Introduction
I am always on the lookout for ways to connect to my Local Area Network without the Ethernet cable. We have MoCA adapters, which do not work for my situation simply because my cable signal splits inside the house at the cable junction box way out in the backyard. We have PowerLine adapters, which work OK depending upon several factors in the wiring. Some plugs work well, some do not.
I do have a couple of 500 Mbit adapters that I will be looking at in the coming weeks, so we shall see if the higher bandwidth provides better throughput over those 200 Mbit adapters.
Finally, we have wireless adapters. Wireless connectivity can range from great to so-so, depending upon the
- particular Wi-Fi standard being used
- particular router being used
- particular adapter being used
- distance between router and adapter
- number of walls between router and adapter
Basically, Ethernet is king, but not always available. The competing methods all work from abysmal to great, depending quite often upon factors beyond your control. Or the control of a particular device. The saying “it just works” just does not apply.
One subcategory of wireless adapters, are the “universal” Wi-Fi adapters that not only can be used on PCs and related computers, but on other devices such as wired Ethernet printers and games boxes such as the Xbox 360.
Which finally brings me to the IOGEAR GWU627 Universal Wi-Fi Adapter. I happen to currently use a universal adapter on my printer and I am very curious how well this particular IOGEAR adapter will work on an Xbox 360.
What’s In The Box?
First, we have the normal eye-catching consumer-style packaging which gives one a pretty good idea of what this product can do for you.
Upon removing the contents, we find the
- Universal Wi-Fi Adapter
- USB Power Cable
- Power Adapter
- Ethernet Cable
- Quick Start Guide
- Velcro strip
Finally, we have a few close-ups of just the adapter.
