Motorola Wireless Networking Kit available at Radio Shack

I'll be getting cable internet soon, and I want to share access with another desktop and laptop. I'm a complete newbie as fat as networking of any kind goes. I've been reading through various newgroups and websites trying to get the basics down. Radio Shack has a wireless networking kit by Motorola that includes a router, PCI adapter, and PCMCIA card. I was wondering if anyone had any opinions on Motorola products. Thanks!

BR

Here's a link for the kit:

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Reply to
BR549
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Thanks for pointing that out!! What are the pros/cons between a USB adapter versus a PCI adapter for a desktop?

BR

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Reply to
BR549

Thank you so much for the advice! Hopefully this will be my last question. The desktop in question is over 4 years old (running WinME), so I'm pretty sure the USB ports are not 2.0. I'll need to upgrade with a USB 2.0 PCI card to get the best speeds, correct? Something like this?

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BR

Reply to
BR549

I do believe that will be the best way for me to go. Although I will have to use a PCI slot anyway because the USB ports on that desktop aren't 2.0. Gotta upgrade if I want that speed! LOL

BR

Reply to
BR549

All else being equal, the USB is the winner because you can get the antenna/radio up high and away from the PC. This is much better than trying to move the antenna of a PCI card by using lossy coax cable.

The other major advantage is that the USB unit does not use up a valuable PCI slot.

I have and can recommend the Linksys WUSB54GS unit with one caveat. Mine is quite heat-sensitive, shutting down if it gets exposed to anything much above room temperature. You'd need to make sure it is placed in an air conditioned space and not placed on top of any other heat generating device like a modem.

John

Reply to
Neon John

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That is a wired connection for the desktop, and a wireless card for the laptop, probably pretty typical. I know nothing about Motorola WiFi. The common brands are Linksys, Netgear, and Dlink. Belkin is getting popular, but seem to have more detractors posting here that supporters. The other brands seem about equally divided between love and hate. I have Linksys and Netgear now, and I like them both.

You could get set up with Amazon for $65-75. Some people think you need a wired connection to the router for initial setup, but that's not true.

Amazon.com Netgear WGB511 802.11g Wireless Networking Kit $74.99 - $25 = 49.99 Router and PCMCIA card that I have.

Add a NETGEAR WG111 Wireless USB 2.0 Adapter $34.99 - 10.00 = 24.99 to put on the desktop if you want it wireless.

You can move this one around for best positioning. The internal Netgear WG311 54 Mbps Wireless PCI Adapter is the same price, but the antenna is right at the back of your computer, which might not be optimal.

Netgear FA311 TX 10/100 Ethernet Card $15.99 is the only wired Netgear low speed card at Amazon. I've seen wired cards in other brands for $9.99 locally.

Amazon Netgear page:

Reply to
dold

A PCI card has the antenna right on the back of the computer. If the computer is under a desk, up against a wall, and the WAP is in the direction of the face of the computer, you've just blocked most of your signal. If the WAP is somewhere behind the computer, you're okay.

The USB adapter can be placed on top of a computer hutch, or somewhere else that has a better view of the WAP. I pointed out a mini-USB, because that's all they had on the site when I looked, and they are cheaper than the standard sized USB adapters. I don't know what the "cons" are for the full sized ones. The mini-USB have tiny antennas, so that might be a drawback, but mine works 100 feet away from the house.

Reply to
dold

"best speeds" talking between your two computers, maybe. If you have DSL, 802.11b is about the same as USB 1.1, and exceeds the speed of your internet connection by quite a bit. That would be an argument in favor of the PCI, though. I'll add that to my list. If you are at the lower speeds, and have cable, adding WEP encryption brings you down near the download speed. With full 802.11g, the download speed even with WEP is several times the speed of cable internet. Ahh, you were talking about a PCI-USB adapter, and still the external USB adapter. I wouldn't bother with that if your primary use is surfing the web.

WinME might be a problem for Wireless in any event. Make sure that the device that you buy comes with drivers for WinME. Or run a cable for the desktop. What OS is the laptop?

Reply to
dold

I glossed over it, but USB 2.0 devices should work fine on USB 1.1 ports.

Reply to
dold

So if my primary use is to share cable internet with another desktop, there's no need to upgrade to USB 2.0? I would rather wire the two and save the hassle, but that's not feasible. The laptop is WinXP Home so I don't see any problems there. Thanks again!

BR

Reply to
BR549

Excuse me for butting in here... But why do you need an ap at all? I've set up Ad-Hoc connections and shared a cable modem, and didn't have an AP at all...

Reply to
Peter Pan

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