An old favorite at an unbeatable price, the Linksys WRT54g gives high speed wireless connectivity for household and small office applications.

The WRT54G is well known for its linux based software. When hackers found that the core was just a slight variation on linux and could be reprogrammed to offer a whole array of functions, the days of the multi-functional wireless router began.

Besides being a router for up to four computers with a wired connection the wireless connection allows users to connect via their wireless cards.

The router can be setup to do DHCP, automatically assigning IP addresses to computers that connect to it. There is auto-negotiation of connection speed, depending on the capabilities of the computer connecting to it.

Most unnoticed, but probably the most important is wireless encryption and security. Make sure to set it up with the highest security possible using a shared key, otherwise it could be hijacked by someone in the neighborhood. And also change the admin password that allows you to access the router.

For the adventurous, go to DD-WRT and try out some of their options to spice up your router with some really cool functions.

Tomshardware takes a look at many of the questions that people have about VoIP technology. This is the technology that allows you to make phonecalls over your computer other users around the world for very much less than the cost of an international phonecall.

VoIP has become popular because of its cheap prices, but the main limitation, according to the article is that people are not sure what its all about. And if a consumer is not sure, they’re likely to go elsewhere.

There are a few variations on VoIP.

There is computer to computer, where both parties need software like Yahoo! messenger with voice of Skype and they call each other using their usernames. This kind is completely free, and the quality is quite good.

The other option is computer to landline. This will usually cost and you will have to use a computer to phone them, the cost however is cheaper than a local call in the area you are phoning to.

Little gadgets like the phone pictured here make things easier. This one attaches to the computer and then you can use it around the house like a normal phone. Other options are standalone phones that perform the same function, but without the need for a computer to be on.

Go check out all the details at Tomshardware.

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If you want to be online and connected wherever you are at home, then the Netgear RangeMax Wireless Router is your top buy. The Netgear WPN824 RangeMax router boasts of providing users with approximately up to 500,000 square feet of coverage. That’s 1000% more than 802.11g. So does it deliver? According to most consumers, it does.

For the novice, the Netgear RangeMax Wireless Router comes with an installation CD with SmartWizard, which basically helps you to install the wireless-networking device as painless as possible. SmartWizard automatically identifies your ISP’s network settings and succeeding steps are clearly outlined. If you still cannot figure it out, we come to one of the product’s downside – many users complain that Netgear’s tech support is not so good. Although this does not directly impair on the product itself, it does bring a user down and is cause for much aggravation especially if you can’t even get it to start working.

Another ‘con’ is that there have been repeated reports of the Netgear WPN824 RangeMax not working well with legacy 802.11b devices. So if you have older Wi-Fi devices on your network, prepare to be challenged when setting up this wireless router.

Well, on to the good points! The Netgear RangeMax Wireless Router features MIMO technology AND a new technology called Video54, which enables the Netgear WPN824 RangeMax router to have seven internal antennas. This enables the RangeMax to be constantly ‘on the prowl’ for any interference and adjusts the wireless signal ‘on-the-fly’ to make up for these barriers. This ensures that you get consistent high-speed connection anytime, anywhere in your home.

Note too that the seven antennas are discretely located inside the device offering users a sleek n’ chic design. Speaking of design, some users are a bit annoyed with the Netgear WPN824 RangeMax router’s blue pulsing light at the top of the device (which is actually an indicator as to which antenna is currently transmitting) but I think it’s cool and with its white casing, the device is a nice and ‘clean’ gadget to have amongst your other hi-tech devices.

To sum up the pros…

• lightweight and sports a nice, clean design
• is easy to setup
• great range
• features advanced Smart MIMO technology with Video54 which makes ‘dead spots’ less of a problem

To sum up the cons…

• does not work well legacy 802.11b devices
• difficult to reset and reconfigure

All in all, the Netgear RangeMax Wireless Router is great buy if you need to be online constantly, anywhere in your home.

The Zyxel Prestige Wireless VoIP phone (model name Zyxel P-2000W V.2 VoIP Wi-Fi Phone) is one of the first WiFi VoIP phones to hit the shelves just at the time when people were really digging into the word ‘mobility’. But does the gadget deliver?

