address filtering. In order to have the network adaptor actually join itself to the network, you need to add BOTH the MAC for the adaptor itself AND the MAC for the XBOX into the MAC address filtering ALLOW table for the Linksys access point. I am surprised that this information was not in the user's manual for this unit.
Right now I'm working fine with MAC filtering enabled and 128bit WEP turned ON as well.
= = =
The two things that this unit lacked are:
1. Poor reliability of firmware upgrades and lack of documentation speaking to incompatibilities with ATI video cards.
2. Lack of any documentation speaking to the need to add the MAC address of both the Xbox and the adaptor itself into the allow table of a WAP if using MAC filtering.
Other than those two caveats, I would highly recommend this unit.
34 Great Product
As other reviewers have noted, this is a great product and very easy to setup. My XBOX detected all of the network settings. Kudos to Microsoft!
35 I just saved $90!
You can, too!!! This product is totally not needed if you have a laptop (which is why most people have wireless in the firstplace). From my Mac, all I did was go into system preferences > sharing > internet > and click "start" to share the internet access. Then I used ethernet cable (cat-5) and connected my laptop to the back of my xbox. Im sure you can do the same if you're running windows. Im sure this product is great, and it works right out of the box, but why spend the money if you don't have to? Hope this helps save some of you some cash.
36 hi
This is awesome. not very educational, but screw education.
37 Worth every penny I spent
This thing works flawlessly. And with the price now being $85 intestead of $140 from last year, all I can say it was a good investment. If you have the wireless network and the money, you should buy it.
38 This Thing is Ridiculous....
....Ridiculously easy to set up. Actually ,the XBOX system did most of the work for me. It detected and configured most of the network info itself from my existing 802.11g wireless network. The hardest thing was typing the 26 digit WEP code for my wireless network.I just followed the step-by-step instructions and was online within minutes. Piece of cake.
I was a little concerned about the signal strength with my Base Station being two rooms over , about 35 feet away with multiple electronic devices along the way, and no real line of sight, but my fears quickly disappeared when I checked my network speed on the XBOX and found it steady at 54 Mbps with a Very Good to Excellent signal.Fantastic.
Online gaming on the XBOX is phenomenal with the Microsoft Wireless-G Xbox Adapter.The game play is flawless. It's as if your playing with that person in your living room right next to you. There was no laggy or choppy gameplay, just really really smooth. I love this thing!!
Just take the time to read the instructions one step at a time and you'll be playing before you know it. I look forward to playing you on XBOX Live.
39 Wireless XBOX Gaming With A Lag Free Setup and Play
By far the best Wireless Network Adapter for the XBOX. Microsoft is starting to release more peripherals for their beloved console and this rates at the top of the list. Utilizing the 802.11G standard, it provides the most bang for the buck. Yes, it is more expensive, if you have to invest in the Router and the N.I.C., it could get more expensive then the XBOX itself. Truth be told, quality wireless isn't cheap, but it is worth it. Now if they could only release a Wireless Controller that supports the LIVE Headset.
40 BEWARE MACINTOSH USERS
Macintosh? Huh? I thought this was for the Xbox?.... well, it is... but if you have a macintosh computer like I do... you might be in for some problems. I use this with my wireless airport extreme system and it does work great most of the time. It was also easy to set up (through the Xbox dashboard) and for the most part it's a good purchase and worth the money...... BUT..... I was getting a little lag (not bad... and only occasionally)... I checked online on the Xbox live site and dug deep into the support pages to find that this unit has firmware updates to get rid of some bugs. "Cool!" I though... "Can't wait to update and get rid of the lag". The update is only available by downloading to a home computer and sending the update via your wireless router to the unit... and guess what? It's an exe. file and you have to have an IBM, PC to download and run it. So Macintosh users are screwed on updating this things firmware. I called the company and spoke to them about it... hoping I could get a CD or something or someone could email me a MAC friendly update of the firmware, but the support team had no answer or help. They looked around for an answer, called their senior support person, and finally just handed me the..."um, try calling Apple". Of course, Apple isn't going to have any info on a microsoft wireless router, so it was pretty lame. This is a good unit. Don't get me wrong, but I'm sure there are at least a couple people out there that have an Xbox and use Macintosh computers. If you get this, it will work with your wireless airport (or other brand) wireless system really well... but if you want to make it even better and update this this to it's present firmware you're out of luck.
