PRATYUSHA HOME

Beginners Guide to going Wireless

-US Robotics Wireless MAXg ADSL2+ Gateway

 - The US Robotics Wireless MAXg ADSL2+ Gateway is for those who have an ADSL connection.

Here's a picture of the MAXg, though.

Use with: MAXg Network adaptor

 

Review

The MAXg in the title is a technology that was designed to improve the speed of the wireless signal, and how much data can be carried. This US Robotics router works well at ranges of up to 10 metre, and decent (but hardly impressive) results over longer ranges. Signal range is vastly improved with with a MAXg Network adaptor like the one above. Centrino laptop users will pleased to hear that this router plays well with your notebook at ranges below 20 metres. Above that is a different story!

Another good feature is the built-in ADSL2+ modem. This is designed to support ADSL speeds of up to 24 megabits per second. If you're in the UK, you won't be getting speeds above this any time soon, so it's a good buy.

Setup is quite easy with this router, and it even prompts you for WEP/WPA Security. The router's firewall is turned on by default, which is another plus point.

If your computers are only going to be less than 20 metres away from the router then this is the one to buy! If you have had problems with wireless signals in the past, then buying this router won't solve them. For most people, though, you can use this with almost any wireless adaptor and get great results. Using a MAXg Network adaptor, however, will see the best performances.

Positve Points  
•             Easy to set up

•             Great wireless results with any adaptor at ranges below 20 metres

•             Excellent results with a MAXG adaptor

•             ADSL2+ modem built in

•             Easy to configure WEP/WPA Security

•             Firewall is turned on by default

Negative points

•             Not a router to buy if you PC is going to far from the router

Score

Computer Shopper magazine score - 5 stars out of 5
Our Score - 4 out of 5

There's a lot of positive points for the US Robotics Wireless MAXg ADSL2+ Gateway, and they far outweigh the negative. An excellent all-rounder, and one that Computer Shopper magazine have hand-picked for many months. Recommended!

The next two routers are for Cable Broadband users. (If you have an ADSL modem that plugs in to an ethernet port, you can use the next two as well. Most ADSL modems in the UK, however, are USB ones.)