The Zyxel Prestige wireless VoIP phone enables users to receive or conduct phone calls anywhere they are as long as they are within the range of IEEE 802.11b or 11g wireless access points.

One of the Zyxel P-2000W’s strongest features is its range. Many users have reported that it has detected access points that some of their other wireless gizmos haven’t found. Officially, Zyxel claims that its operating range is up to 300m out-doors and 75m in-doors and so far, users are not defying that claim.

However, is the Zyxel Prestige Wireless VoIP phone’s strength also its weakness? Its sensitivity clocks in at -82 dBm@11Mbps, with the antenna’s output power at 14 + 1dBm. This assures users that the antenna is indeed powerful and can detect and connect to many access points. The downside is that the phone takes so much power that it drains the battery… fast. Some users claim that it only provides 11 hours of standby time and 1 hour of talk time.

Although not very important for the purposes of a wireless VoIP phone, it’s also noteworthy that the Zyxel P-2000W only has an earphone jack. That is, you cannot use it with a headset with microphone.

Other features:
- Supports G.711 and G.729 voice compression technology, enabling it to successfully reduce bandwidth consumption caused by voice traffic.
- Direct IP-to-IP call and ad-hoc Intercom mode support. The Zyxel P-2000W offers a direct IP-to-IP call feature when users configure a remote IP address in its built-in phone book.
- Another strong point of the Zyxel Prestige Wireless VoIP phone is that it is based on SIP v2 (Session Initiation Protocol version 2.0) open standard, which means that the unit is compatible with most SIP-based providers, IP-PBXs and other standard SIP-based client devices. As far as looks are concerned, the Zyxel Prestige Wireless VoIP phone is pretty ‘cool’. It features a bright blue backlight keypad and a blue backlight 112×64 pixel LCD.

Overall, the Zyxel P-2000 is a great deal for those who would want to take advantage of cheap VoIP rates and services without having to log on to their PCs.

The Linksys WRT54G connects to your computer via a network cable to provide wireless networking in a home environment.

The wireless router itself is fairly capable and can allow sufficient speeds for home networking. The ease of installation is another plus for those looking to create a wireless network at home.

Supporting everything up to the IEEE 802.11g draft it is able to handle almost any kind of network connections.

It does have its quirks though.

Network speed is much limited when a mixture of network connection types is used and slows the network right down.

It’s throughput of 20Mbps is decent for a consumer product of this nature, and faster speeds can sometimes be achieved, but if you really want more, go for a faster or more commercial model.

The two antennae allow great coverage of the networking area and allow good connections to the computers on the network.

There have been some updates to the firmware of this device which may or may not apply to you when you get it.

When you get it make sure to put in the setup CD first and just follow the setup instructions that come with it. That is reported as being the best way to ensure that everything works the way it is supposed to. Once that’s done you’ll enjoy your wonderful new wireless networking experience.

The D-Link DWL-G510 AirPlus G Wireless PCI Adapter allows you to host a wireless network using a card that fits into a conventional PCI slot.

The advantage of getting a PCI card wireless networking card is that the whole deal can be hidden behind the computer case instead of having a large receiver out somewhere. However those same good features can be bad too.

With range being a big factor in wireless networking situations you might have to do some moving of your case to get a good signal.

Opinions of users are varied, but that varies most with time. As with many products that are rushed to market they tend to have issues. There were problems with the firmware that came with the intial D-Link DWL-G510 Airplus G wireless cards.

Those do however seem to have been fixed for the most part and so you will find it a much easier to use card than before.

The card works fine with Windows XP standard networking drivers, or at least that was the experience of some users. If it doesn’t work straight away you might have to install some of the drivers that come with it.

Documentation is reported as being minimal, so not much help if you have any problems with it.

Overall the D-Link DWL-G510 AirPlus G Wireless PCI adapter is a reliable card that works fine in most conditions. For the bargain price it is offered at, it makes a great deal for those looking to get started with wireless networking without dishing out too much cash.

This card is the kind of card that you want to get the first time you buy. It’s reliability and speed make it a good choice for those who want to go wireless, but also want the speed of a regular network.

