How best to connect BT homehub to older pc which has usb1?

Question

Hi, I have an older gateway pc which has 2 front and 2 rear usb1.1 ports. I want to get BT homehub and connect wirelessly.

I know I can get an external usb2 wireless adapter - if I bought one of these would I need to change my pci card to a usb2 version or would this work with my present set up & if so with any loss of performance?

Is an external usb2 wireless adapter as good as fitting a wireless pci adapter internally?

Hope this is fairly clear as not very up on this.

Answer 1

The USB 2.0 wireless adapter will work in a 1.1 socket, but performance might not be great.

I recommend spending $15 for a USB card that provides you with USB 2.0 ports (they go for that little on Ebay, or local computer shops)

Answer 2

Installing a USB wireless adapter is very easy to do. The instructions will tell you how to properly install it. Some USB devices plug in first before installing its software, and others are the opposite.

When you go wireless, you definitely want to use wireless security, so look for an adapter that supports WPA2. The BT Homehub supports WPA2-PSK, so the router is fine. Even though 802.11b has a maximum throughput of 11mbps, you'll get MAYBE half that due to overhead. As long as your internet service doesn't exceed 3mbps and you're the only one wireless on your private network, you'll be fine with USB1.1 for now and (I recommend) getting a 802.11g adapter that supports WPA2 security. It should have no problems operating under USB1.1 except that you won't get the full throughput of the g band (54mbps theoretically).

USB2.0 PCI cards are cheap these days, so I also recommend replacing your USB1.1 card. Then whenever you get devices designed for USB2.0 performance, you'll have that from the PCI card. The link below is a good start about those cards.

Answer 3

A wireless USB 2 device will work in a USB 1 socket. It should give a decent speed in this configuration. I ran one for several months and the only problem was at startup it would pop up a window saying performance would be better if in a USB 2 slot. I have also used a PCMCIA device and it worked well. The problem was the antenna was too directional. I also managed to break off the plastic antenna because of heavy use and rough treatment. This happened twice. I was lucky to get them at a very low cost.

Answer 4

A USB2 device will work in a USB1 hub but at a slower speed. You may get a warning message to tell you that it may run faster if connected to a USB2 port but this shouldn't be too much of a problem.