intel 3945 a/b/g

hi, i have an intel 3945 a/b/g card in my laptop. will this be able to fully use our 50mbps connection, or do i need an n-card for that?

thanks.

 

You do need an "n" card for such a connection. Max real-life throughput of 802.11g is between 20 and 25mbps.

 

which n card would be the best?

 

Intel 6200 if you're not planning any upgrades when it comes to the router (that would be two antennas and up to 300mbps).
If you want faster Wi-Fi for LAN transfers, you're gonna have to consider a router that supports 450mbps (Linksys E4200 would be the best) and a proper card which would mean Intel 6300 (three antennas and up to 450mbps)

 

we have a d-link dir-615 wireless router (is it good? bad?) given by virgin media. and they also gave me an external n-card because my laptop doesn't have one (it has an intel 3945 a/b/g card).

i will upgrade both if it will make any difference.

we already get 300mbps (it shows on dd-wrt).

 

It depends on what you needs- if DIR-615 is not causing any problems and you don't need more than 300mbps (of theoretical throughput) for you LAN transfers, than just but an Intel 6200 and leave the rest of the setup alone.

If you need more LAN speeds i.e. streaming oh HD content to a laptop or using NAS from a laptop- 6300 & Linksys E4200 would do better.

I don't like to overdo it when recommending hardware so unless you know you need 450mbps setup, just do with the chap option and buy Intel 6200.

 

we installed dd-wrt on this router and earlier it was great, we got full 50.xx mbps on wireless, but it's become absolutely dire now. we don't even use torrents now. we've 'flashed' it again and again, back to the default firmware and back to dd-wrt (always with "30-30-30") but it's the same. they've sent us 3 routers now this month, and the other two with the default firmware are absolutely crap too. we get full 50mbps when connected through the wire. we've tried changing the 'channel', and everything possible, but nothing's working.

so we're looking for a router which can just hold on about 5 laptops, and a couple of ps3s at full speed. and i'll ditch this crap external n-router too for an Intel n-card if my laptop can handle it (can it?).

thank you.

 

When it comes to routers I have two recommendations:

The reasonable one: Netgear WNR3500L (some $70). Only 2.4GHz range, max 300mbps to be paired with Intel 6200.

The best one: Linksys E4200 ($160) simulanteous 2.4GHz & 5GHz, max 450mbps but only on 5GHz band, to make up for this 2.4GHz band has outstanding range. That would work best with Intel 6300.

Your laptop should have no problems handling 50mbps connection- just mind the fact that both Intel 6200 & 6300 are available only as half-height mini-PCI Express, so if you laptop has full sized mini-PCI slot, you also need a bracket.

 

Actually there is no need to upgrade anything theoretically.
By Calculation in theory Wireless G goes by to 54Mbps which means the 50Mbps is still the weakest link.
But you don't get 54Mbps in real life due to overhead etc.
So simply upgrade to Wireless N Router + a Wireless N Adapter will do.

You also have to note 50Mbps is the local link which means when you access websites outside your country you will not necessarily get 50Mbps.

 

i don't understand this, please elaborate. thanks.

yeah it only works in theory, can't get the top speeds with wireless g.

 

Linksys E4200 is a simultaneous dual band router meaning you can have two wireless networks at the same time. One works at 2.4GHz and which is more common but is also overcrowded. E4200 has superb range on 2.4GHz band so if you want to cover the whole house or office- it's the way to go. Max LAN speed it can achieve at 2.4GHz band is 300mbps.

At the same time you can have 5GHz band running- it's got inferior range compared to 2.4GHz but rarely anyone uses it so it's not congested- meaning higher throughput is possible to achieve.
Linksys E4200 can achieve 450mbps on 5GHz band.

Intel 6200 & 6300 cards can use both 2.4GHz & 5GHz bands so it doesn't matter to them.

Advantages of such a setup: clients that are reasonably close to the router can use 5GHz band and get 450mbps speed (paired with Intel 6300) while clients that are far can still connect to 2.4GHz band due to its great range.
Another words best of both worlds- speed (throughput) and range available at the same time, but as I said earlier that has a hefty price-tag on it.

Note: You need Intel 6300 and three antennas to achieve 450mbps with any three stream router including E4200.

While it's a great setup it's also expensive so think if you really need it or not.

 

If I were you I wouldn't bother because you only lose a few Mbps if you remained with Wireless G (And you do not always get 50Mbps on every server on the Net).
The overall cost of upgrading the WiFi Adapter and Router is quite high compared to the benefits you yield from having Wireless N.

I always believe in weighing the cost / benefit before making the decision. Unless I have like 100Mbps connection I would hold off the upgrade because 50Mbps is not significant enough.

Alternatively if you need the speeds buy a cheap Ethernet Cable and connect it to the computer directly.

 

I strongly disagree. You can't get real-life throughput of more than 25mbps on 802.11g and that's under ideal signal conditions. There's no point in having 50mpbs connection if you're gonna be able to use half of it when you're close enough to the router and even less when you're far from it.

In case there is any doubt as to max throughput: source
I've tested this multiple times and found it to be true- I got max 20mbps and that was when using one device, distance of approx 7 feet.

 

with the external n card we get 6 mBps download on utorrent, with the intel card we get about 2 mBps maximum on the same torrent file. but the this n card sucks and so does the router so we're buying a new one.

we're getting 100mbps soon.

i can't, the router is in the hall (center of the house) and i use my laptop mostly in my room.

 

In that case just get an Intel WiFi 6200N Cheap Module (ebay seller 24okbuy I bought 1 from him no issues) + a Wireless N Router Capable of 300Mbps.
Dual Band router is quite expensive though.
I doubt there is any router that can give full speeds at range, because when distance increase the speed drops.

