| Linksys WPC300N Wireless-N Notebook Adapter |
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Model: WPC300N
Brand: Linksys
Manufacturer: Linksys
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 20
Form factor: Plug-in module
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: IEEE 802.11n (draft), IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
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| Features: |
Device Type - Adapter
MIMO technology uses multiple radios to create a robust signal that travels up to 4 times farther and reduces dead spots
Up to 12 times faster than Wireless-G, but can also connect to Wireless-G and -B networks
Advanced wireless security with up to 256-bit encryption
Standards: IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Draft IEEE 802.11n |
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| Description: |
| Box Contents: Wireless-N Notebook Adapter, Setup Wizard, user guide The Linksys WPC300N Wireless-N Notebook Adapter is the simple way to add or upgrade wireless connectivity in your notebook computer. Just slide it into your notebook's PC Card slot and enjoy incredible high-speed wireless network access while retaining true mobility. It uses the very latest wireless networking technology, Wireless-N (draft 802.11n). By overlaying the signals of multiple radios, Wireless-N's "Multiple In, Multiple Out" (MIMO) technology multiplies the effective data rate. Once you're connected, you can keep in touch with your e-mail, access the Internet, and share files and other resources such as printers and network storage with other computers on the network, wherever you wander. 32-bit CardBus interface Compatible with Windows XP and Windows 2000 Unit Dimensions - 4.88 x 0.35 x 2.13 (124 x 9 x 54 mm) Weight - 0.11 lbs (1.76 oz.) |
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| User Reviews (20 total): |
Page 1 of Total 1 Pages
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Works fine!, August 12, 2008
By user (Sao Paulo - Brazil)
I bought two Linksys WPC300N Wireless-N Notebook adapter to use on two notebooks (Toshiba and HP) and the installation process ran fine without problems. I left my Win XP takes control my wireless conections and configurations and I didnt use the Linksys's application.
I have a new Linksys wireless router WRT160N and with these new configuration I could notice an improve on my network.
I am very happy with these equips so far.
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Come on Linksys!, May 2, 2008
By user (Lima, OH United States)
Works great for a while then fails. When it works it works great. When it stops, it's a joke. Can't even get a 1 mbps connection. Linksys customer service knows this happens. They must not want to address it.
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WPC300N & WRT160N, April 22, 2008
By user (Winter Harbor, Maine)
I have a Super-G TP-Link adapter card that has better 20mhz range than this and the 40mhz N range, well it's worse than the G range.
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Linksys WPC300N - Wireless-N Notebook Card With Some Limitations, April 3, 2008
By user (NY, NJ, CT USA)
Linksys WPC300N Wireless-N Notebook Adapter
The Linksys WPC300N has some nice features in a PCMCIA card. Unfortunately, many high expectations based upon the wireless N standard will leave a lot of people disappointed. I'm going to discuss Windows XP and Vista separately, since I bought the card a long time ago and have used it on both.
First and foremost, this card was created when the Wireless-N standard was still in draft form. In fact, I have had this card for more than 2 years, which tells you just how long ago that was. There's nothing wrong with that, just be aware that there are several limits in this card.
First, this card can be configured to achieve greater throughput by setting up multiple data channels. That's the `MIMO' technology that uses multiple radios, which they vastly over-hype on the packaging.
However, the improved range of the wireless N standard as compared to wireless G just never materialized. That's because this is still a 2.4 GHz card. Newer wireless N products with 5 GHz capabilities are on the market which give much better range than this.
Second, the firmware AND software for this product initially were each very buggy. I first installed this product on Windows Vista and have tested it on some 2003 boxes. All of those required multiple reinstalls and driver downloads. In the end, the GUI configuration tool is very limited in explicitly give you the information you need to know whether you are getting a faster connection with this device. So if you're not techy, this can be a drag.
The wireless security support of WPA2 is nice, and most legacy cards don't have that. It gives you stronger encryption (256 bit). But this only really works if your access point is configured that way too. Linksys WRT300N Wireless-N Broadband Router And in that case, there are newer cards and access points that give you this and more.
Still, I can say without a doubt, that when I needed to add another wireless connection to my Vista Ultimate box, this guy worked much better.
Bottom line, there seems to be a lot of people clinging to XP. If you're one of those, plan on downloading and updating your driver software and firmware before even testing this card.
