Price : Too low to display
HIGAIN WLS G APPLE CBUS PCCARD W/6 DBI ANT
This review is from : Wireless G Apple Cardbus with 6db Antenna (HWC54DA)
Hawking high gain WLAN card for Mac Powerbook . This card greatly increased my computer's ability to access wi-fi networks; configuration was automatic by the Mac OS.
UPDATE:
In use for one year, the unit broke in two due to the flimsy hinge.
Hawking's "support" was absolutely useless.
I will never buy another Hawking product again - poor quality and design is one thing, but ineptitude and no ability or desire to rectify a problem with a product is a very good reason NOT to deal with a company.
Hawking high gain WLAN card for Mac Powerbook . This card greatly increased my computer's ability to access wi-fi networks; configuration was automatic by the Mac OS.
UPDATE:
In use for one year, the unit broke in two due to the flimsy hinge.
Hawking's "support" was absolutely useless.
I will never buy another Hawking product again - poor quality and design is one thing, but ineptitude and no ability or desire to rectify a problem with a product is a very good reason NOT to deal with a company.
Wireless G Apple Cardbus with 6db Antenna (HWC54DA) Reviews
Does what it needs to do . Well, it seems my old Hawking wireless adapter has finally gone kaput - time to write it's obit. Since I cracked the case a a year ago, I'm not really surprised that at long last it's no longer functional; at least it did run for a good long time after that incident. In any event, I got this card for my PB G4 so that I could get WiFi on my boat when it was in the marina, since the internal antenna wasn't going to cut it. Reception went from completely unusable to just barely useable - which was about as good as could be expected given the circumstances. A couple downsides that you need to know:
1) The case is somewhat flimsy, it's fine with normal use, but don't be a doofus like me and push you computer off a table with the card inserted (I was just happy the computer was unscathed!).
2) ALWAYS power down the card before removing it, bad things happen when you don't.
Does what it needs to do . Well, it seems my old Hawking wireless adapter has finally gone kaput - time to write it's obit. Since I cracked the case a a year ago, I'm not really surprised that at long last it's no longer functional; at least it did run for a good long time after that incident. In any event, I got this card for my PB G4 so that I could get WiFi on my boat when it was in the marina, since the internal antenna wasn't going to cut it. Reception went from completely unusable to just barely useable - which was about as good as could be expected given the circumstances. A couple downsides that you need to know:
1) The case is somewhat flimsy, it's fine with normal use, but don't be a doofus like me and push you computer off a table with the card inserted (I was just happy the computer was unscathed!).
2) ALWAYS power down the card before removing it, bad things happen when you don't.
Wireless G Apple Cardbus with 6db Antenna (HWC54DA) Opinions
Works great No problems . I just moved in to my first apartment, and my powerbook was unable to pick up any unsecured signals, but my nintendo DS was. Went down to my local store and picked up one of these. Installed the driver off the CD, rebooted, and followed the 5 step instructions and I was up and running in about 10 min, with 3 min of that being boot up time. With a 63% signal from the next building over! Broadband test site said I maxed out at 1440kb/s down and 440 kb/s up. I was worried about the antenna not staying in position, but it moves easily and sticks in the position you point it in, which is important, since it's a directional antenna, and 1/8th of a turn takes the signal from 63 down to 50% (but is still fast). Currently getting a 109ms ping time... too slow for online gaming (you need 10-40ms) but plenty fast for Skype, YouTube, and web surfing.
Works great No problems . I just moved in to my first apartment, and my powerbook was unable to pick up any unsecured signals, but my nintendo DS was. Went down to my local store and picked up one of these. Installed the driver off the CD, rebooted, and followed the 5 step instructions and I was up and running in about 10 min, with 3 min of that being boot up time. With a 63% signal from the next building over! Broadband test site said I maxed out at 1440kb/s down and 440 kb/s up. I was worried about the antenna not staying in position, but it moves easily and sticks in the position you point it in, which is important, since it's a directional antenna, and 1/8th of a turn takes the signal from 63 down to 50% (but is still fast). Currently getting a 109ms ping time... too slow for online gaming (you need 10-40ms) but plenty fast for Skype, YouTube, and web surfing.
Typical high tech equipment. . Nits first:
You have to go to Hawkings web site to get the driver updates for Apple. Typical high tech. They can't do the job right when they release the product.
I'm about 80 ft away from the the router and I barely get a signal. So, it drops the connection about every 10-15 secs.
Pluses:
The stock Apple "airport"/wireless feature doesn't seem to pick up a signal on the same desk as my Powerbook. So, this card is an improvement.
I didn't find any other manufacturers who even acknowledged Apple products, let alone built a PC card to work on them. Another plus for Hawking.
Apple doesn't even make a PC card for their own product. They appear to be pushing what looks like a proprietary wireless protocol, that requires an Apple base station. [Typical mystic high tech marketing, they never publically state enough information about their products to make an educated decision.]
Once I installed the SW with the card & the downloaded update from Hawking, the card configured itself, as soon as I inserted it into my PC slot. Personally, to avoid confusion, I created a separate "Location" that I toggle to, when I intend to use the Hawking card. I configured this location with everything else off.
You have to go to Hawkings web site to get the driver updates for Apple. Typical high tech. They can't do the job right when they release the product.
I'm about 80 ft away from the the router and I barely get a signal. So, it drops the connection about every 10-15 secs.
