Customer Reviews

NETGEAR WG311T Super-G Wireless PCI Adapter

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Just installed the WG311T PCI cards on two pc's connecting through my WGT624 and so far everything is great . Good signal and speed on both computers and no dis-connects . Iam pretty happy with my results todate .
But .......

IMPORTANT NOTE ON INSTALL WITH XP AND SP2 !!!

1.)If you use the Netgear application to monitor/manage your Wifi stuff then you MUST disable the "wireless-zero" in the "Adminstative tools" in the control panel for things to work correctly ( start/settings/contrpl panel/administative tools/services/wireless zero ; and put to "DISABLE"

2.)If you use WindowsXP to monitor/manage your Wifi , then you MUST disable the Netgear application (start /run / then TYPE IN: msconfig / then look in "startup"/ then DISABLE or UN-CHECK the line saying "GEAR 311T".

You must do one of the two items Ive listed to make sure your netgear Wifi works /connects properly (to the internet) . Seems you cant NOT use both applications together in anyway . Ive done ALOT of testing on this and this is the ONLY method(s) Ive found to work correctly (and this is not mentioned by Netgear or Microsoft) .

I hope this helps future users of this equipment . =)

I have gotten quite a bit of experience with this card, so might share some information with others about the quality of this product. The Netgear WG311T is the 108 Mbps version of the PCI based wireless adapter for PC's. Note that there is also a 108Mbps USB 2.0 adapter (WG111T) version as well as a 108 Mbps PC Card (WG511T) version for notebooks. The USB 2.0 one seems quite nice, but this WG311T comes with an attenna that you can turn and point in the direction of the wireless router. Note that there has been multiple revisions of this product since introduction. This review is for the V12H019 REV:1 version (printed on the card). I have heard that previous versions (V12H009.0 REV 4 and before) had major problems with freezes and hiccups with VIA chipsets and XP SP2, but the current version I have seems fine (my computer has the VIA chipsets and SP2 of XP). All new cards should have this new version now unless you are buying a used one from someone. Be sure to visit Netgear's website and download the latest drivers for this card (3.0.1.6 as of this writing).

The card supports better WPA security with the new drivers and comes with its own utility to connect with the wi-fi routers/access points. I have heard that it works with Microsoft's wireless utility as well as atheros drivers (the card uses their chip). Note that a lot of experts that have tested 108Mbps thoroughput have found that no 108Mps cards by any manufacturer achieve that rate and is usually half that speed. The 108Mbps advertisement comes from using two channels of 54Mpbs in the 2.4 Ghz spectrum instead of one.

The card does its job and am able to connect fine with the Netgear WGT634U. In the beginning the signal strength was at full, but after a week or 2 of using it, the signal is one notch lower (96Mbps), but I suspect that is related to the WGT634U router (see my review of that one as well).

This is one of those products that requires getting new and updated software so it will work well, so be prepared check for new drivers and install them instead of the ones that come with the card. As long as you have the newer revision of the card and the latest drivers, you should be fine. The Netgear software leaves an icon in the tray that you can open up and check and modify settings of card (like WPA-PSK password).

If you are going fully wireless, consider getting bluetooth keyboard/mouse from Microsoft or Logitech, WiJet.Video (wifi video to your monitor), Netgear PS121 (wifi printing), and bluetooth mic, headphones and audio transmitters to your speakers.

The major competing brand for this product is the D-Link DWL-G520.

This is a very good card for those that want to experiment with Linux and packet injection, it's fully supported by madwifi-ng. I haven't tried using it in windows but I'm guessing it should work just fine.

I've owned this product for a week now and have tried various things to get this card working correctly on my system. It appears that with LARGE traffic, this card will freeze up and lock your system, forcing you to press the RESET/POWER button. There is apparently a compatibility issue between the Atheros chipset (what this product uses) and the VIA chipset (what most AMD compatible motherboards use).

I would only recommend this product to people who ARE NOT using a motherboard with the VIA chipset. [...]

I hope that this helps you in your decision.

This PCI card installed with no problems but the WTG624 router signal from approx. 50' away was 1 to 0 bars (very weak to no signal). Granted, between the two is the kitchen and a bathroom with all copper plumbing. After buying a Zonenet antenna for it and moving it from behind the computer to the top of the desk it is now a 5 bar very strong signal.

The speed of the connection is fast enough until WEP is enabled...then it's comparable to dial-up...but I believe the router is the cause of that.

Would've given it a 5 star if the antenna wouldn't have needed replaced...50' isn't THAT far even if it is through the kitchen and bathroom.

Unfortunately this wireless adapter preformed well below any acceptable standards for it to be even considered as an option if you are using a computer with an AMD chipset. I read on one of these reviews that there is a compatibility problem between the two and from my experience, I believe that to be a true statement. I asked Netgear support if there was a compatibility problem between the two and they totally ignored my question, although they did tell me to return the product for a exchange.

I never had consistent service and anytime I put any load on the internet it would freeze and make me have to re-start the computer just to get it back on line.

The only reason it gets 2 stars is because it was really easy to install and the software was easy to use and understand. But, what it comes down to is if the product worked or not, and in my case it didn't even after I worked so hard to fix the problem. (downloading new drivers, troubleshooting, working with Netgear support, reinstaling multiple times)

In the end the fix was simple.. I bought a linksys wireless adapter and the internet is smoking now!

I have the wireless Super G Router and i thought I would give this card a try to take advantage of the 108 mbps. So far so good. I have not had any problems with Windows XP Pro SP2 freezing or "stuttering" .

