"G"-Force Wireless for the Pocket PC

[Darius Wey]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.linksys.com/press/press.asp?prid=184' target='_blank'>http://www.linksys.com/press/press.asp?prid=184</a><br /><br /></div><i>"The Wireless-G CompactFlash (CF) Card offers users the speed and convenience of wireless networking on a PDA. The CF Card installs directly into your Pocket PC using a CompactFlash Type II slot. The user-friendly software makes it easy to set up – then it’s ready to share data, printers, or high-peed Internet access over existing wireless networks at speeds up to 54Mbps. The 802.11g CF card is also backward compatible with Wireless-B (802.11b) wireless networks."</i><br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/wey-20041117-Linksys80211g.jpg" /><br /><br />Earlier in June, we posted on the <a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=29230">impending release</a> of the Linksys 802.11g CompactFlash card designed for PDAs. Well, after a long wait, it's finally been released so you can arm your Pocket PC with the goodness that comes with 54Mbps data transfer rates. It's compatible with Pocket PC 2002 or higher, and is now available at a street price of $99. Anyone out there think they will use this?

[gorkon280]

I don't have a PDA that takes CF anymore and I am not buying a new one. I have always wondered why Wireless G has not been included yet. Sure, the PPC Bus may be a limiting factor, but dag gone it if I can get my B only device to connect to the G access points at work. It SHOULD work, but our network infrastructure guys have a phobia for things that autonegotiate. Don't know why though.

[geneb]

802.11g for only $99? Sounds like a decent deal to me. Most of the 802.11b cards that I see out there are closer to $200. The only good deal I've seen so far has been on eBay for Symbol 802.11b CF cards for about $20.

[Darius Wey]

802.11g for only $99? Sounds like a decent deal to me.

If anyone's looking for a place that sells it, MobilePlanet (http://www.mobileplanet.com/private/pocketpcthoughts/product.asp?dept%5Fid=5037&pf%5Fid=MP580343&listing=1) are taking pre-orders at $99.95. [Affiliate]

[Sven Johannsen]

802.11g for only $99? Sounds like a decent deal to me. Most of the 802.11b cards that I see out there are closer to $200. The only good deal I've seen so far has been on eBay for Symbol 802.11b CF cards for about $20.

:?: Even Mobile Planet sells the Linksys 802.11b CF for $79.95, and they are not known as a discount e-tailer. You are thinking USD?

[gadgetguy804]

A few comments:

- it sure has taken long enough!

- the price seems reasonable.

- do I really need 54 mbps? I am not sure the PPC handles 11 mbps all that well.

- it indicates that it does NOT have WPA security, only the weaker WEP 128. We are using WPA for the 802.11g Access points, so my PPC would still be unable to connect. :cry:

[dma1965]

My concern is power. How much more battery drain will it have? 802.11b is already the biggest power hog on my device.

[jt3]

I am not sure the PPC handles 11 mbps all that well.

That's my issue with it. Pocket PCs don't seem to handle the bandwidth they have. Giving them another 43MB doesn't seem like it would do any good, especially with Pocket IE. I'm curious if there'd be any benefit at all.

[carphead]

The benefit is not the speed of the pda it's to the speed of the network. A 802.11g network switchs down to 802.11b speeds when a 802.11b device is detected. So while a 802.11b device is connected to a 802.11g network the fastest it can go is a maximum of 11mbps.

This card means that you could kick a 11g access point into a 11g only mode. Giving a 10% speed increase.

[Thefo]

Duoh, and I just bought the Linksys 802.11 b model this spring :( I'd probably pick one up because switching from my laptop running 802.11g to my Pocket PC running 802.11b is quite painful. I will probably wait for the price to drop a bit though.

[kkelley]

I just found it on Buy.com for $81.38 + shipping. They have it posted as On Order.

I have been waiting for this to come out. I read a number of reviews of the Linksys B cf product and most people said that they had problems on WM 2003 machines. This is supposedly compatible, so we'll see. The WEP is disappointing, but I recently put in a Linksys wireless print server and that is also only WEP capable, so I had to downgrade my security anyway. Good thing I live in the boonies. :)

[fyiguy]

The benefit is not the speed of the pda it's to the speed of the network. A 802.11g network switchs down to 802.11b speeds when a 802.11b device is detected. So while a 802.11b device is connected to a 802.11g network the fastest it can go is a maximum of 11mbps..

