Wireless router recommendation

[jamin]

Bob,

Have had some more feedback from other users of the dreaded CD and 80% have had significant but oddly varied problems. Personally I can't believe that any company would release something so awful and its more than a little embarrasing! However that aside, no feedback on the issue yet mate. Will keep you all posted!

If I don't hear anything by mid next week, I'm going to escalate it to director level. (Yes, they want us to escalate issues to them, they encourage it even!)

[Moosehatter]

Hey Bob,
After endless trawling around the net looking for cable wireless router info, I finally stumbled upon this thread, which is exactly the info I was looking for.
I'm also on Virgin (was formerly on NTL); at the moment we've just got the old NTL Webstar USB modem hooked up to 1 PC, but I'm looking to set up wireless for other PCs and devices, so it looks like the Buffalo is exactly what I'm after.
Anyway, I hope you (or anyone) can answer a couple of questions before I order the stuff from Scan.

Firstly, I understand the hardware setup, so do you now have an always-on connection, even though the USB modem is still hooked up to a host PC? If that PC is off, does the router take care of the internet connection so other devices still have net access?
Secondly, you mentioned a PCI wireless adapter card for extra PCs, would that be the Buffalo 125Mbps WLI2-PCI-G54S-3 PCI Adapter Card 125Mbps* Wireless PCI Adapter Card (Sorry, noob, can't post URL's yet )

Cheers,
Jon

[Bob Crabtree]

Hey Bob,
After endless trawling around the net looking for cable wireless router info, I finally stumbled upon this thread, which is exactly the info I was looking for.
I'm also on Virgin (was formerly on NTL); at the moment we've just got the old NTL Webstar USB modem hooked up to 1 PC, but I'm looking to set up wireless for other PCs and devices, so it looks like the Buffalo is exactly what I'm after.
Anyway, I hope you (or anyone) can answer a couple of questions before I order the stuff from Scan.

Firstly, I understand the hardware setup, so do you now have an always-on connection, even though the USB modem is still hooked up to a host PC?

The Buffalo takes over the connection and only works if your modem has an Ethernet connector - and I don't know if your modem has both USB and Ethernet or just USB.

Assuming it has both, then, no, you wouldn't, I feel sure, have the PC connected to the modem by USB.

Instead, what you'd do is disconnect the PC, connect the modem to the Buffalo by Ethernet and then connect the PC to the Buffalo by Ethernet.

If that PC is off, does the router take care of the internet connection so other devices still have net access?

I'm 95% sure that you would not be able to connect the PC and the Buffalo at the same time but, since my modem is Ethernet only, there is a level of doubt in my mind.

However, the reason why I think you'd need to do it the way I suggest is that the modem (at least the Ethernet-only modem) allows a connection to only a single device.

In your current situation, that single device is the PC; when trying to use the Buffalo, that single device would be the Buffalo - which then hands out the broadband to PCs connected via Ethernet cable or wirelessly.

Secondly, you mentioned a PCI wireless adapter card for extra PCs, would that be the Buffalo 125Mbps WLI2-PCI-G54S-3 PCI Adapter Card 125Mbps* Wireless PCI Adapter Card (Sorry, noob, can't post URL's yet )

Cheers,
Jon

Yes, the PCI card is the WLI2-PCI-G54S.

I bought one from Scan for a mate (as per this URL) and the price now is £18.79 (inc VAT).

He is actually on AOL and there have been some issues on the wireless side that we haven't yet sorted out (he's been away for a few weeks and so I've had no chance to go round).

Here, though, with NTL, the Buffalo router works fine and I have been able to connect wirelessly with it from a number of laptops, so I think that you are unlikely to have any problems using the two Buffalo items together with NTL - assuming you follow the insructions closely.

[Moosehatter]

Ah, ok! I get it now, thanks
Yeah, we have an Ethernet socket on the back of our modem, so I guess I'll need a network or wireless card for the PC currently running the modem, and the setup becomes:

Cable connection -> Modem -> Router (via Ethernet socket on modem) -> PC (Cat5 cable to router or wi-fi)
Any other devices run off the wireless connections, or via Cat5 cables to the other sockets on the router?

[Bob Crabtree]

Ah, ok! I get it now, thanks
Yeah, we have an Ethernet socket on the back of our modem, so I guess I'll need a network or wireless card for the PC currently running the modem, and the setup becomes:

Cable connection -> Modem -> Router (via Ethernet socket on modem) -> PC (Cat5 cable to router or wi-fi)
Any other devices run off the wireless connections, or via Cat5 cables to the other sockets on the router?

Spot on - or, at least, until someone who's had hands on with the same modem as you're using tells us that, in fact, you can connect to NTL via USB and Ethernet at the same time, though I think that's not likely