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I'm having trouble finding a good Wireless PCI Card that works with Windows 7 x64 and Vista x64.

Does anyone have any experience with using a Wireless Bridge to connect a wired device to a wireless network? How does it compare to using a Wireless PCI Card instead?

JCotton
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Chris Pietschmann
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3 Answers3

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The advances of using a wireless bridge is that you don't have to worry about it after the initial setup. i.e. don't need drivers and can attach multiple devices to it.

If you want to go Extreme, you can configure a Linksys WRT54GL using DD-WRT as an wireless bridge. old link | newer instructions

The disadvantages of this setup is that it is a fixed location setup and requires additional cables.

JCotton
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alexanderpas
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I purchased a wireless bridge for my desktop instead of a PCI card, since the cards weren't working well with Vista and Windows 7 (at least the ones I tried.) I have been extremely happy with the wireless bridge and haven't looked back since.

A wireless bridge is definitely the way to go for connecting a desktop to WiFi. Also, you can connect it to your XBox 360 or other networked devices too!

studiohack
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Chris Pietschmann
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  • can you provide any tips and tricks you learned when researching your decision and setting up the device? Any key features to look for when comparing devices? – JCotton May 16 '11 at 18:53
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The easiest way is if you have more than one computer. If you have a laptop that is usually stationary, then you can plug an ethernet cable into the laptop, run it to the desktop, and share your wireless connection via your Network Setup Wizard & ICS. Nothing to buy or install, but immobilizes your laptop while you are using the desktop. I like to use my old laptop with an upgraded wireless adapter for this. In any case, its a useful and easy temporary solution.

robot
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