Alfa AWUS036H 1000mW 1W 802.11b/g USB Wireless WiFi Adapter With Original Alfa Screw-On Swivel 9dBi Rubber Antenna and Suction cup Window Mount dock
July 29, 2010 by Gamer Guy
Filed under Video Games
- Includes: 1 – 5dBi Rubber Duck Antenna and 1 – 15″ +9dBi Rubber Duck Antenna and Suction cup Window Mount dock
- 802.11b/g, 1000mW of power which is more powerful than any other WiFi adapter on the market
- Very Secure with 64/128/256bit WEP Encryption, TKIP, WPA,WPA2, 802.11i
- Drivers included on CD for Windows 98SE, 2000, ME, WinCE 5.0, XP, 2003, Vista, Mac OS X 10.3/10.4 and GNU/Linux
- The Mount designed for easy clinging on Notebook, Netbook and Window.
Product Description
You asked for STRONGER WiFi and Extended Range and here it is. We have combined this high power Wi-Fi adapters with a powerful +9 dBi 15′ 2.4GHz Hi-Gain folding antenna. Estimated range is (depending on environment) 1.2 mile (2km). It is compatible with almost all laptops and desktop, PCs and Macs. This kit also includes two antennas- one mini
5 dBi gain travel antenna, and one high gain 9 dBi antenna, as pictured. It is perfect to travel with and weighing less than 2 ounces and measuring 3.5 x 2.5 inches in size (8.5 x 6.3cm)
This has a stunning 1000mw output power. So if you are looking for a device to connect to an outdoor 2.4 GHz antenna, such as on a boat or an RV, this is a perfect solution… More >>
This card is AWESOME! I have a custom built outdoor wifi repeater with a 12db antenna which cost me $450. This Alfa card with it’s 9db antenna actually beats it in signal strength quality to the AP. Using the included driver disk, it works well with Win XP on one laptop and Win 7 x64 on another. Most importantly for me, it works out of the box with linux, specifically Backtrack 4. In Backtrack or Ubuntu, just plug it in and it’s working. The drivers for this card are included with those distros. Also, you hackers out there might be interested to know that packet injection in Backtrack 4 also works out of the box flawlessly! Tested with WirelessMon (a great wifi software BTW) I found that this Alfa card has a -12db gain over my laptop’s internal card, which is just fantastic!
Overall, I would say that this card is better than most high end cards you might pay $200 for. The large 9db antenna included in this bundle is surprisingly light weight for it’s size, and can be easily removed and transported in a backpack or laptop case. With the big antenna attached and the unit mounted to the screen of my laptop with the included mount, it stays put and doesn’t get in the way much. Although, it does look a little silly. The description says “suction cup window mount” What I recieved was the same holder but no suction cup on the back. Instead it had a clip designed to clip to the top of a laptop’s screen. I am really more pleased with this. Because with this, it can be more securely mounted to the top of a laptop than a suction cup, and can be readily attached to many other things such as the sun visor of your car. I would recommend this to anyone who needs a stronger wifi link without getting rid of that large lump in your wallet. For college students, or anyone who finds themselves frequently at public hotspots, you might get stared at having a nearly 2 foot tall antenna on your laptop, but you’ll have the best connection of anyone there.
Rating: 5 / 5
I really like this product. It works great. The most difficult part was correctly installing the driver so it wouldn’t negatively impact the function of my computer. I found great advice in previous reviews that helped resolve that issue. I also bought one for my husband’s computer which has a newer operating system and I am still not sure his is installed correctly. Overall I am very satisfied. I have greater wireless range on my laptop.
Rating: 4 / 5
Bought daughter HP6300 laptop for college only to have it semi-self destruct by frying internal wi-fi section of mother board and other portions too. Motherboard had known defects by HP, yet they would not honor warranty repair. Piece of expensive junk and HP will see no more of my business. In an attempt to ressurect wi-fi connectivity for campus use, I purchased this adapter because others had blogged and spoken highly of it. Laptop had Vista on it and I had my reservations, but specs stated it was compatible. It took me a few times install/uninstall before all worked well with Vista. Once up and running, I was amazed at how well it worked. Never knew I had so many neighbors with wi-fi, and it was common to reach well over 500 feet through my walls to theirs, and that was with the standard antenna. To top it off, the download speed was twice that of my DSL at the house!
The trade off was with the bulk of the Alfa unit verses a smaller unit, but the risk of breaking off a unit that directly plugged into the USB like a thumb drive was more than I cared to chance. I am maintenance and reliability oriented and don’t mind the bulk because the Alfa unit is sturdy.
I am also no expert on computers, but am highly pleased so far with the Alfa unit and would recommend it. The price was more than fair for what you get and delivery was prompt and accurate.
Rating: 5 / 5
This product is great for anybody receiving a very weak or slow WiFi connection from a hot spot that may be geographically further than the recommended distance for an optimal connection. If you are trying to connect to a central hot spot that is showing a weak connection, using this adapter in place of your regular wireless card will improve the strength and quality of your connection. Besides noticing an increase in speed due to the larger receiver and dB ratings, you will also notice that your connection may not time out as often and you will receive less unintentional disconnects. I have used it myself and can speak for the convenience it gave me when I no longer had to sit outside in order to get a decent (or sometimes any) WiFi connection. A good buy and definitely worth the cost in comparison to the benefits.
Rating: 5 / 5
Well, that was easy! Went from a sometimes one bar to consistent four bars. I’m happy.
Rating: 4 / 5