wireless card?
hey guys,i just got myself a desktop pc..i'm planning to get a router soon to go wireless..my question is, do i also need a wireless card(WNIC) or USB adapter?or is the router sufficient enough?..by the way,if my computer already has wireless card or technology built in,how can i know?..thanks alot...
Update:a million thanks to Tracy L and Heckyeah for your answers..i get it now...anyways,i have another question..the other day,when i was at my friend's house,i noticed a wireless adsl2+ router near the desktop comp..i'm wondering what does the '2+' sign mean...what does it mean?
Comments
Well, very few desktops have a wireless connector built in, since they are built to be used in ONE place. A USB wifi adapter is OK but not the best since they are known for issues at times. They do allow you to position them for better signal which the internal cards usually don't. If you are near the router with your desktop USE WIRE (ethernet) it will beat wireless everytime!
A lot depends on what internet connection you currently have, if you have cable dsl then get a wireless router but connect your desktop with ethernet if at all possible. If not possible then get an PCI adapter with a removable antenna! You may find you need an external antenna depending on the distance to the router. Remember wifi indoors usually only works to 200 feet maybe 300 if your lucky.
If you are saying you want your desktop to receive wireless and not have an internet provider other than a wireless one, you need to find out what the wireless provider needs you to have in order to receive them!
ADDED
ADSL2+ is the "newer" form of adsl. It allows much faster speeds than standard ADSL and is being used by more and more providers. ADSL2+ can work up to 24megs and can work an additional 600 feet from the DSLAM (the dsl connection point) It is also twice the bandwidth of ADSL (2.2 vs 1.1 MHz) Standard ADSL has an 8meg limit and a 600 foot shorter range.
A quick search will show alot of data "ADSL vs ADSL2+"
Here is one interesting article
http://www.isp-planet.com/cplanet/tech/2003/prime_...
Most desktop PCs don't have wireless adapters built-in. You can check in your device manager to see if there is a wireless adapter available, but again most desktop PCs don't have integrated WLAN capabilities. After checking your device manager I would recommend going to your local computer shop or if your real cheap (like me) buy online at Newegg.com. From my experience PCI wireless cards work better than USB, but they are also harder to install and not portable. A brand name I would recommend would be NetGear.