Product Description

The Ultra RangePlus Dual-Band Wireless-N USB Network Adapter is the simple way to add or upgrade wireless connectivity in your desktop or notebook computer. Just plug it into your computer s USB port and enjoy incredible high-speed wireless network access.

Product Details

• Brand: Linksys
• Model: WUSB600N
• Platform: Windows
• Format: CD
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: 6.00" h x 2.00" w x 9.00" l, .5 pounds
• CPU: PowerPC G4 2.1 GHz
• Memory: 2000MB SDRAM
• Hard Disk: 1GB
• Processors: 1
• Networking: Hi-Speed USB

Features

• High-speed Wireless-N (draft 802.11n) networking for notebook and desktop computers
• MIMO technology uses multiple radios per band to create robust signals for maximum range and speed, with reduced dead spots
• Operates in the 2.4 and 5GHz radio bands -- choose the one with least congestion in your area
• Also connects to Wireless-G, -B, and -A networks

Customer Reviews

Works Great - No Problems (with Caveat)
I purchased the WUSB600N wireless network adaptor to support my 5.5 year old Sony Pentium 4. The WUSB600N is the size of a large thumb drive and it uses a USB connection on one end. It comes with a USB stand for use with desktops but can also be connected directly to laptops.

Thus far, the unit has worked great but . . . I did not install the unit as instructed by the directions. Having had problems with Linksys software on a previous wireless card, I took a hint from another reviewer and I hooked it up and used the Windows XP install hardware utility to install the unit. Just use the driver off the Linksys install CD. I use the XP wireless network connection to manage it. The Verizon wireless G router is on the second floor and I use this in the basement with no connectivity problems.

I think the WUSB600N is great, the small size takes up almost no space on my desk and the USB format means I can swap it between machines. I am completely satisfied and recommend it - with the installation caveat.

Tech Support told me to return it and get a different type !!
I bought this adapter for my daughter's desktop PC in the hopes of obtaining a decent range. I had an old wireless "B" PCI adapter from Netgear for years, and signal was always very marginal on this PC.

I also bought a Linksys WRT600N router to upgrade my whole wireless system too. The idea of dual band 2.4/5Ghz seemed attractive enough. Also, I thought that by buying from the same manufacturer I should have very few issues.

I have four PCs at home 3 x wireless "G" (XP SP3 + Vista SP1 + MAC)+ 1 x wireless "B" (XP SP3), so this USB Wireless "N" computer would have been the only one capable of all the extra features and range.

The installation of the USB adapter software went fine and it connected almost right away. So I thought I was done. Almost immediately my daughter started complaining of lost connection issues. I blamed it on her finagling with the wireless software, but it turned out that she was right. The system would take a long time to connect after booting up the PC, then would disconnect after 2 or 3 minutes, and would connect again may be 30 min later. I could not manually force a connection (even though Linksys software advisor would say that I was connected to the router).

To summarize, I called tech support today and was pleasantly surprised to speak to a human after no more than 2 minutes. But after 50 min on the phone, and several holds while he was in turn asking questions to somebody else, he came back saying that I'd be better off returning the USB adapter and getting a Linksys WMP300N which he swore is a dual radio band (even though I read somewhere that it works at 2.4 GHz only).

Too bad I bought this online, but it was from Amazon, so I am returning it today.

Marginal performance - marketing triumph ... engineering flop
After stellar performance of the parent dual-band WRT600T router with my plain jane laptop some 50 feet removed - and the exciting image of the happy family computing all over a multi-story house on the box - I purchased this multi-band wireless receiver to join the cheerful crowd. Not so! Had hoped to 'unwire' my cabled net of 3 desktops for neater appearance; surely not with this underperforming weakling.

Using a big Dell (XP/SP3), the vaunted automatic link with the router failed - even after placing the antenna within 3 feet of the router. Laborious manual installation, though eventually succesful, was a pain; not helped a bit by differing terminology for arcane topics between master unit and slave receiver. The final signal at a desktop less than 30 feet away, separated by a thin plaster wall (no hindrance to laptop reception) was just 2-to-3 wavering bars ("weak"), and switching to the 5 GHz band required tedious reentry of the 16-digit security code.

A dual antenna USB plugin receiver sounds like an ideal solution for interconnecting desktops in a Wi-Fi environment -- but this premature release needs a lot more work before being ready for prime time. And online help is an annoying 'Catch-22', without direct email link to tech support. Shame on Linksys for not matching its outstanding router to this prematurely released underachiever. Better off to get a generic unit at half the price.

Oh, and not so by the way, this unit installs only only a PC. On my MacPro it went totally unrecognized - further negating any chance of one happy computing family. Two stars for 2-out-of-5 reception bars underperformance.