41 Buy this network adapter!!Stay away from Linksys garbage!
Ridiculously quick and easy setup with the mn-740!!After having used the Linksys wgallb game adapter, this things connects and configures like a dream! It took hrs to get the linksys to work right with 128bit encrytion even though I was using a Linksys router. Linksys support is a joke! Absolutely terrible. They told me my game adapter was defective and that I need to return it. It wasn't, they just have poor troubleshooting ability. I would like to know how many thousands of non-defective linksys products have been returned because of poor tech support? I had the mn-740 Xbox adapter up and running in 2 minutes! With 128bit encrytion, I am seeing 48MBPS through 3 rooms and 80ft. My Xbox adapter is running beautifully with a D-link DI-624 with the 108G firmware upgrade. With rebates, the router and mn-740 Xbox adapter together is around 100.00. That's incredibly cheap for the quality and performance with this setup. Buy the MN-740! Stay away from Linksys, you'll thank me. Also, I have read from other reviewers that you can use the mn-740 as a wireless network adapter for any device with a ethernet jack after the initial setup. Hope this helps.
42 Easy to set up, works great!
After having major headaches trying to setup the more economical Linksys game adapter B, I returned it for this product. Within 5 minutes I was online on my Xbox. For a more detailed account of what happened, check out my other review on the Linksys product. But the bottom line is this product is faster (up to 5 times)and has much better instructions.
43 Better ones out there
I love Microsoft but this product you can only use with Microsoft XBOX and it costs a lot more for similar features that a Linksys wireless ethernet adapter would do. Compare this product to the Linksys wireless game adapter. You don't have to go in the Xbox and setup anything with the Linksys. With the Xbox you have to go through setup on your Xbox and on your router. With Linksys, only setup the router. I bought the Linksys WGA and it's awesome.
Also if you ever stop your xbox live account you can only use this with xbox. What if you bought a Sony Playstation or PS2, you won't be able to use this one on it. With the Linksys, you can use any game console. Just my opinion :)
44 All work and no play
After hours of customer service chats (customer service is very nice) and long conversations with my broadband and microsoft router customer service, I could not get this product working. I have the mn-700 router so it should be a no brainer. My computer it less than 50 feet from my xbox, with a clear line of sight. My signal was low, at best, and sometimes it didn't pick up the signal at all. However, even with a signal I got error after error.
I bought a 50 foot cable, and within minutes I was gaming, so I know it was the adapter. The adapter was shipped back today.
While it's a great idea, wireless for the xbox isn't really up to par yet. I envy those who got this to work, however I can deal with hooking up and taking down a cable rather than dealing with dropped games and unreliable signals. Hope this helps with your purchase.
45 Works GREAT Now...But...
I suppose I should start off this review by stating absolutely that the XBox Wireless Adapter now works flawlessly (and speedily) on my system. In fact, I'm delighted with it, but that's after an entire day wasted on solving what should have been a very simple problem.
Basically stated, though my XBox recognized my wireless network it would not connect to XBox Live. After several attempts at following Microsoft's online help features, I gave up and called their 800 tech support line. After waiting an HOUR for tech support I finally got someone who could tell me the problem - I had to enter a specific WEP security code in order for the two devices to communicate with one another. It was really that simple. So - my question is, why isn't that information in ANY of Microsoft's documentation (either in manuals or online)? I could have easily saved a day's worth of frustration had I known.
Five stars for the hardware. Three stars for the lack of useful documentation. I'll settle for four stars altogether.
46 It doesn't get any easier !
All I can say is, I am impressed ! The only way it would be easier to set this bad boy up, would require the Microsoft team to come to your home and do it for you ! A child could do it. I am using it with the Microsoft MN-700 wireless router, and getting great results with this combo.
47 Great addition to the Xbox
I didn't have any problems setting it up. I have a D-link wireless router with both b/g and bought the Xbox wireless adapter, took about 5 minutes to set up and I was playing my favorite games online. I haven't had any problems with lag times or any issues with this product.
48 Great idea but flawed
OK, I'm all about the wireless LAN and internet connectivity and once I read about this I was excited to buy and try it. As a note, I'm connecting to an Apple Airport 802.11b wireless station.
