D-Link DWA-525 Wireless N 150 Desktop Adapter Network Nic

First of all, it took more than usual for flipkart to deliver this, but packaging, again was perfect.But this was an exception, I guess, usually I get all items within 2-3 days at max.

I don't know why many people didn't like this card. I have to say, it works perfectly for me, it has a good range, Windows 7 driver installation is pretty easy.

At a distance of about 40 feet (those are almost far ends of my flat) from WiFi router, and with at least 4 walls in between, it gives me 70% signal strength. I could stream youtube SD contents without any problem.

It comes with Linux driver support, while I couldn't find any other card listed here to claim that. I haven't tested it with Linux but I believe that it would work without any problem.

And one more reason is that its a PCI interface unlike PCI-E so it can fit into any old as well new motherboards (having legacy PCI slot). As for me, I didn't want to waste my PCI-E slots so I choose it over other PCI-E cards.

For home use, when you have a wifi router installed, this is a perfect choice.

The D-Link DWA-525 Wireless N 150 Desktop Adapter works well, gives me LAN speed of up to 150mbps with excellent range and connectivity; Thanks to Flipkart for delivering it within 2 days :)

Features
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* IEEE 802.11b/g/n technology
* Greater support for multimedia streaming
* Demand to Speed/Data Rate
* Supports WEP 64/128, WPA, WPA2, TKIP/AES
* Easy Wi-Fi Protected Setup

Description
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High-Speed Wireless Networking :
Connect to a high-speed wireless network with the D-Link Wireless N 150 Desktop Adapter and enjoy surfing the web, checking e-mail, and chatting with family and friends online. The DWA-525 uses Wireless N 150 technology, which offers increased speed and range over the 802.11g/b standard1, giving you a faster, more reliable wireless connection.

Connect Securely To Your Wireless Network :
To protect your data and privacy, the Wireless N 150 Desktop Adapter supports WEP, WPA, and WPA2 encryption for connecting to a secure wireless network, keeping your network traffic secure.

Compatibility Assurance :
The Wireless N 150 Desktop Adapter provides a high-speed connection to other Wireless 802.11n devices and is backward compatible with 802.11g/b, ensuring compatibility with a wide range of wireless routers and networks.

Effortlessly upgrade an existing network :
Plug-and-play installation makes it possible for this card to be quickly installed in your PC for immediate operation. The D-Link Quick Install Wizard guides you through a straightforward setup process and allows you to easily configure your PC. The included D-Link Wireless Connection Management utility lets you keep track of all frequently accessed networks.

Flipkart kudos for delivering it the next day as usual. The adapter however is another story.

The adapter failed within 2 months and I got a replacement from D-Link. Getting the replacement was fine and did not take that long. It's been a good 6 months after that and it's working so far. But I've got some many cons that I'd like to list. I've used this with a Belkin N150 router so no issues with the other hardware.

Cons
- Weak signal strength. My laptop wifi catches the same signal two points better than the adapter, when placed in the same place. But the adapter somehow manages to catch the signals of every other hub around my home.
- The antenna does not seem to do anything, changing it's direction does not affect the signal at all, it still remains weak as usual.
- Most times I end up with a weak signal sitting right next to the hub & unusually get disconnected once a while.
- Connecting takes longer than usual.
- The software has glitches i.e. refuses to connect to available network and somehow suddenly decided to connect back or drop from a connected network.
- The software is tacky and not at all user friendly.

I've now finally stopped using this adapter and prefer the wired way with my pc.

I am using it for my old desktop in the Kid's room. Installed the device then ran the CD installation (unlike what the instructions always say). I paired it up with D-Link DSL-2750U. Initially I had trouble connecting to the Wireless Router (configured as AP). It started working after a few attempts. Signal strength shows 2 bars only, flickers at times...although Internet speed seems to be unaffected. The Router is behind 3 brick walls and one Wooden wall :). I will probably try out one of those USB wireless connectors to check for any perceivable difference in reception quality.
Installation of Hardware and Software had no issues.
Flipkart's Service is impressive! (Reliability matters).

To me, this WiFi card works pretty fine. Installation was breeze. Yes I did install the driver first, and the card next. Looks like, Dlink provided Wireless Connection manager sits on top of Windows WiFi stack and enables this card. So when installing make sure your Anti Virus / Firewall is configured properly to allow the software install the drivers. This could be a reason for driver failure in Windows 7. Some security tweak in Windows 7 could fix that. I am not sure anyway.

Performance wise, I get full signal strength with my router 28 ft away and with a wall in between. No packet drops or signal drops so far.

Overall, this is a good Wireless Adapter for the price. Works well in Windows XP.