WIRELESS CF and routers ???

akropol · 02-13-03, 11:39 AM

i want to get wireless lan CF card , abd a router...
As far as I know there is 802.11 standard ... or 802.11a and 802.11b

and some wireless routers have listed this 802.11 option and some not...
also some of them listed as compatable with all wifi ...

I'm completely confused ....
Is there different standard of wifi , or it all the same....

What routers and what wireless ethernet card do i need to get ... to have wireless access for my Axim ...

????????

please help me, somebody explain it to me ...

is there any wifi expert in here ?

thanX

Oddball · 02-13-03, 08:56 PM

Your Axim will work with 802.11b compatible hardware.

Personally, I am looking at getting a Linksys Wireless Access point and their wireless CF Card. I use a Linksys router and cable modem for my home network and have had good luck with their products.

If you're interested, there is a review of the Linksys CF Card under the Reviews portion of Aximsite. In addition to information on their products, the Linksys website, www.linksys.com, has information on the basic difference between 802.11a, .11b, and .11g.

Other brands you might want to look into are Netgear and DLink.

Hope this helps!

raelin75 · 02-15-03, 02:46 PM

Oddball, do you know which Linksys card works best with the Axim - WCF11 or WCF12? Looks like the WCF12 is more available, but it specified at a compact type I. Will it work in the Axim type II slot?

pmoto · 02-15-03, 04:12 PM

I am not 100% positive, but I think you need the WCF12 with the Axim. This is due to the fact that the WCF11 only supports Windows CE 2.1 and 3.0. Whereas, the WCF12 supports Windows CE 3.0 or higher. I have the WCF12 and it works great with my Axim and wireless home network.

Oddball · 02-15-03, 09:04 PM

Pmoto: Thanks for the update! I'm glad to hear that you've had luck with the Linksys CF card. How is the battery life when using your wireless access?

Raelin: As Pmoto stated, you'll need the WCF12. And just as an FYI, the type II slots can handle both type I and type II cards.

Have a good weekend!

Racer X · 02-15-03, 09:42 PM

Actually, the WCF11 cards works wonderfully with my Netgear WiFi router; it's just a little big and blocks access to the headphone jack.

I have one for sale cheap ($40 postage included) if anyone doesn't mind its size.

JmE · 02-15-03, 10:04 PM

There is the Socket Communications Low Power Wireless LAN CF Card (WL6000-320):

- Type I CF Card, Idle: < 20 mA, Transmit: 170-280 mA, Wi-Fi Compatible IEEE 802.11b, Range: Approx. 300 feet.
- "The card is Mobility Friendly™ to maximize the battery life of your favorite Pocket PC"

http://www.socketcom.com/product/WL6000-320.asp

The card currently is selling for around $169 through Socket's online store. I ordered it from http://www.amatteroffax.com/item.asp...=srcPriceWatch this morning for $120 on sale. I am not sure if this is a good price or not. I did see it used at Amazon yesterday for $95.

I have the WCF-12 and like it very much, I wanted more power savings though and the socket is supposed to be the most energy saving.

Hope this helps!

-JmE-

BTW: There is also a low power model from SanDisk, but I don't know much about it except I remembering it costing less.

knitwit · 02-15-03, 10:37 PM

I have the Linksys WRT54G wireless broadband router with the WPC54G pc card on laptop, with the WCF12 cf card on Axim and it works great except the range is short. I should have service from 150 feet, but 40 is really about it in my house.

Battery really drains during use also, I wonder if that varies between Axim users? Is wireless more of a drain than a modem card?

Also really off topic here but hoping for some help with my avatar. On the old site this avatar is animated, but when I resized and uploaded to here it is not. I want the old lady to rock again and any help here is much appreciated!

JmE · 02-15-03, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by knitwit
I have the Linksys WRT54G wireless broadband router with the WPC54G pc card on laptop, with the WCF12 cf card on Axim and it works great except the range is short. I should have service from 150 feet, but 40 is really about it in my house.

I use a LinkSys 4 port wireless router (not using the router side of it) and I have gotten excellent range out of the WCF12. There might be other factors in your case... are there any 2.4 GHZ cordless telephones in the house or in the neighborhood?

Quote:

Battery really drains during use also, I wonder if that varies between Axim users? Is wireless more of a drain than a modem card?

I noticed more of a drain with the Axim and the WCF12 than I did with the HP 5455 (aka 5450) with built in WiFi.... I tested them side by side and the Axim/WCF12 setup really seemed to drain faster.

Also, make sure you have Power Save checked in the WiFi card settings.

-JmE-

knitwit · 02-15-03, 11:25 PM

Thanks JmE,

I did not have power save enabled so maybe that will help, and yes I do have in fact 2, 2.4ghz phones in the house and it never occurred to me that could be a problem and would explain my poor range issue.

Is there any help for that problem aside from removing the phones?

knitwit · 02-15-03, 11:32 PM

Thanks JmE,

I did not have power save enabled so maybe that will help, and yes I do have in fact 2, 2.4ghz phones in the house and it never occurred to me that could be a problem and would explain my poor range issue.

Is there any help for that problem aside from removing the phones?

pmoto · 02-15-03, 11:32 PM

"Strategic" physical placement of the AP can sometimes have dramatic effects on the range you can achieve. For example, I read that you should try to have the AP as high off the ground as possible.

knitwit · 02-15-03, 11:39 PM

I have a 2 story home and AP is downstairs...but the cable is there so can't change that. Mounted on the ceiling may help however it would look weird! Appreciate the info though as it all makes sense.

BTW, anyone know how to fix the avatar issue? That is driving me crazy!

JmE · 02-16-03, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by knitwit
Thanks JmE,

I did not have power save enabled so maybe that will help, and yes I do have in fact 2, 2.4ghz phones in the house and it never occurred to me that could be a problem and would explain my poor range issue.

Is there any help for that problem aside from removing the phones?

As pmoto said, strategic placement is important. Also make sure the antenna isn't placed right aganst something that might dampen the signal.

Some other things that might help would be the Linksys signal booster/amp or maybe use a bridge setup to "drive" the signal to a far corner of the house and then use a wireless AP there to propagate the signal for that region.

What I would most likely recommend is that you check out some of the less expensive 3rd party high gain omni directional antennas on the market. You could mount one of these somewhat attractive surface mount deals on a wall and really boost the signal penetration of the area.

I used to use one source for an antenna to drive WiFi over 1200~1500 feet to connect the LANs for our buildings. If you need me too, I can search the web and find their URL.

I I haven't looked at the cost (maybe high) of the above solutions. I would think the least expensive and most elegant would be a high gain indoor antennae.

-JmE-