Wireless N Routers...

I'm just trying to find out more information about Wireless N Routers and whether purchasing one would be a good idea for me or not.

My current networking setup consists of a Wireless G Router connected to 3 clients. These being 2 x Laptops and 1 x 80Gb PS3.

These all have Wireless G built-in as well as having Ethernet ports.

I've tried connecting these devices up to the Router via an Ethernet cable and this is when I get the best download speed via this setup.

I've done the speed tests extensively. But whenever I connect to the Router wirelessly I only get half the download speed I get via Ethernet despite having excellent signal strength.

Can anyone explain why this happens? Would I see any improvement in wireless performance by buying a Wireless N Router for my networking setup?

Download and run TcpOptimizer. Let it do automatic setting but I took the option to Save the previous settings, although I found I didn't need to go back.

If you are running Windows XP that will almost certainly fix the problem. On Vista or Win 7 they should already be doing the important adjustments, but still worth a try.

You might get a more consistent signal with an N router but unless you have N cards there won't be much increase in speeds. A G card will only connect at 54Mbs maximum, an N card will give you 150Mbs+ (router to laptop).

In reply to a post by GeoffB:

You might get a more consistent signal with an N router but unless you have N cards there won't be much increase in speeds. A G card will only connect at 54Mbs maximum, an N card will give you 150Mbs+ (router to laptop).

I had an idea that this might solve the problem. I�ve considered getting some Wireless N Network Interface Cards. I gather that these can be bought as USB adapters?

Even if I did buy a Wireless N Network Interface Card then how do I go about getting it to work on the PS3?

The PS3 internet connectivity is quite important to us as we use it for BBC iPlayer, Youtube and Dailymotion streaming almost on a daily basis. So we really notice a drop in download speed on the PS3.

I�ve considered hard wiring the PS3 permanently to the Router with an RJ45 Network Cable but would like to connect it Wireless if possible and with the best possible download speeds.

PS3's can't do N wireless even with an external adaptor, best option is to cable it up, dedicated bandwidth compared to the shared G wireless.

Not that i know much about technical jargon concerning Broadband like the previous guys but my suggestion would be a simple solution called Homeplugs from various suppliers.............The ones i use are netgear and i am a avid gamer and i download at speeds of my connection with no problems .

I uses to use a wireless network with the Netgear router in my office upstairs and the consoles downstairs in the living room,to download a demo of around 500 meg could take 2/3 hours now i can download this in about 7 minutes if not quicker.

They are the best purchase i have ever made and i have never looked back and its the best £90 i have ever spent on a gaming solution.

http://www.reghardware.com/2007/01/22/review_netgear...

I've had a look at homeplug powerline adapters and they cost upwards of £70. Not worth it in my opinion.

I've also had a look at the official playstation forums regarding Wireless N and there are some users who are reporting increased wireless performance when using a Wireless N Router with a PS3. Likewise with PCs and Laptops with a Wireless G NIC and a Wireless N Router.

A Wireless N Router might be worth a try. I've seen something else from Netgear a universal Wi-Fi adapter that requires no drivers and is Wireless N compliant. Apparently works with a PS3 and almost anything that has a RJ45 Ethernet port. But again it's pricey at around £50.

I may have to stick with what I've got at the moment though. I would prefer to hard wire the PS3 to the Router but can't really do this at the moment as there is some major building work being done in my home at the moment so can't really set the Router down in one place for longer than a few days. The network cabling is already setup but is inaccessible due to the constant need to move the Router between different rooms hence the reason why I'm having to use the Wireless.

You are looking in the wrong place for your adapters. They start from £20 each without a pass-through socket, certainly a lot less than buying a new router and N wireless adapters.

As you have to plug the PS3 into a socket anyway, it would be better to connect this via a homeplug and use the other devices on wireless.


Here's a link to some homeplugs http://www.microdirect.co.uk/Home/Search?free_text=h...

We are using a BT Hub 2 which is wireless n enabled and the PS3 works fine with much better download speeds so far (day 1 only) having upgraded from Hub1 which was wireless b enabled.

54G wireless can do at a maximum 27Mbps in either direction at the same time.
100Meg ethernet can do duplex, i.e. 100 Meg in either direction at the same time.

150Meg N is really 75Meg in each direction.