Wireless USB network adapter recommendations?

[Black88GTA]

Hi everyone, I'm looking for a wireless USB network adapter to replace my (now dead) D-Link DWL-G122. Im looking for recommendations on good products / chipsets that are at least relatively up-to-date, and not going to break the bank. Brand doesn't matter much to me, as long as it meets the requirements below and isn't junk.

I've heard a little bit about the new draft-n technology - is it worth it to upgrade to this yet, or is it still too new? Keep in mind, I'm the type who only replaces something when it breaks or becomes extremely outdated, so I'd like to "plan ahead" and get the newest tech available so that I don't have to buy another card in the future when I eventually upgrade my router. I'm currently running on an unknown-brand G router (belongs to downstairs tenant).

Requirements:
Must be USB (no internal PCI cards)
At least 54 MBPS wireless-G
Must support WPA
I'd like to keep it under $50 if possible
Above-average range when compared to similar products

I found this one by Zonet that seems to be pretty well reviewed, although it is a few years old now. I'm currently leaning toward this one, but I wanted to see if there might be something better / newer that would be available in my price range before picking this up.

Does anyone have any recommendations on a good adapter, or a link to an up-to-date wireless network adapter review / comparison site? I have read a number of consumer reviews, but I would like to see some professional reviews as well. Thanks all.

 

[QuixoticOne]

I'm shopping for one too amusingly because my DWL-G122 doesn't support Vista properly and has been causing a few problems.

I'd say it is still "new" to get draft-N stuff in the sense that it's not a fully mature standard or product line... so if your MAIN requirement was great N mode connectivity and compatibility, I'd be careful in picking one.

But N connectivity isn't your current requirement, so as long as it works in B and G mode you're OK for the present. If you buy something that is draft-N and it ends up working OK with N in the future when you get to use a N router or access point, great, you're ahead of the game and more future-proof. I'm NOT speaking to excuse shoddy or unreliable products that may or may not work right, but since N is still a somewhat moving target, something that works WELL with B/G and SEEMINGLY will be working well and supported well with N is all you can ask for.

The N gear prices didn't seem necessarily much or any higher than the G gear, some of the more expensive G gear was well more expensive than some of the less expensive or mid-range N gear.

So given that, you might as well get a N capable product from a reputable vendor with a good history of doing product driver / firmware upgrades even 1-2 years into the future after a product is new.

I'd look for WHQL certified drivers and an Microsoft approved "XP" and especially "VISTA" compatible logo or certification for the product if you're going to use them with Windows. Even if you don't run VISTA now (or ever), at least it's a good sign of support if the OEM bothered to get the NIC certified for VISTA and has produced proper drivers for it. If not, don't count on good support for ANY operating system from that vendor.

Of course if you want it to work in LINUX you've got to do a lot more research as to chipset, USB model/vendor IDs, chipset revision, kernel version support, etc. etc. before you can pick a winner.

Frankly I'd say DLINK, NETGEAR, BELKIN, BUFFALO, TRENDNET are all pretty sleazy and haven't offered good support for NICs / ROUTERS I've had.

So maybe try someone else... LINKSYS? Zonet? Other?

 

[JackMDS]

Two times better than what you ask for.

Half of the price and even does WPA2 (WPA+AES).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16833315075

If range is not enough the Antenna is Removable and you can get an 8dbi Antenna.

 

[narzy]

this looks promising when it comes out http://www.ubnt.com/products/sr71usb.php

 

[Black88GTA]

QuixoticOne, thanks for the thoughtful post and information. I agree about D-link being slow on the driver updates - and when they do come out, they suck. The drivers for my DWL-G630 laptop card have never been stable, and I always get BSODs when using it. I haven't tried the other brands, you mentioned, so I can't speak for those. I've had problems with Linksys in the past - an old wireless-B router (BEFW11S4) that would always drop connections, and a WUSB11 adapter that requires constant "repair" of the connection (which I'm using now, in fact).

I like the specs of the adapter that narzy posted, but I need something right away. I ended up going with the adapter that JackMDS posted, as it seems more capable than the one I originally saw and got good reviews. The swappable antenna is a nice plus - most of the USB adapters don't have that. And, it seems like Edimax is on top of the game when it comes to OS support - they provide drivers with that adapter for just about everything, even some Linux distros

I guess I'll wait till they get the -N standard figured out and out of the first-gen products before jumping on that.

Thanks everyone, for your replies and recommendations!