If you are a Windows Vista user, only get this if you need a spare card for backup machines or multi-card setups. If you need something for your primary wireless access, you may want to avoid this and the WPC600N Linksys WPC600N Ultra RangePlus Dual-Band Wireless-N PC Card altogether and go with the 5 GHz Netgear line. NETGEAR HD/Gaming 5 GHz Wireless-N Networking Kit (WNHDEB111)
Pros
+ Works well on Windows Vista
+ Does give you MIMO support for greater capacity
+ Once you set it up, seems to work well with Wireless G
+ PCMCIA slot saves you from using a USB port
+ Nice WPA2 support
Cons
- Doesn't give you full Wireless N capabilities (only 2.4GHz, no 5GHz)
- Legacy OS users need to download and install many updates
- Price is still surprisingly high
- Somewhat buggy software requires frequent shutdowns
- Better options available for the price
This card might be worth looking into if you can get it on sale and need an extra one for an older laptop.
Enjoy!
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DNW with HP dv1000, March 16, 2008
By user (Minnesota)
Bought this to boost up my signal from my linksys ultra n router. No such luck....doesnt fit the card slot.
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Doesn't work with Dell laptop, December 8, 2007
By user
I got this at Best Buy and ended up exchanging it ten minutes after getting home because it doesn't fit the slot in my Dell notebook (E1505). Funny how the box says it works with "most notebooks," when Dell has a huge market share. It's not Linksys' fault, of course--the Dells just aren't ready for 802.11n, I guess, unless the new high-end ones are.
Get the USB adapter instead, if you aren't sure. It works like a charm.
BTW, if you're buying an 802.11n router at the same time and are only thinking about getting an adapter, think harder. Chances are good that your router won't play well with your computers otherwise, and you'll get far better performance with the N adapter.
(3 stars out of fairness, I guess.)
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Solid less the GUI, November 23, 2007
By user
This works great out of the box with one exception. After installing the drivers and monitoring GUI here is what you do. You uninstall the card, unplug it, then plug it back in. This allows the card's drivers to work but you can now control this via Window's WZC. Download the KB to allow for WPA2 (PSK2), use AES, and you're set. Works flawlessly with the WRT330N using WZC. Be sure to set the NIC to the same settings as the router regarding Frag Thresh and RTS Thresh. Disable power save as well (on all NICs talking to the WAP). A little tweaky to setup but once it was I get 108Mbps minimum from 75' through two walls. I even get 4/5 bars from two of my neighbrons who are likely running G with this NIC that has a much smaller array than its desktop cousin.
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Does not work with Westell router/modems, October 26, 2007
By user (Pa USA)
The product is good, but does not work well with the Westell router/modem 108.11g.
It reverts back to 108.11a and runs at only 11MBps not at the 108.11g speed of 54MBps.
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Does not work in 5 GHz band, August 8, 2007
By user (Woodinville, WA USA)
Beware, this is a "2.4 GHz only" product. My understanding is that 802.11n should work either at 5 GHz or 2.4 GHz. This limitation was not clear to me.
It seems to work just "ok" at 2.4 GHz (802.11g). I did not experience any significant improvement over my built-in wireless on my Dell D620 laptop.
I use an Apple Airport Extreme (802.11n) router.
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Good and iffy on WinXP and Linux, June 18, 2007
By user (El cajon, ca United States)
The CD install blew up - installing through Windows worked. There are no Linux drivers and this is a Broadcom chipset card AFAIK ... Dual boot users note that I am still searching but ndiswrapper has been suggested as a Linux solution.
This is a fine replacement for the internal card on my laptop, but it is not directly compatible with Linux. That's the bottom line.
WinXP is still on my system and saving my butt.
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Excellence for bandwidth, June 10, 2007
By user (newport news, VA)
Since I do alot of streaming audio and video it works better then the wireless G that is built in my laptop. The ability of being connected at 240 MBps is better then the 54 MBps that G allows. The fact that it is even backwards capable to G and B is a plus. If you push large files or HD streaming video and want to keep your laptop wireless, then this is the way to go. Be sure that you do have a wireless N Router to have the bandwidth.
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Easy, Quick Setup with XP Pro, April 1, 2007
By user (Lawrenceville, GA United States)
I installed this card on my Toshiba notebook running win xp. I just did wat the quick install manual said and it was installed. I updated the driver as soon as i got connected to my N network and everything was all good. Easy install, simple directions and its more than double the speed and signal of my G network. I know there have been bad reviews of this card but it must have been a bad card. I had no problems at all installing, setting up or running this card. Add in the increased range and speed, a must buy!