Kinda...It all depends on how you configure your wireless access point if you configure it for all g than no b can get on it, if you configure it for both b and g then your entire g network will operate at b(unless you have a newer AP that has seperate antennae for each g and b transmission), some even allow for b only...so it all depends. Also remember WiFi operates at Half Duplex so you don't really get that much improvement...

When using WiFi don’t expect the rates of data transmission proudly displayed on the box. Those are peak rates under ideal conditions. You may get peaks at that rate, but you will not get sustained rates or real-time throughput. The factors that determine this is that WLANs operate at Half Duplex as opposed to wired networks operating at Full Duplex. Plus the rates given on the box are not for actual throughput, which varies from network to network depending on the existing traffic, how the network is managed, and the number collisions, traffic and users on the network are also contributing factors like PC speed /CPU power, Interface type/speed- direct bus, CF or SDIO slot (note each manufacturer treats this different some have different pinouts at their slots, different firmware, drivers, and speed to the interface port),Operating system and Browser for web browsing, Network Traffic and bottlenecks at hubs, distance from your AP and few more I can't think of off the top of my head...

If you don’t already know the throughput you are going to get with a Pocket PC is not going to be the same as you would get on a PC. Even using the same card my “defacto gold standard” for 802.11b is the Orinico Gold card and I experienced a 1Mbps performance drop when using it on the Pocket PC. The peak throughput I have seen is around 2.5MB/s with average throughput in the range of .335Mbps to 1.15Mbps depending on the hardware and devices used.(Note that 1 megabyte /second = 8 Mbps) very far off from the advertised transmission on the box.

The jump to g has a few trade offs in that it also has a shorter range than b and depending on the chipset may have a larger or less hit on battery life...other things to consider is how you secure your Wireless network if you are using the latest WPA some hardware has yet to support it...

As many of you may already know another thing to consider is that if you main purpose for WiFi is accessing the internet a faster connection to your AP isn't going to speed up your download time if it only peaks at 1.5MB-3MB/s.

[Dermot81]

Damn, I just started getting used to integrated wireless...

Hmm I may have to get this...

Then I can double the bitrate I encode movies to stream with...

Tempting..............

[jt3]

The benefit is not the speed of the pda it's to the speed of the network. A 802.11g network switchs down to 802.11b speeds when a 802.11b device is detected. So while a 802.11b device is connected to a 802.11g network the fastest it can go is a maximum of 11mbps.

Very good point. I hadn't considered the benefit to the network. In that case, this is a very good thing.

The jump to g has a few trade offs in that it also has a shorter range than b...

That's simply not true. They have the same range at the same speeds. Even if you drop down to 11Mbps using g-mode, however, you don't slow down everyone else, so that's a good thing. Remember, with wireless, the range varies with speed. With ANY of the wi-fi modes, you have less range at the maximum speed (11Mbps for "b" or 54Mbps for "a" and "g") than you do at the minimum speed (1Mbps for all). You just usually never see any of this, because the wireless cards automatically slow down the bitrate as the signal attenuates. However, unlike modems, most wi-fi drivers don't tell you that the bitrate has been reduced. They simply show a low signal, even though they still say "connected at 54Mbps."

[Mark_Venture]

A 802.11g network switchs down to 802.11b speeds when a 802.11b device is detected. So while a 802.11b device is connected to a 802.11g network the fastest it can go is a maximum of 11mbps...
Your on the right track, but not exactly correct.... Yeah, the G stuff slows down when B stuff also connects, but not all the way to B only speeds.

Rather than type again... See... http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=29230&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=19
Its an old post, but still applies. (it also includes links to other references that while being older, still apply).

[Len M.]

The question for an 802.11 CF card is whether the CF slot in the PDA can support anything close to the card's maximum data rates.

In the HP iPAQs and Toshiba e74x and e75x-series, we've measured maximum CF slot data rates of only 1.4 MBps (11.2 Mbps). If that holds true with the latest PDA models, then 802.11G doesn't offer anything significant over 802.11b.

So, when someone gets one of these new cards, would you please run a benchmark to see how fast you can transfer data through it?


Len Moskowitz
www.core-sound.com
Home of PDAudio

[fivepetpalace]

I'm curious if there'd be any benefit at all.

Sure there is....

You see, most blokes will be playing at 11. You’re on 11, all the way up, all the way up...Where can you go from there? ... These go to 54 0X

Mine's on the way from Buy.com, we'll see how it performs.

[fivepetpalace]

OK, I've got my WCF54G!!!

How should I test it ?