Connecting was fairly easy but not necessarily straightforward. The password issue of logging into the network is not as clear cut as could be and may need you to enter your HEX password instead of your ASCII one depending on if you have a 128bit WEP password key (wow, that's a mouthful). So reception, was low to very low initially which is annoying as I get 80% from my Apple laptop in the same spot. So I reconfigured, the base station to have line of sight access maybe 50ft away. Connectivity shot up to good or very good.
HERE'S THE CATCH: Despite the change in signal strength, the connection was CONSTANTLY dropping out in the middle of games every 2-10 minutes. I tried reconfiguring various things and still no help. In lieu, and as a test, I ended up running a 50ft ethernet cable to see if it was the modem or something else causing the problems. Negative on that.
VERDICT: While other people have fairly positive feedback about this, I will be returning mine as I find the dropped game occurrences unacceptable. It may work for you, but given my Apple setup, I can't do anything to readily change it other than use my long ethernet cable. As a note, other users on Live told me they had similar problems with the wireless connection adapter, though most have told me they're on hardwired connections. Conversely, other Apple users have told me they've had no problems with it so it works both ways I guess. Bought mine @ Best Buy so I'll be returning it there momentarily.
Hope this helps.
49 SETUP ISSUES
I spent about 6 hours getting it setup. I followed MS directions and everything went fine, but after it connected, it wouldn't stay connected for more than a minute, and then it would drop. After checking with my DSL Gateway manufacturer and getting a wrong answer, I kept messing with it and resetting it and I finally got it to connect and work right. The one possibility is that I didn't have my WEP key typed correctly, but I checked what I had written down and it was correct so I don't think that was the problem. Once connected, it runs great and I get a very strong signal.
My recommendation for people that have problems is to reset the XBOX adapter using the reset button and then reconfigure it manually through the Xbox by typing in the network name (SSID)and letting it find the network again by itself. Once I had cleared all the settings, it seemed to find them and work fine.
I am using it with an Actiontec Wireless Ready DSL Gateway R1520SU (Qwest) and the 802CI3 (HWC01170-01) wireless PC card. I also did a firmware upgrade on my DSL Gateway. The Xbox adapter already had the updated firmware on it.
It seems to have a pretty strong antenna as I picked up some other wireless networks in my area.
50 Buy it - IT WORKS!
I purchased the Microsoft mn-700 wireless g router along with this Xbox wireless g adapter. Xbox is one floor below the router. After a quick set up of the router, I was up and running on Xbox live in minutes. Works awesome absolutely no lag time...
I also was able to detach it from my Xbox plug it in the Ethernet port of a pc in another room (that wasn't on the network) and had instant Internet access without any extra configuration.
I recommend you forget about wires and go wireless!
51 Good Product
Easy set-up. I put the set-up disk in my X-BOX and the adapter was reconized right away. I had a little trouble connecting to X-BOX Live, but nothing I could not figure out. If you get poor signal stregnth try moving the antennaes around. I mounted my about 6 to 8 feet on my wall and it connects around 40 to 50 mbps.
4 1/2 STARS
52 4 hours in - still not working with xbox live
I'm using this adapter with the MS MN-500 802-11b base station router (cable modem). The xbox is upstairs and 1 rooms (about 50 feet away - 1 ceiling [wood] and 1 wall). I find the network with a low (to very low) signal strength (I cannot connect to XBOX live since my IP address cannot be located (tried both automatic and manual address entry). The nice people at MS have no answers - waiting for instructions to their database. Waste of time (3 hours) and money so far. Anybody else have this problem - if you figure a patch email me please - is running a hardline my only option - despite spending money - using the optimal MS hardware configuration - still no opportunity to pay MS my money for xbox live. Dopes,
53 Painless setup, excellent device
This is an excellent wireless adapter for xbox owners. Setup is very easy. I have WEP and MAC filtering configured on my router and I was able to add this device to my network. A couple things people should be aware of:
1. You will need to turn SSID broadcasting on for it to work.
2. If you have a D-Link DI-614+ wireless router you will need to disable the special d-link 22mpbs mode and use 11mpbs instead (this is only a problem if you use the d-link 22mpbs speed)
Being able to configure the settings from the xbox is very convenient for system link play. Haven't had any problems at all.
54 Great
This thing is fast, simple and worth the price. Anyone who has a G router and an Xbox this is a great buy and very speedy.