 

this crap dir-615 router gave us full 50.xx mbps for the first week.

 

so we will get 100mbps on 12th of this month. with it, we will get a "superhub" (modem+router). i have been reading about it, and they said that you can disable the router in it with the new firmware (don't know if this firmware is out already or is yet to be released). anyone know much about this "superhub"?

Virgin Media Super Hub review | Expert Reviews

thank you.

 

It looks pretty decent. I would give it a chance before making a purchase.
It's a DOCIS 3.0 Broadcom based 2,4GHz or 5GHz capable device made by Netgear- which doesn't really sound like is a chap crap.

 

can both run simultaneously in it, like in the other router you mentioned before?

 

No either 5GHz or 2.4GHz. That might be an issue if you have a large flat to cover (in which case you'll have to use 2.4GHz) or in case some of your devices don't support 5GHz (older laptops, game consoles or smartphones might not support 5GHz).

 

which channel should we select? none of these are ours.

 

Channel 9 is a non-overlapping channel (in Europe) and it's free.
That's you best choice.

 

but there are 4 connections using channel 11, won't that be close to them and a problem? we're using channel 6 btw at 40 mhz (not in the pic).

 

There are four non-overlapping channels in Europe- 1, 5, 9, 13- these are your primary targets on 2.4GHz band.
You should be better off with channel 9 than almost anything else but you can verify it using inSSIDer- channel 9 shouldn't be worse than what you're currently using.

 

o.k., we will use channel 9 for a few hours and see how things go. thank you.

 

can anyone tell me if Netgear WNR3500L will work with Virgin Media Super Hub review | Expert Reviews ? thanks.

 

It should work but to make sure please consult User manual for this device- it must be available on Virgin website.
What you're loking for is "bridge mode"- when Virgin device works only as a cable modem and an external router does the rest of the job.

 

there is one "Add WPS Client" in the router settings, is it the same thing?

 

No that's not it. Do you have a link to the user manual?
If you do please post it- if you don't I'm gonna try to find it myself when things settle down a bit.

 

i called them and the firmware that'll allow our own wireless router isn't out yet they said. however, there is one work-around according to google, but i don't know if it has any disadvantages -

 

it is Netgear CG3101D i think.

 

It's not an ideal setup- it's trying to achieve a bridge mode by disabling everything that can be disabled but data still gets routed through the hub.
I'm going to repeat myself and suggest that you go with the hub alone and buy an external router only if firmware upgrade of the hub makes it possible to fully utilize it and if it's even needed.
It may turn out that the hub does the job and there's no need for another router, it may also turn out that you do need an external router but won't be able to benefit from its existence because hub can't be bridged.

EDIT: Did some reading on a Super Hub and it tuns out to be Super Crap. I'm afraid you can't do anything until updated firmware is released. What you've quoted as an option to get around the lack of "bridge mode" seems much more reasonable now when I've seen how many issues Super Crap causes.

 

we're getting a maximum of 5mbps out of a 100 on wireless. it is super crap indeed. just seen that this work-around blocks nat on the gaming consoles ("double nat"), i don't know if i should go ahead with this.

what i will do it, i'll try dir-615 with it in the evening, and if my ps3 is fine and there are no nat issues, i'll order the netgear one you linked me earlier.

 

Which Hardware Revision is the DIR-615?

 

i have d2 and d4.

 

will they not work without the brackets?

 

They will but the card is to short to reach to where the screw is so it won't be properly secured unless you use duct-tape or some other not-very-elegant solution.

 

i cannot find it on ebay u.k., so i guess i'll just put paper under it or something. will it be a problem?

also, i'm just about to order this as you suggested -

Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6200 - Network adapter - PCI Express Half Mini Card - 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11g, 802.11n: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

an engineer is also coming to check the supercrap later today. with the 50mbps connection we used to get 6mBps download speeds, with 100mbps, we're getting 4mBps.

found it! Half Size to Full Mini PCI-E Card Convertor Adapter | eBay will it work?

 

Yes that converter is OK. It's always safer to use a proper one if you intend to move the laptop- duct tape might hold for a while and let go when you're on the move so you end up with no wireless and most likely no screwdriver and duct tape to fit it again.

 

that card best be good or it's on you.

 

I know and the router too.
If anything goes wrong I'm gonna have to ban myself

But seriously- as long as the card is genuine and your laptop doesn't whitelist Wi-Fi cards (Lenovo) it should be OK.

 

excuses in already.

 

It is quite expensive.
If you told me you are getting it I would have pointed you here.
I am using that one right now with no issues.

 

that's in the u.s., i'm in the u.k.
-----------------------
Intel WiFi Link 6200 802.11n Half Mini Card Advanced-N | eBay

wow, this here is half price, what's the catch?!

 

The shop ships to worldwide.
The fact is that many stuff is made in china so they have the resources to offer prices at very low rates.
When ordering from ebay try to purchase from reputable stores.

 

i think that store is reputable? it says -

 

Intel Ultimate N WiFi Link 6300 Mini Card 633ANHMW NEW | eBay

what does it mean? should i buy this? thanks.

 

Try not to get Engineering Version, it is another term for Prototype not final built.

 

found another one - Intel WiFi 6300 6300AGN 802.11n Advanced-N Mini Card | eBay

 

right, so my card (intel centrino 6300) will be here tomorrow, and as i understand, my laptop only has 2 antennas, and i'll need a 3rd to fully utilize this card.

which two slots (?) should i connect the 2 antennas to?