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Introduction
We're constantly going on search for innovative and groundbreaking products.
It's like Star Trek for "cool stuff" in a way ... we're going
out searching for new products and new innovations ... boldly going where
no reviewer has gone before. Fortunately D-Link comes along with some
of the coolest stuff around ... from the 802.11a wireless product line
to USB/FireWire combo cards, they've earned themselves a reputation for
being a leading company in the world of technology. We now turn our critical
eyes to a neat little USB 802.11b wireless networking device that retails
for around $45 at most retailers.
The DWL-122 is a USB 1.1 wireless adapter capable of transfer
rates up to 11Mbps, gives consumers the ability to connect their given
input computer device to a wireless network. Now, it's possible to stay
connected between several different computers without the hassle of bringing
along some cumbersome large USB device or swapping out some PCI card.
Specs & Info
The specifications and highlights of the device ...
| Standards |
|
Supported Operating
Systems
|
- Windows 98 SE
- Windows ME
- Windows 2000
- Windows XP
- Mac OS X (10.2 or Above)
|
| Data Rates With Automatic Fallback |
- 11Mbps
- 5.5Mbps
- 2Mbps
- 1Mbps
|
| Encryption |
64-, 128-bit WEP |
| Media Access Control |
CSMA/CA with ACK |
| Frequency Range |
2.4GHz to 2.462GHz, ISM band |
| Range |
Up to 328 feet Indoors* |
| Warranty |
1 Year |
| Antenna Type |
- Omni Directional Integrated Microstrip
Antenna
|
| Weight |
0.02 lbs (4.4g) |
Fun - did you see the weight? It's practically nothing!
Performance
Using the D-Link DWL-5000AP
Access Point we connected an AMD system we put together using a GigaByte
nForce2 board armed with USB 2.0 ports. The DWL-122 USB device works just
fine with USB 2.0 ports even though it's a 1.1 device. Setting up the
device wasn't too much of a pain. When it comes to connecting wireless
devices I usually have the worst luck, but the DWL-122 device with the
help of the handy CD-ROM and direction booklet the device installed with
relative ease.
Hooking up the device into the wireless network was a hard
as hitting the "detect network" button in the config. Easy to
set up? Yes.
Value and Usefulness
The fact that this little puppy weighs .02 lbs and has a nice little notch
at the top so you can hook it in to your keychain makes it a very handy
little device. The DWL-122 is Wi-Fi compliant, meaning that it can connect
and interoperate with other 802.11b Wi-Fi-compliant wireless routers,
access points and adapters. The DWL-122 connects to any available USB
port on a laptop or desktop Windows and Macintosh-based computer and also
includes a standard USB extension cable. The adapter works with Apple
Mac OS X (10.2x), Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 2000 and other Windows
operating systems. The DWL-122 also features 64 or 128-bit WEP encryption
providing a level of security for the data that you wirelessly transmit.
It's just as inexpensive as other "Pen Drive"
USB Wireless devices from the competition, as well as any PCI or Bulky
USB edition. Sadly this unit does not have any on-board RAM, so it's functional
usage is limited to only providing wireless network access. As it is,
it's very functional and for the price a decent bargain, but it's not
absolutely perfect and mind-blowing in its value - it's placed just
ahead of the competition.
Overall Impressions
How useful is this little gizmo? Well it's very useful for perhaps a company
that has a bunch of laptops that do no have wireless network devices attached
while people juggled which one they used. It might help students who borrow
computers ... the sense is that this device is really useful to people
"on the move" or people who use a lot of different computers
that need wireless network access. This device only serves the function
of providing wireless internet access - so its value is high at the $44.99
price point we see it around on the net, and it is pretty cool - but there's
a lot of tiny USB 802.11b USB adapters that also have on-board RAM to
save files on, which are much more useful to people than just providing
the network access.
Overall this is a solid product and at the price point is
a good buy for consumers. There's no doubt the best thing about this product
is the performance it gave - which is probably the most important thing
when evaluating a product (does it actually work). The DWL-122 USB 802.11b
device is a light-weight functional product that serves a specific niche
of consumer extremely well.
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10 / 10 |
OVERALL SCORE
90%
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9 / 10 |
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9 / 10 |
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8 / 10 |
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9 / 10 |
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9.0 / 10 |
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