Overall, install took 20 minutes, and that should have been 5 if i had read the directions first and installed the driver first as opposed to starting with the card.

My advice - get the card. It works great so far. Should my feelings change i will post it.

Installation is a breeze. I have bought two of these cards, one for AMD one for Intel P4 system. The Card installed on AMD Box was constantly causing the cpu to jump to 90-100% (without any specific processes doing it) and in the end got basically fried to where the 'hardware device could not start'. I had to return it.

The card that was put into intel system was also causing constant usage of cpu in 40-70% range, i eventually uninstalled the Netgear Wireless Assistant and it returned to normal. So as a tip for anyone who is ripping their hair out trying to figure out whats going on - don't use Netgear Software.

In connection properties, go to Wireless Networks tab and check "Use Windows to configure my wireless network settings."

Other than having to return one of the cards and spending a couple of hours reinstalling drivers and looking for solutions, it has been working ok. Still can't get nowhere near the promised 108mbs transfer rates... maximum was 40mbs - and thats with wgu624 router. Go figure.

Tech support was just about as helpful as your next door neighbor. Netgear outsources to India, and the guy after trying to BS me into believing that 800mhz cpu is not in the range of P3 class of cpus, told me to just return the card.

Shop around before you commit to Netgear.

Update:

The card still causes CPU bottlenecks. Nowhere in the range of 40-70% but when turned off, games run faster, dvd's play without skipping, and general cpu usage is in the range of 2-4%. When using this adapter its in the range of 10-20%.

And just for the extra fun, before i uninstalled the card completely - i was getting 1-2 bluescreens a day with WG311T as the cause of the failure.

Don't buy this.
If i could update the rating it would be 1 star.

I have a Netgear WG624 router which I am very pleased with. I bought this card because I was too lazy to run cat5 from my router downstairs to my second PC upstairs. I put it in at the same time I installed XP (was previously 2k). I experienced 1-2 second freezes about twice a minute where everything would stop and audio would stutter. Additionally the system would frequently lock up hard during mpeg play whether local or streaming and required holding the power buttont in to restart. Disabling the wg311t solved my problems. Search Google for wg311 and freeze. This is a common problem at least with XP. It's too late for me to return this adapter. Don't make the same mistake.

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It's January 30, 2010 and I have adjusted the star rating to two.

Now it's June 13, 2005 and Amazon won't let me change my star rating that I first entered last year - but now I would give it only TWO STARS.

It appears that the advertised wireless rate of 108mbps is just a THEORECTICAL RATE and the device doesn't even come close. So if you are like me and want the speed of WIRED and think this will do it - WRONG.

ALso, to get ther "108mbps" rate you need to use NETGEAR routers or you will just be able to get the "54mbps" rate. And I can't get the router to work in "108mbps" mode without disconnects and high pings. I bought another NETGEAR router and it dropped the network after 2 days and again in about an hour - apparently due to overheating. To even try another vendor's 108mbps gear I would be forced to replace my router and the 3 pc adapter cards .

As a package, the NETGEAR 108mbps items are not what I thought I was getting. I am now in the process of fishing wire through my house to get to the wireless computers. I will then TURN OFF WIRELESS and use wires to obtain the 100mbps rate that wires can support.

Last year, I installed the NETGEAR WG3111T 108 mbps Wireless PCI Adapter while still utilizing my Microsoft MN-500, 11 mbps router. I find it easier to resolve any issues by taking things one step at a time. After the adapter card is operating correctly, I then installed the new NETGEAR WGT624 108 mbps router. I have Windows XP Home edition.

First word of advice, for this or any other piece of hardware: Go to the NETGEAR website ([...]) and check out the support area, and see if there is a newer version of the device driver and the utility software. If at all possible, download and install those BEFORE you install the WG3111T. It would have saved me a lot of time if I had done this myself.

Installation started smoothly. The Smart Configuration Utility setup the new network connection easily even while my old MSN-510 adapter was connected and operating. The utility listed my available network. I selected it and entered my encryption key. All I had to do was disconnect the old adapter and the NETGEAR WG3111T was up and going.

Then I restarted my computer... and I began losing connectivity. When McAfee VirusScan was installing, it would get "synchronization errors" and "VSMain errors". When AOL started up the network would lose connectivity and the IP address was getting changed to 169.254.120.96 or other variations of 169.254. The IP address was also getting changed when I uninstalled CyberSitter. If I ran the Smart Configuration Utility and hit APPLY, then everything would be fine until I restarted AOL. After going to the NETGEAR website and checking out the support area, I found a newer version of the device driver and the utility software. After downloading and installing these, everything is going just fine.

Since the antenna sticks out of the card, I was a little concerned about reception but the signal strength turned out to be a little better than with my Microsoft MN-510, 11mbs Wireless USB Adapter. I do have to remember to fold the antenna in before I move the computer around since I get the best reception by sticking the antenna straight out. (The computer is on third floor and router is in my basement ceiling.) The instructions tell you to point the antenna up.

After I installed the NETGEAR WGT624 108 mbps router, the WG3111T found the new network and was operating without any effort on my part. When the router broadcast channel was changed, the WG3111T picked-up the change automatically. The reception is consistently in the "excellent" range (and runs at 108 mbps according to the NETGEAR utility), but it does drop to "very good" (and 54 mbps) often. Your reception will be based on the location of your router and receivers. And remember, these rates are theoretical and you will not get anywhere near that actual transfer rate when wireless. Go figure.