Connecting to the internet wirelessly is commonplace, easy and very convenient these
days. Laptops, netbooks, iPods, iPads, mobile phones and other devices all come with
built-in wi-fi. The only problem is sometimes getting a good strong wi-fi signal
everywhere in your house. Wireless signals do not travel very well through concrete
and steel, and this is the usual cause of a weak wireless signal. Perhaps you are
sharing your neighbour’s wi-fi (with their consent, of course) but the signal strength
is a little weak in your home. Well, here is a simple solution to increase and boost
the wireless signal range in your home.
BELKIN F5D7132UK WIRELESS G UNIVERSAL RANGE EXTENDER €55
The 802.11g Wireless Universal Range Extender/ access point (WURE) connects to your
network switch and lets you join your wireless-equipped PCs to your wired network
in Access Point Mode, or lets increase the coverage of your existing wireless network
in Range Extender Mode. Once you've done the setup, you can share data and peripherals,
as well as a single Internet account among all your computers. It is based on standard
802.11g technology for fast wireless file transfers and downloads. The Access Point
offers you the widest working range up to 1500 feet and a great interoperability
in mixed networking environments.
This device will work with all wireless routers. It doesn’t matter whether you use
Movistar, BT, Vodafone, Orange, Grannet, GA TV, it will boost the signal from any
wireless router. It connects to your wi-fi router wirelessly, then boosts the signal
and transmits it around your house. The initial setup of the device can sometimes
be a little tricky to be honest, but once it is configured it works flawlessly. All
you need to know is the SSID (name) of the router you are connecting to, and the
wi-fi password. I can do the initial setup for you if you prefer, for an additional
€20. There is a single ethernet port on the back, which will allow you to plug a
device in via ethernet cable and access the internet. I use one of these in my workshop,
and use the ethernet port to connect computers (without wireless capability) to my
internet connection.
This device supports all the most common wi-fi encryption security systems - WEP
(64- and 128-bit keys) Open, Shared Authentication / WPA-PSK (TKIP, AES) / WPA2-PSK
(AES).
Please remember, you do need the wi-fi password from the wireless router you are
connecting to, to setup this device. It does not hack into somebody else’s wireless
network to give you free internet access.
