wireless card or wireless dongle?
Ive just upgraded to vista (my xp got corrupted and nearly secrewed up my bios) and my wireless PCI card is no longer compatible, as the manufacturers dont make vista drivers for their products, only up to XP. Ive been looking at a new way to get my desktop computer hooked up to the internet and network and thought about a usb dongle instead. They are cheaper, easier to install, can be placed anywhere so long as you have a usb extension cable (which i do) and my computer is a very high performance gaming computer, so the dual video card heats up the network card and significantly lowers its performance, so this problem would be irradicated. however i know nobody who has ever used one, so im wondering if you get a connection thats as good as a wireless card with the dongle , anything else anybody with experience would like to add and if you can get firewire dongles instead of usb, as firewire is a hell of alot quicker than usb
Public Comments
- I've used several different USB wireless cards and all have worked as well, if not better than the PCI version. The advantage is as you stated... the ability to place them in a better location.
- Don't know about firewire but I do know that you will get much better performance if you use ethernet cable. If you want speed then use the ethernet cable method even if it is a nuisance. Otherwise carry on with USB but consider a USB 2.0 powered hub for your extension cable to plug into and don't just rely upon plain extensions.
- I'd prefer the card, try to go to the manufactures website and download the drivers for the card
- The main problem with the USB dongle is the connection will not be as stable and amy bottleneck so for gaming prolloy not a good idea as for USB vs. Firewire i've heard that USB 2.0 is actually FASTER than firewire so i looked it up and here are some comparisons on stats USB 2.0 1. 1.5 Mbit/s 12Mbit/s 480Mbit/s supported. 2. USB controller is required to control the bus and data transfer. 3. Cable up to 5 m. 4. Up to 127 devices supported. 5. Power supply to external devices is 500 mA/5V (max). 6. Full compatibility with USB 1.1 devices. FireWire (IEEE1394) 1. 100 Mbit/s 200Mbit/s 400Mbit/s supported. 2. Works without control, devices communicate peer-to-peer. 3. Cable up to 4.5 m. 4. Up to 63 devices supported. 5. Power supply to external devices is 1.25A/12V (max.). 6. The only computer bus used in digital video cameras. also check out the link provided as i believe the technology in PCI cards will outdo any USB versions
- hi got both belkin usb netgear pci card netgear drops signal all the time belkin never does and easier to install def would go for belkin usb hope this helps
- why not try powerline adaptors...i have some made by comtrend and there brilliant and speeds are not reallly affected..... have a look at http://www.comtrend.com/index.php?module=products&op=show&sn=74 price wise a dongle is cheaper though but remember to install the disc before installing the dongle hope it helps
