rhyno

Hello all,


If you haven't done the wireless thing yet, I suggest that now is a good time to do it. The "next generation" (<-- they always say that when something new comes out) of wireless is here, and it's name is "G".

G as in: "G D that's fast!" :P

It's wireless connectivity, just like that which has been on the market for a while now... only 5x faster!!!

Just picked up the Linksys WAP54G access point from CDW and it couldn't be easier. This baby took literally 3 minutes to install. Plug in ethernet and power, load CD & configure. Boom. Up and running.

Works great with the WCF12 (although some users have struggled with this one... just about any CF card (D-Link, Netgear) should work just fine.

The cost for 54Mbps hardware is only about twice that of the standard 11Mbps devices. While the Axims don't have the high-speed capability yet, other devices for desktops and laptops DO, and their relative cost is even less.

So, if you've been "on the fence", I say now's the time to go for it. For moving large files, accessing live databases, running remote apps... "G" is the only way to fly.


--RHYNO

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--RHYNO

doggiedog

Did you just plug your AP into a router?

I was looking at getting the Linksys G router but I noticed it didn't have any switch port built into it which is a big negative for me.

rhyno

No, I have it plugged into my Cisco 2900 Switch.

If the Linksys doesn't do it for you, I know D-Link has Wireless G products out, and Netgear's is coming soon (if not already).


--RHYNO

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--RHYNO

Rustle

I'd put some caution into the recommendation. 802.11g is very new, and no standards have been set, yet. That's been the death knell for a lot of technologies in the past. I don't think that'll happen to 802.11g, but it may be jumping the gun to recommend it this soon.

Besides, as you note in your post, you're only getting 802.11b speeds (11Mbps) due to the slow CF card.

The flip side is that people can look for deals on 802.11b access points, which are dropping in price due to 802.11g. Unless you're gonna transfer hundreds of megs of data to your CF/SD card on a regular basis, 802.11b speed should be sufficient for a long time.

Russ

ARM Hacker

Yeah .. the G standard won't be finalized until this summer.. while these routers out now are based on a 'draft' standard. Remember those 802.11b cards taht came out before 802.11b was out? They all incompatible or have issues with the current 802.11b stuff.. I'd say its better to wait, or just pick up some 802.11b stuff.. its cheeeeeeeeeap

ARM Hacker

HA ha ha I knew it!

http://www.newswireless.net/articles/030211-texas.html


I'm quite sure thats whats in the Linksys WirelessG stuff..

rhyno

Hahahaha... er...

Well, FWIW the Linksys claims to be firmware upgradeable to the final G spec, if it is upgradeable :P

Hey, if you don't like it, don't buy it. If you're a home user, you're just surfing the net... 802.11b is fine for you ( I have my entire home wired for B ). But more demanding users -- those running enterprise dBs, CRMs, etc. -- need every lick of speed they can get their hands on. And... oh, "can we have it now, please?"

It's always a tradeoff with new, untested technology. You buy a 54Mbps network adapter and get ~24Mbps for now... You buy a shiny new Pentium II processor -- oh wait it can't do math real well... First mover syndrome. You deal. Hell, we're all making horrible, ill-advised decisions now by owning the X5 instead of waiting for the X3/X7 that's faster, slimmer, lighter, cheaper, and tastes better on toast.

IMHO, G will be the next standard. You talk about the "death knell"... that'll be the A spec, which will get caught in the middle.

Anyway, most people here are probably home users, and 11Mbps may be all they'll ever need. And to them, I say go for it -- prices are fanstastic right now, even before the dreaded rebates.

__________________
--RHYNO

bgerke

Tried to use a D-Link CF card I had on my old PDA and no joy. The new drivers on the D-Link site are only for the new D-Link cards. I am now using a Linksys WCF12 and it works great either at home or in the office!

Harley

Yep, I bought the Linksys WRT54G wireless switch/router too. Supports BOTH 802.11b and 802.11g (54Mbps). Thought it was worth the extra 30 bucks to have .11g as an option. My WCF12 CF card for the Axim pulls data across the internal network at 11Mbps from my internal server (A DELL desktop with a BIG Harddrive). The G standard will have no impact on my Internet surfing (the bottleneck is my broadband cable connection) but is should allow transfer of large files (all those ripped Divx movies) to occur 5 x faster from the server. I'll be a little hesitant to invest in an 802.11g CF card when they come out. I really don't think the Axim with have the internal bus speed to keep up with data transfers at that speed - even when the bus is running at 200Mhz.

Tried video streaming via windows media encoder and the bottleneck was the processor's ability to render frames. Anything above 250kbps seemed to overwhelm it. Good enough for a 160x120 at 15fps - that's about it. Again the faster .11g won't help that.

So I guess bottom line - if you have other systems, with faster bus's and processors (a laptop perhaps) and you are doing things reguiring high bandwidth on the internal network then the .11g is probably a good $30 additional investment.

But, don't expect the AXIM to benefit or your web surfing to speed up.