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Speeds up reception from a Wireless G router, March 17, 2007
By user (Middleboro, MA United States)
Just installed this with no problems whatsoever. It took about 3 minutes and I was on line. I write this review to answer the question that I had before buying this network adaptor. My Wireless G router is in the basement and I started working on the second floor but kept losing the signal. I added this hoping that it would help (without changing the router) and it DOES increase reception and the speed is now significantly faster than my old Wireless G card was anywhere in the house.
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No real problems here, March 8, 2007
By user (Not of this earth)
After upgrading my laptop to Vista Business, my old Linksys 802.11G adapter decided to become flaky and only connect to my wireless LAN when the moon was in the 7th house and Jupiter aligned with Mars (Everyone sing along!). I like Cisco products, and have been using Linksys equipment for years. I ordered one of these adapters and followed the directions. First mistake. Don't follow the directions, just plug the thing in and let Vista find the right drivers. Vista doesn't like the install and tells you that there are compatability issues (see some of my other reviews) and stops the install. So I downloaded the latest Vista drivers from Linksys and tried using those. Vista took one look at them, turned up its nose and stated that the installed drivers were newer and won't even consider using the ones you downloaded. By the way, while I was downloading the drivers, Vista used my old settings and connected to my network, without my looking. Sneaky. I unplugged the hard line and have not experienced any issues. I also use my laptop with my Boy Scout troop, and it attached to my church's wireless LAN easily. I now have to install the 802.11n wireless router to gain the other advantages.
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Linksys WPC300N Wireless-N Notebook Adapter, January 5, 2007
By user (Colorado Springs, Co.)
I don't believe I could be happier with any other product.
It is fast and dependable. What more can I say?
Jim
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worked great, August 17, 2006
By user
I had recently purchased the linksys wireless-N router and I was using the wireless G adapter built into my laptop , and I was getting mixed results, the connection speed was adequate, but I kept getting dropped from the wireless network several times per hour. I decided to upgrade to the WPC300N Wireless-N Notebook Adapter to see if it would fix the problem, and sure enough, I havent had any connection issues since. I recommend this product !
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Not Impressed, August 4, 2006
By user
I bought the card as I had recently gotten the router. I did not get extended range or increased speed compared to my previous Wireless-G. I do make the observation that my house has all-brick walls, which might hamper performance versus dry-wall construccion.
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Did not work for me., July 13, 2006
By user
I upgraded both my B router and B pcmcia card for my ASUS laptop to N. The router Linksys WRT300N did not work till I upgrated the firmware. The original driver for Linksys WPC300N (April 2006) got me connected to router and network, but could not browse. Switched back to B card and waited till new driver was available. Even after the new driver (July 2006) was loaded still not working. I am back on B card till Linksys debugs this one.
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Did not work on my laptop, July 12, 2006
By user (Main Street, USA)
Recently purchased the Linksys WPC300N pcmcia card for my Toshiba laptop. The software installed without a hitch. The Linksys Monitor software tells me the computer is connected to a network, but the internet could not be accessed. I tried to log into an encrypted network with any old password and the Monitor software shows that the computer is part of that network. When I tried to check for available connections from the network connection icon (the little computers icon), there was no network available (hmmm, two different software telling me two different things).
Called tech support and got some guy with a thick Indian accent (understandable, there are a lot of Indian Techs in America). The minute I told him the model number, he quickly told me the "n" technology is outside his area of expertise and transferred to another tech.
The second Tech came on the line and, yep, you guessed it, he also has a thick Indian accent: I've just called India for tech support; not that anything is wrong with that, except I could only understand every third words coming from this guys mouth.
To make the long story short, he had me go through everything that I have already gone through by myself. In the end, he finally told me that "this is a known issue with their card" and he needed my email address so he can send me a new driver for the card. Isn't this the biggest CATCH 22, ever? I can not get on the Net and the only cure is to download a new driver from the Net. WOOOOOOW!!!!
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Would not connect at all, July 10, 2006
By user (Seattle)
Installed just fine on my Toshiba until I tried to connect. The Linksys monitor software would not even recognize the card as active. Though it did recognize my old G card. Spent 20 minutes on hold and never did reach tech support. This and the router are being returned.
It did work on another Laptop but not the one I intended. There is NO mention of this card at all on the Linksys forums or the easy answer sections.
I should know better then trying bleeding edge. Especially with Linksys and there questionable support
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