Netis WF2190 AC1200 Wireless Adapter Review

Introduction There can be quite a few reasons that you'll want to add a wireless network connection to your system and there are just as many ways that you can achieve that. One of the methods is via a USB dongle and today I'm taking a closer look at the Netis WF2190 AC1200 Wireless Dual Band USB Adapter and will give it a good testing to see how well it performs. The Netis WF2190 is designed with both desktop users and notebook users in mind and it adds a fast dual-band network connectivity to any computer that has a USB port available. Some possible usage scenarios could be when your notebook has a slower wireless connection built-in and you want to get that extra speed to your router or your desktop system is placed under the desk with bad reception, or maybe it doesn't have a wireless connection at all. Whatever the situation might be, the Netis WF2190 will work for you. The Netis WF2190 is compatible with IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac devices and provides wireless transfer speeds up to 300Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and up to 867Mbps on the 5GHz band. That is plenty of bandwidth for online gaming, HD video streaming, and VoIP phone calls. With the 802.11n MIMO and 802.11ac technology, the WF2190 ensures a strong and stable wireless connection. A WPS button is a must these days and the Wi-Fi Protected Setup allows you to easily setup a secure wireless connection between your devices in a snap and with just a few key-presses. The Netis WF2190 can have two antennas attached. There are ofcourse two 5 dBi antennas included, but you could also replace them with a different kind if these shouldn't suit you. That is always a great feature to have, but the included will work just fine. Netis opted for a USB 3.0 connection for the WF2190 WiFi adapter, which is needed for the faster bandwidth that this adapter can provide. Included is also a stylish USB Cradle that you can place on your desk or a shelve depending on your needs. This allows you to easily place the Wireless Adapter where it has the best possible connection to your router or access point. Whether you want to connect to an existing network or use the Netis WF2190 as an access point, you won't be disappointed. It can also act as an access point with the Soft AP Mode. Turn your computer into an access point for local wireless network connection where you can hook up other wireless devices to your network. With a feature like this, the WF2190 saves you the trouble of upgrading with a better wireless router when it actually might not be needed. Netis' WF2190 1200AC Wireless Dual Band USB Adapter is compatible with Windows XP and newer, Mac OS 10.4 or newer, and Ubuntu Linux 11.04 or newer. The adapter uses a Realtek 8812AU chip, so if you can find drivers for that, you can get it to work on other systems too. Specifications The specification as taken directly from the manufacturer supplied information and can as such be subject to change in future revisions of the product. Packaging and Content The retail packaging comes in the same style as other Netis devices. A blue themed box that shows the main features as well as a photo of the device on the front. Inside the package, you will find the USB cradle, the WiFi adapter, two antennas, a user manual, and a driver disk. Testing & Methodology Hardware Supermicro C7Z97-OCE Intel Xeon E3-1230Lv3 Corsair Vengeance 16GB 1866MHz Kingston HyperX 240GB SSD Sapphire R7 240 2GB be quiet! Dark Power Pro 11 850W Thermaltake Water 3.0 Performer TP-Link AC1900 Dual-Band Router Software Passmark PerformanceTest 8: Advanced Network Test My usual access point is no good here as it doesn't support the full speed that this device has to offer, so I've switched it up a bit and used the TP-Link AC1900 router instead. That gives us a good headroom and allows me to show the performance of the USB adapter. I will be using doing performance tests with both static and variable package sizes and also adjust the distance between the USB adapter and the access point it is connected to in order to give a full view of the adapter, including coverage abilities. While it’s easy to test and give you comparable view on the wired connections, we need to keep in mind that environmental factors can’t be avoided with the wireless signals and that there might be variations to other scenarios. Software Installing the wireless USB adapter only takes a few clicks and doesn't require any real input. You can either use the included driver disk or download them from Netis official website. This adapter is using a Realtek chip which means that you'd also be able to go there for new drivers. The Realtek LAN Utility is simple, but it provides all the relevant information and options. You can create profiles for all your various networks. Search for networks in range. Check the adapters status and statistics. And finally you can have a look at your WiFi Protected Setup (WPS), which PIN is set and a few settings to change it. The Netis WF2190 can also work as an access point, effectively turning your system into one. Connect your wireless devices to this adapter and let the system send it on via its own wired connection. An easy way to get coverage in an area that otherwise might be out of range from your router or access point. WLAN 2.4GHz Performance The 2.4GHz band is the older of the two wireless bands that are in use today. On this band we find 802.11b/g/n wireless standards with up to 600Mbps bandwidth on offer when using wireless-n compliant devices. Due to the lower operating frequency, 2.4GHz signals offer a wider level of coverage, but the lower throughput speeds are a disadvantage to this aging band. Fixed Block Size To test the maximum throughput speed that a wireless connection can handle, a fixed block size of 16384 Bytes is sent from the client to the server over a period of five minutes. The higher block size will allow the transfer rate to stay as high as possible – in the same way that large files transfer from one drive to another quicker than lots of small files of the same total size. Variable Packet Size In a real world situation, the blocks of data that pass through a wireless adaptor are not of the same size each time, so to give a more realistic impression of how an adaptor performs, the adaptor is once again tested at each range for a period of five minutes. This time, however, the block size will vary from 32 Bytes up to 16384 Bytes in increasing steps of 148.7 Bytes each time. WLAN 5GHz Performance 5GHz is a more recent addition to the consumer WiFi specification and on this frequency we find both 802.11n and AC standards on offer. We note that 802.11n is the only standard to run at both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies and this is the most common standard for ISP routers to feature. Unlike the 2.4GHz band, 5GHz radio waves and solid brick walls do not go that well hand in hand, so whilst it does support a much faster throughput speed, its range can be severely crippled in a dense operating environment. Fixed Block Size To test the maximum throughput speed that a wireless connection can handle, a fixed block size of 16384 Bytes is sent from the client to the server over a period of five minutes. The higher block size will allow the transfer rate to stay as high as possible – in the same way that large files transfer from one drive to another quicker than lots of small files of the same total size. Variable Packet Size In a real world situation, the blocks of data that pass through a wireless adaptor are not of the same size each time, so to give a more realistic impression of how an adaptor performs, the adaptor is once again tested at each range for a period of five minutes. This time, however, the block size will vary from 32 Bytes up to 16384 Bytes in increasing steps of 148.7 Bytes each time. Final Thoughts Pricing Netis WF2190 AC1200 Wireless Dual Band USB adapter won't cost you much despite its good performance. You can find it at NewEgg for $34.99, Amazon for £32.95, or find a great deal on Geizhals starting from €29.20. Overview Netis WF2190 is extremely convenient thanks to the extra cradle that is included that allows you to place the adapter in the best possible coverage. It can eliminate all the interference that might come from tables, cases, or other things that would be in the way if it was mounted directly on the system. It already comes with two 5dBi antennas and they are detachable in case you need more powerful ones or a different kind. We saw a great and very steady performance throughout all the benchmarks and we barely even saw an impact when putting some distance between the adapter and the router it was connected to. At the same time it comes with a very fair price that won't blow any budgets anywhere. Dual-Band connectivity on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz band make up 300Mbps and 867Mbps bandwidth and the adapter supports every IEEE WiFi standard up to and including AC. WPS button and security is also covered as well as support for Windows, Mac OS, and Linux. Pros: Good performance and coverage Cradle for optimal placement USB 3.0 Fair price Cons: None "Netis WF2190 is very convenient to use thanks to the included cradle. At the same time it delivers a great performance and doesn't costs much either." Thank you Netis for providing us with this review sample

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