Pluses:
The stock Apple "airport"/wireless feature doesn't seem to pick up a signal on the same desk as my Powerbook. So, this card is an improvement.
I didn't find any other manufacturers who even acknowledged Apple products, let alone built a PC card to work on them. Another plus for Hawking.
Apple doesn't even make a PC card for their own product. They appear to be pushing what looks like a proprietary wireless protocol, that requires an Apple base station. [Typical mystic high tech marketing, they never publically state enough information about their products to make an educated decision.]
Once I installed the SW with the card & the downloaded update from Hawking, the card configured itself, as soon as I inserted it into my PC slot. Personally, to avoid confusion, I created a separate "Location" that I toggle to, when I intend to use the Hawking card. I configured this location with everything else off.
Cons Review
passable . Ok, I get great reception with this card. In that respect it's a good thing. However, the hinge and antenna assembly is a poorly designed and made of flimsy plastic.
The hinge feels like it's about to break every time I gingerly open it up.
More bad news...
Terrible software and drivers. When the mac goes to sleep- expect a CRASH.
This is mac device that was designed ad build for the windows market. that kind of barely-functioning, cheap build quality, hidden in shiny white 'macish' plastic.
i'm disappointed.
The hinge feels like it's about to break every time I gingerly open it up.
More bad news...
Terrible software and drivers. When the mac goes to sleep- expect a CRASH.
This is mac device that was designed ad build for the windows market. that kind of barely-functioning, cheap build quality, hidden in shiny white 'macish' plastic.
i'm disappointed.
company doesn't deliver customer service won't respond . Do NOT order from this company. I ordered my stuff and the order has NEVER arrived. I have contacted customer service repeatedly, they tell me in 38 emails that the product was never shipped. I keep trying to CANCEL the order but they keep insisting they are going to ship one day but they can't tell me if the product is in stock or not! I am extremely frustrated. Customer service sends me auto email to contact them again if I don't hear from them in 48 hours. I never hear from them, I have written them repeatedly and they ignore me. Their phone number never works, you are on hold for hours. No one will talk to you. This company is a scam. I also think they sold my email address. The day after I placed my order I recived an incredible avalanche of junk emails. I was flabbergasted. Do NOT order from this company, they can't deliver!
Great gain. Tolerable hardware. Horrible software. . It gets me even more than the 'double' that they usually advertise as the 'increase in range' offered by this card. The rotating antenna is definitely useful in boosting signal reception, but if I had to fault the hardware itself, the rotation parts would be it.
A tiny hinge rotates the antenna up 90? and then the antenna plate rotates 340? side-to-side while sticking up out of the hinge. Granted, I haven't broken it yet, but that's probably because it feels so cheap I've had it bound shut almost constantly. The hard limit of the antenna rotating up to vertical, and not 'past vertical' even a little bit has me in constant fear of catching it on something or hitting it accidentally and destroying the hinge's thin plastic parts. The hinge doesn't spring the antenna shut either, so when it's in its down position it just kind of hovers. On the upside of keeping it shut, though, even closed the gain is much better than most internal wireless antennas.
The big fault of this card is that it is designed specifically for OS X, but the kexts and proprietary software used to drive the card are below Apple's standards for ease of use and Mac-ness, ...oh... and they cause repeatable kernel panics (unrecoverable crashes of the whole computer). I have to remove the card every time I'm putting the Mac to sleep and reinsert it after waking it. Even then, if the software is having a bad day it will crash the Mac as soon as it sees the card no matter how I baby it. No software updates for the card driver in the months and months I've had it. Having a problem that is easy to cause but that hasn't been fixed by the manufacturer is just inexcusable. Cannot recommend it except for the super-patient user with a desperate need for high gain without a clunky detachable antenna.
A tiny hinge rotates the antenna up 90? and then the antenna plate rotates 340? side-to-side while sticking up out of the hinge. Granted, I haven't broken it yet, but that's probably because it feels so cheap I've had it bound shut almost constantly. The hard limit of the antenna rotating up to vertical, and not 'past vertical' even a little bit has me in constant fear of catching it on something or hitting it accidentally and destroying the hinge's thin plastic parts. The hinge doesn't spring the antenna shut either, so when it's in its down position it just kind of hovers. On the upside of keeping it shut, though, even closed the gain is much better than most internal wireless antennas.
The big fault of this card is that it is designed specifically for OS X, but the kexts and proprietary software used to drive the card are below Apple's standards for ease of use and Mac-ness, ...oh... and they cause repeatable kernel panics (unrecoverable crashes of the whole computer). I have to remove the card every time I'm putting the Mac to sleep and reinsert it after waking it. Even then, if the software is having a bad day it will crash the Mac as soon as it sees the card no matter how I baby it. No software updates for the card driver in the months and months I've had it. Having a problem that is easy to cause but that hasn't been fixed by the manufacturer is just inexcusable. Cannot recommend it except for the super-patient user with a desperate need for high gain without a clunky detachable antenna.
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Product Details
EAN : 0603992506071UPC : 603992506071
MPN : HWC54DA
Brand : Hawking Technology
Weight : 1 pounds
Height : 2 inches
Length : 10 inches
Width : 6 inches
Binding : Personal Computers
Manufacturer : Hawking Technology
Model : HWC54DA
Publisher : Hawking Technology
SKU : DSB0009WA8I8
Studio : Hawking Technology
Where To Buy
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