The Wonders Of A USB Wireless Network AdapterThe modern lifestyle has seen a major change as the internet makes it possible to stay connected with family, friends, and work at any time from any location in the world. Mobile computers like laptops have truly become favorites since this development because of the advantages they offer to the mobile user. Using a wireless network means you do not have to worry about where you will plug in to stay connected. With a USB wireless network adapter you can get on the internet wherever the adapter can sense a signal. There are many ways in which a laptop computer can use the USB wireless network adapter in order to stay networked without wires. The three common networking standards are as follows. Wi-Fi or Wireless Fidelity can transfer data without wires at a maximum speed of 11Mbps within a radius of 150 feet. In this case the USB wireless network adapter will be using a 2.4Ghz radio signal with 3 channels. This is sufficient bandwidth for normal web browsing and also for listening to streaming multimedia and playing online games. A newer version of Wi-Fi uses a 5Ghz radio signal with 8 channels that effectively increases the speed almost 5 times to 54Mbps. Hybrid is a triple mode system for wireless connectivity that works at 54Mbps through a 2.4Ghz radio signal. The USB wireless network adapter needs to be compatible with this special networking mode. 3G EV-DO is the latest networking standard and it is clearly a much bigger step upwards. A 3G connection was built from the ground up to be completely wireless and it can be used globally. The download speed is 400Kbps and the upload speed is 700 Kbps that can burst to 2Mbps. In order to make a computer wireless you will need a wireless router and a USB wireless network adapter. Newer laptops and mobile computers are coming preconfigured with wireless devices to make the job easier. Bluetooth is the common standard to get wireless between various devices like computers, headphone, MP3 players, cell phones, and so on. While it is quite good to go wireless you must not neglect to make sure that you take some basic security precautions because a wireless connection is more susceptible to hacking. There are two things that you must do without fail. The Media Access Control (MAC) address is a unique hardware identification for all networked devices. Make sure that only the devices you authorize are part of your network. The Wireless Encryption Protocol (WEP) uses a common key among users for the purpose of encrypting and decrypting transmitted data. Make sure that the connection through the wireless router is completely secure before exposing your computer to the internet. |