Archive for category Product Reviews
Review: Buffalo DriveStation External USB 2.0 Hard Drive 1TB
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews on December 10th, 2008
Everyone (or just me?) has a few hard drives full of pictures, songs, video, and software. If you want to back all of that up, DVDs are not practical. You gotta get a BIG external hard drive you can move from computer to computer. I’m very happy to be able to write a positive review. The Buffalo DriveStation has exceeded my expectations! Read the rest of this entry »
Review of Trendnet 300Mbps Wireless N Home Router
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews, Wireless Products on November 29th, 2008
Trendnet TEW-632BRP
For only $47 the Trendnet TEW-632BRP seemed like a steal. It’s not. I wasted 4 hours trying every possible 802.11 mode and channel trying to get this router to demonstrate any reliablity. It didn’t.
If your lucky enough to find the AP, and then actually get an IP address, you’ll find that it’s impossible to USE the connection for more than a few minutes without getting dropped. When it’s not dropping wireless connections, the router resets itself clearing both wired and wireless connections.
During the brief moments it wasn’t failing, the performance was marginal. The best I could get from it was 22 Mbps receive and 14 Mbps transmit. And on cue, after finishing each two minute test run, the wireless connection would get dropped. Read the rest of this entry »
NETGEAR RangeMax Dual Band Wireless-N Router WNDR3300
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews on November 28th, 2008
Pros: Good backwards compatability. lots of features & easy to use.
Cons: Needs GB Ethernet. Grade C+.
Amazon Link: RangeMax WNDR3300 Dual Band Wireless-N Router
Install
The CD installer is designed for a first time user, who has never connected a router to an existing cable modem/DSL connection. It pops up a windows message box for each required step of the install. ex: “Unplug ethernet cable from your PC, click next to continue”. Theres at least a dozen of these pop-ups, but eventually you are pushed onto a revised Netgear internal web page config (www.routerlogin.com) this is nice for novice users, who might be confused by entering in a static ip address (192.168.1.1) to config the router.
I let the router run its interal config wizard, which walks the user step by step thru the details of the WAN connection and the wireless settings. This worked nicely, and it auto-detected that my cable modem was assigning IP addresses, although it prompted me for an account name. I dont ever recall having to use an account name for a cable/dsl router. After this it resets itself and a minute later displayed the full Basic Settings web page. Minor Nit: there is an apply button on this page that will reboot the router even if you haven’t changed anything on the page. Read the rest of this entry »
Linksys WPC600N Dual-Band Wireless-N Notebook Adapter
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews on November 24th, 2008
Frys: $79. Manufactuter Date: 09/2007.
Pros: Excellent packaging and it looks great.
Cons: Doesn’t connect reliably with Non-Linksys APs. Grade C-.
Install
Very simple. CD installs the regular Linksys Wireless Wizard application. I have a Linksys Wireless-G PC Card installed on the same laptop, so I removed the card. After Install I now have 2 wireless wizards, I guess thats OK.
The box
Issues
After rebooting I connect at 160Mbps to my NETGEAR Wireless-N DualBand AP, but I am unable to obtain an IP Address. I reboot again, this time connect at 1Mbps, and get an IP. Continued reboots don’t change the connect speed. Read the rest of this entry »
Disappointed with Powerline networking
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in PowerLine Networking on November 23rd, 2008
Linksys PLK200 PowerLine AV Ethernet Adapter Kit 100Mps. $149.
Netgear HDXB101 200Mbps Powerline Adapter Kit. $113.
Airlink APL-8511 Turbo 85Mbps Powerline Ethernet Adapter. $29 Each.
Summary: Super easy to install, but these only work well if you are connecting two outlets in same room. Avoid these products if you are trying to connect different rooms together.
Installation
This time I decided to compare Netgear HDXB101 product against its competitors, and also measure the actual performance of each.
All of the products I tried are extremely easy to install. Plug one of the adapters into an AC outlet near your cable/dsl router, plug the other adapter into AC outlets in the rooms you need to connect. No drivers to install.
That’s the only positive thing to say about all of these products.
Review of Trendnet TEW-624UB Wireless-N USB Adapter
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews, Wireless Products on November 22nd, 2008
After doing wireless-N product testing for most of the day, its nice to find a product that actually works faster than standard 802.11G: The Trendnet TEW-624UB.
Most of the 802.11N products you see will claim 270-300Mbps. In your home you will get nowhere near that speed (I have yet to see it) and the Netgear WNDA 3100 can barely get 15Mbps. Oh when I talk about speed I ignore the the number the software shows you on the connection status. Those numbers are false, if you get 25% of that number when copying a file your doing well. Read the rest of this entry »
HP Mini review
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews on November 22nd, 2008
I’m testing one of these right now, so i’m impressed. Windows XP SP3 pre-installed, 1GB RAM, 60GB HDD. Built in 11g wireless. It is very fast and very light.
NETGEAR RangeMax Dual Band Wireless-N products
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews, Wireless Products on November 18th, 2008
NETGEAR WNDR3300. $99, Frys. ($20 Rebate was available)
NETGEAR WNDA3100. $89, Frys.
Well the WNDR3300 AP has alot of claims on the packaging: 15X speed, 10X coverage, interference avoidance, EIGHT internal antennas. Read the rest of this entry »
Netgear RangeMax 240 USB Wireless Adapter
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in Product Reviews, Wireless Products on November 18th, 2008
Netgear RangeMax 240 USB 2.0 Wireless Adapter, Frys: $45. I’ve been using this adapter on my home office PC for a few months now, and its been pretty reliable. Read the rest of this entry »
Netgear Powerline HD Network Adapter Kit
Posted by Ivan Bohannon in PowerLine Networking on November 17th, 2008
NETGEAR HDXB101. $119 Frys. Installation was extremely easy. Just plug each unit into an AC outlet and connect Ethernet cables to the devices you want to connect. In my case it was my wireless router in the basement and my PC upstairs.