The D-Link Airplus Extreme G Wireless Card DWL-G650 seems to have hit the mark, where some of it brothers and sisters have not.

The features of this card include…

• 108Mbps maximum data rate
• Wireless security protocols
• Average range

The card connects with no problems to most computers. One of the things that D-Link has excelled at is making the installation of its products as easy as possible. This card is no exception.

Consumer reports show that its range is about average, but its speed is it’s defining feature. As with all the products from D-Link, I highly recommend that you go to their website and get the latest drivers and firmware for yours as they change often to fix bugs.

• Revision A
• Revision B
• Revision C

This card should provide you with a high speed internet experience, with no problems with setup. Basically everything I would want from a wireless card.

One of the most deciding factors in any purchase I make is quality. Sure, getting a good deal is great too, but if its too rubbish, then its not worth it, no matter how cheap.

Unfortunately I seems that the D-Link Airplus G Wireless Card DWL-G630 falls into the cheap and not so great category.

Here is a summary of its features…

• 54Mbps throughput
• IEEE 802.11b and IEEE 802.11g compliant
• WPA1 - Wi-Fi protected access
• 100 meter indoor range

Reviews on the internet for this card are not good. Reports of problems with connections are probably the most worrying for me. Once you are connected to the internet there should be a minimum of interruption after that. But like my old modem connection, this card seems to lose the connection every few minutes or so.

There also seems to be some issue with it having problems with the Windows XP driver that tries to connect automatically to the network.

Despite these reports, many people have been happy at the range and effectiveness of the card, even one Linux user reported good distance for the card.

To make sure you minimize the number of problems you have, make sure to download the latest drivers and firmware for the card you are using. There are 3 revisions:

• Revision A
• Revision A
• Revision A

The card is value for money, but I would not recommend it on the grounds of the potential for too many problems. Those kind of hardware issues drive me nuts.

D-Link has become to be a reliable name in the wireless networking market. In the past, it got played down a little compared to it’s rivals Linksys and Netgear.

With time, they have improved their technology and cemented their place in the budget wireless router market.

The D-Link DI-524 Airplus G Wireless router provides good quality at a good price. Basic features are as follows…

• 100m indoor range
• 400m outdoor range
• 54Mbps maximum transfer rate
• 802.1x security
• up to 128-bit Wireless Encryption Protocol
• 4 LAN ports

There is a wizard for setup which should make things pretty hassle free, it picks up all the details for you and sets it up.

Amongst the options for the router is an option for Antenna power. This is useful if you live inside an apartment building or in a place where there are other computers. By limiting the antenna power you can make it hard, if not impossible for other people to use your connection.

Power settings are 100%, 50%, 25% and 12.5%.

In order to get the WPA encryption you will need to update the firmware. This can be done at:
http://support.dlink.com/products/revision.asp

Reports amongst consumers are mixed, with some people very happy, but others with some problems. This is a cheap router and is priced as such. Don’t expect it to perform wonders, but for a connection to one of two computers, it should be okay. Also, make sure to update the firmware.

Overall the D-Link provides wireless networking at a price which is more than reasonable, and with performance that is not bad either.

There was a time when I wouldn’t seriously consider wireless networking, execpt if I had money to burn. This value for money deal will let you join the wireless lifestyle for next to nothing.

D-Link make many wireless networking oriented products, both for desktops and for laptops. This version is not their newest model, but the deals that can be had on these slightly outdated cards make it worth it.

The advantages of wireless networking include:

• Being able to freely move yourself and laptop while on the internet
• Free yourself of cables which become a huge bother
• Take advantage of the wireless networking offered in so many public places
• Be able to get online almost anywhere, on your own computer

This card receives many good reviews from happy customers who installed it without problems. Just a matter of plugging in the card, loading the drivers from the CD and off you go.

The recertified models seem to have problems with drivers sometimes. Make sure you still have access to the internet either from your laptop or elsewhere. Go to the D-Link drivers page on their website and get the latest ones. The drivers page is at http://www.dlink.com/products/support.asp?pid=9&sec=0#drivers.

Basically there is nothing to lose here. For around 5 bucks for the recertified model, just try it, you may even like it.