Wireless Lan/game And Associated...

[R31Nismoid]

As per title, was talking to a couple boys about it @ work today as we all got our mega big pays coming through finally so most of them are spending up on new PC's now the tax year has flicked over.

We ended up on the topic of wireless gaming as i said i noticed some spikes now and then through my wireless.

Now, i know this is gonna happen from time to time but mine does spike a fair bit, even when just general browsing.

They are all going 802.11n with RangeMax router/cards from Netgear and they are apparently meant to be 'lots' better than the old 802.11g & routers from that era which is what im running (Belkin G card and Linksys B&G router)

So the question, are they actually any better? Worth the price of router + card?

I hate my router as it doesn't work with my VPN that well (always locks up) so having it working better for work is paramount.

If there was decent firmware for my router to make it more stable, I'd probably keep it but its just shit compared to the Belkin i had for 2 years that never had issues with VPN tunnels etc (1.5 years ago it died)

[gumflapper]

i bought 1 for my gf's computer and i think their great... excellent range and never any dropouts...

[Atomnaya]

the 802.11n is meant to be 3-4 times as fast as 802.11g, but it all depends on your home network/environment. Ultimately the ideal wireless environment would be in an empty warehouse/open field with no interferance nor obstructions. However like many of us we live in homes with walls, microwaves and cordless phones. All these play apart with the wireless signal.

I'm currently using 802.11g (linksys wireless modem/router and a crappy MSI wireless PCI card). It does the job fine, had no drop outs (besides crappy TPG).

The only reason why i would go for the 802.11n would be to transfer files from pc to pc.

[ClutchBurndout-:(]

i just quickly read over this thread so sorry if i get it wrong, there will always be spikes in wifi, its not a stable technology like a physical medium is, the air is far from a strong medium.

[R31Nismoid]

Im just wondering if the tech is any better, i know wireless im gonna drop out etc (high density housing, lots of wireless devices within 100 meters of me

It was just more the speed than anything else as i do a fair bit of transfer in bursts work when im @ home, and it can hammer the connection at times, also downloading etc.

[JamesK]

I've been experimenting with n devices for a few months now, cause I supply internet to student housing i've been looking to up grade my system to achieve maximum range and the best stability, The N routers are great overall, they provide great range and due to their setup with the antenna's they are very good at eliminating dead spots usually associated with b & g, as for speed NO router can achieve theoretical maximum speed with N routers, they don't come even close. One of my friends (who's a network admin) and i tried to get the fastest speed through the wireless at his house by transferring compete cd ISO's back and fourth (we were that bored, this was before i got my car) even with idea situations we were greatly disappointed if you look on google you will see loads of complaints where people are pissed off with the speeds they are really getting. But as for range and stability N routers are great, and also as for your other wireless devices, if any of them run on 2.4 Ghz it's going to mess with your wireless, it's known that the 2.4 cordless phones and AV transmitters interfere with wireless for obvious reasons, if you move to ONLY N then you don't have to worry since N runs at the new 5Ghz band it wont interfere with your devices. In my experience unless you get business routers or a server, they tend to crash under high usage (I had a linksys N router supporting 13 heavy users, would crash every otherday) to fix this I replaced it with a b & g with custom linux firmware designed to be stable under heavy usage. I'm not to sure what you mean by spike though, does your internet fluctuate during usage? just so i can see what your dealing with could you list your current setup? (Router, modem, connection...etc...) btw, i'm James the newbie from last night with the R33

EDIT: FYI, unless your router is set to ONLY N you will be limited by b & g bands (i.e. unless everyone is using N and your router is set to ONLY N your network wont be able to achieve full potential cause it hinders itself to work with the older bands)

Edited September 17, 2008 by JamesK

[justin911]

hey jamesk, do you sell wireless internet access ? and have you got a carriers licence ?? and if so you willing to let me 'use' it for a fee ?

[krzysiu]

Lol justin. I can get free access to Bigpond Wireless

[JamesK]

hey jamesk, do you sell wireless internet access ? and have you got a carriers licence ?? and if so you willing to let me 'use' it for a fee ?

Haha sorry justin unless your living in one of the houses I supply I cant help you there

[justin911]

nah i meant use your carriers licence, not your internet access...

but im guessing you havnt got one