DWL 650 Wireless Adapter: Good Balance of Price & Performance
Written: Jan 12 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Flexible, reliable, easy to install
Cons: Large Antenna
The Bottom Line: A flexible reliable NIC at a reasonable cost.
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| vemartin's Full Review: D-Link DWL-A650 Wireless CardBus Adapter |
One of the niceties of attending a technologically savvy university is wireless surfing of the Internet; you bring the laptop and the wireless adapter, they’ll supply the Access Point and on-ramp to the Net. Wireless technology has been moving at a rather rapid pace of late. What once was the doldrums of 11 Megabytes per second (Mps) has now catapulted up to 22.5Mps, then 55Mps, and coming soon, 100Mps and beyond with the introduction of the 802.11g standard coming electronics store near you later this year.
So, when it came time for me to purchase a new wireless adapter for my Toshiba Satellite 1905 Notebook, I had an urge to jettison the past and move headlong into the future. In other words I wanted a wireless adapter capable of transmitting and receiving at 22.5 Mps or more.
Cisco Systems was one the first companies to break into the wireless networking arena in the mid-1990’s, and has been selling wireless solutions to Corporate America for quite some time now. The companies Aironet line of wireless products are a staple in the industry because they are reliable, durable, and work as advertised. But, they have been traditionally expensive cards to get into, and that still holds true, so I shopped around for an inexpensive alternative. I chose the DWL 650 Wireless Adapters by D-Link. I bought this card for two reasons; 1. conformity with the current 802.11b standard and; 2. the ability of the card to communicate at 22.5Mbs with other D-Link access points and or network cards (NIC). Of course it helped that the card was on sell at the local Best Buy.
Like the Linksys Instant Wireless WPC11, (see my review on this card at: http://www.epinions.com/content_38866816644), and the Aironet Wireless Ethernet Adapter PC4800B (see my review on this card at http://www.epinions.com/content_39004966532), the DWL 650 Wireless Adapter is a fully functional Ethernet NIC that conforms to the 802.11b standards for performance and in interoperability with other 802.11b wireless equipment. The card operates at a frequency of 2.4Ghz, and utilizes the same protocols as wired Ethernet adapters; i.e. TCP/IP, IPX/SPX, Microsofts’ NetBEUI, etc.
The DWL 650 Wireless Adapteris a standard Type II PC Card form factor. The box includes the card and a CD-ROM which is used to installed drivers for Windows 95/98/SE/Me/2000. The included drivers for Windows XP are not signed by Microsoft and that might pose a problem depending on the make and model of your motherboard. I had no problem installing the software on my Windows XP Home laptop. As soon as I configured the card with the parameters of my wireless network I was able to communicate with the rest of the computers on my Windows 2000 Domain. Note: Windows XP Home Ed. does not include native support for wireless adapters; i.e. automatic detection of different wireless networks and access points, however Window XP Professional does include such support.
I was able to connect to my home network at 11 Mbs, on some occasions, and 5.5 to 2 Mbs on others. The card is capable of automatically downgrading its data transfer rate as the signal from the access point becomes weaker, thus maintaining connection. A handy signal strength bar in the system tray relays to me how strong, or weak my signal is. When at the extreme range of the access point the card downgrade as far as 2Mps, which is still with acceptable limits for surfing the web and working on Word documents, but little else. The DWL 650 Wireless Adapteris capable of transmitting and receiving at the following transfer rates: 1, 2, 5.5, 11, and 22 Mbps Transfer Rate.
Under real-world conditions, the D-Link DWL 650 Wireless Adapter’s performance meets or exceeds my expectations. I have taken my notebook around the house and out to the back porch (my access point is in an upstairs bedroom closet), and never once lost a signal. The signal faded somewhat on the back porch, but that is to be expected; surfing the web was never compromised.
At school I have experience mixed results. Connection to the schools wireless network has been spotty, but I attribute this more to the placement of the access points, then to the card performance. Other students have experienced the same results as I have.
Conclusion:
The D-Link DWL 650 Wireless Adapter is a reliable middle of the pact wireless NIC. I am not disappointed by its performance, nor am I overwhelmed, by it, just pleased. If you need a wireless NIC that will meet your needs for current 802.11b standards, but still has the flexibility to expand beyond to 22.5Mbs, then the D-Link DWL 650 Wireless Adapter might be the cup of tea you’re looking for.
Adapter Specifications:
* Card Type PCMCIA Type II
* Standard IEEE 802.11b (with automatic scale back)
* Interoperable with IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.11b (DSSS) & Wi-Fi 2.4GHz-compliant
Equipment
* 1, 2, 5.5, 11, and 22 Mbps Transfer Rate
* Compatible with Windows 95, 98, 2000, NT and Millennium
* Plug-and-Play Operation Provides Easy Set Up
* Advanced Power Management Features Conserve Valuable Notebook PC Battery Life
* Metal Design with Integrated Antenna
* Up to 128-Bit WEP Encryption
* LED’s Power, Transfer/Receive
* Encryption: 64-, 128-, 256-bit RC4
{Operating Range}
* Indoor:
328 ft. (100m) @ 11 Mbps
* Outdoor:
1,312ft (610m) @ 1 Mbps
Recommended:
Yes
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vemartin
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Member: Vincent
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