Netgear MA521 802.11b Wireless PC Card

by Netgear

Product Details

Product Manual [1.50mb PDF]

• Item Weight: 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000093IRS
• Item model number: MA521NA
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: April 4, 2003

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Connect From Your Notebook PC Wherever You Are
Go wherever you like and stay connected with NETGEAR’s Wireless PC card. Once you’ve got one in your notebook computer, you can easily access the Internet from anywhere in your home or office, and from campuses, parks, airports, or public hotspots in bookstores and cafes. Whether you are in a conference room, waiting for a flight, or out on the quad on a warm day, you can be fully productive without being at your desk. Use this well-designed card to quickly network your employees without the time or expense of installing Ethernet cabling. It lets you experience data speeds of up to 11 Mbps, greater range with automatic speed adjustment, and greater safety with secure encryption -- all for a moderate price. With NETGEAR, Everybody’s connecting, and with the MA521, they can connect everywhere.

Unfettered
If you have an 802.11b wireless router at home, you can access the Internet easily from your notebook PC, at up to 11 Mbps. Share your broadband connection at home, or gain total mobility in the office. Achieve superior range with distances of up to 300 feet with automatic rate fallback. Auto-adjustment transmit power provides longer battery life and reduces interference.

Well Designed
Small-sized antenna prevents card from getting bent. Thorough testing ensures powerful throughput and dependable operability. The MA521 is configured to interoperate with other NETGEAR wireless products, and is compatible with any notebook PC having a processor speed greater than 400 MHz, with drivers available for Windows 98SE, Me, 2000 and XP.

Well Protected
Secure 40/64 and 128-bit Wired Equivalency Protection (WEP) encryption provides secure data communication and increased shielding from wireless eavesdroppers.

Key Features

• 802.11b wireless access with 802.11g compatibility
• Speeds up to 11 Mbps
• Superior range--up to 300 feet
• 40/64 & 128-bit Wired Equivalency Protection (WEP)
• Supports any PC equipped with a processor faster than 400 MHz

Product Description

NETGEAR MA521 -- Stay connected wherever you go with this Wireless PC Card. Once the card is inserted in your notebook computer, you can access the Internet from home or office, from campuses, parks, airports, or public hotspots in bookstores and cafes. Configured to interoperate with other NETGEAR wireless products Secure 40/64 and 128-bit Wired Equivalency Protection (WEP) encryption Compatible with 400MHz+ notebook PCs running Windows 98SE, ME, 2000 & XP Size - 3.93 x 2.13 x 0.2 with antenna; weighs 1.3 ounces 3 year limited warranty

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love this card! !!, August 29, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Netgear MA521 802.11b Wireless PC Card (Personal Computers)

I bought this card after having lots of problems with a linksys card. I have a dell laptop and I'm running Windows XP Home. The linksys card had poor signal strength and repeatedly dropped signals, even if seated next to the router. This netgear card is phenomenal. The signal hasn't been dropped yet and I have a signal throughout my house (4000 sq. ft.) and outside! Avoid the linksys card and buy netgear! I can't say enough good things about this card. I love it!

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice range; limited support, September 20, 2003

By 

W. C FENSTERMAKER (Pennsylvania, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Netgear MA521 802.11b Wireless PC Card (Personal Computers)

I bought the whole deal - 2 wireless Neatgear MA 521 PC cards for our 2 laptops and the FM114P.
I am quite pleased, so far, with how it works (granted I've only been using it for a week).

The cards were the easiest thing to deal with. No problems there.

BUT - if you're using Windows XP, be prepared to figure out any problems by yourself. The support staff, via the web, could only quote the manual for me.

HINT: if you are using the FM114P with Windows XP, DISABLE the XP firewall in the Network settings. Your computer won't be able to find the Printer Port on the FM114P, otherwise.

You're not going to need that Firwewall, anyway. The router IS a firwewall. I used to get upwards of 30-40 potentially harmful inbound events registered on my Personal Firewall software before using the Neatgear router. Now, I'm surprised if I see 3 to 5 (even with XP's Firewall shut off).

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dodgy driver install, but otherwise fine, February 5, 2005

By 

Michael Marco "friendly neighborhood tech guru" (Los Angeles, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Netgear MA521 802.11b Wireless PC Card (Personal Computers)

Several people have noted that Windows XP does not detect this card automatically. This is true. The trick is to install the latest drivers (from the web, not the CD), then insert the card. Of course this might be a chicken-and-egg kind of problem, since you need to have access to the web before you can install the card. I downloaded the driver on my Ethernet-connected desktop, burned it to CD, then installed it on my laptop. Then (and this is very important), I told the driver install program to let Windows manage my wireless networking. The built-in Windows XP wireless utilities work much better than the Netgear ones, especially if you have Service Pack 2.

Once everything's set up, the card works great, and drop-outs are usually attributable to the router or access point, not the card itself. Netgear just needs to write better drivers. Three-and-a-half stars overall, but Amazon doesn't let me assign half stars.