When choosing an adapter, first think about where you will need to use it. Is it for your laptop or PDA that travels everywhere with you (even if just from the couch to the bed)? Or for a computer that will sit in one room at home? Or to connect your daughter's Xbox to the Web? Read on to find out which type of adapter is ideal for your situation.

Wi-Fi Adapters for the Home

Choosing a Wi-Fi adapter for the home is a much easier task than choosing one for the office or the road. If you already have an 802.11b or 802.11g access point, that will help guide your choice of corresponding cards, and perhaps even your choice of vendor. If you don't already own a wireless router or access point, see JiWire's Guide to Building a Home Network, as well as JiWire's product reviews for more information.

If you have an 802.11g router, definitely buy g adapters for all your wireless devices. If you have a b router, but think you may upgrade to g in the near future, or have a laptop that travels, choose a g adapter. It will still work with your b router, but give you more flexibility.

For a desktop, we recommend using an external USB adapter with a cable. This will let you position it for the best reception; a shift of just a couple feet, or a change in orientation, can make all the difference between a faint signal and a strong one. The other option is an internal PCI card adapter, but PCI cards require much more complex installation and have generally poorer signal reception because the antenna is typically lodged at the back of the machine -- unless you buy an external antenna.

Apple AirPort Extreme Card

We also recommend getting the USB adapter from the same vendor as your router for a guarantee of compatibility and ease of obtaining tech support. If you call asking why XYZ's card won't talk to ABC's router, it's likely that each will point the finger at the other. For 108Mbps devices, it's also imperative that you get them from the same vendor to take advantage of the higher speed mode.

The exception to this rule is Apple. Get the AirPort (802.11b) or AirPort Extreme (802.11g) card that fits in your iMac or Power Mac for maximum compatibility and seamless support from Apple. This card slot has been built into all Macs for the past few years. If you have an 802.11g router, however, or an older Mac with only a regular AirPort slot, or no AirPort slot at all, try the MacWireless 11g Ethernet Adapter, which turns any Mac with an Ethernet port into an 802.11g client. No g USB adapters with Mac-specific drivers are yet available.

Buffalo AirStation WLI-USB-G54

Some good USB g adapters for Windows users are:
Buffalo AirStation WLI-USB-G54
Linksys Wireless-G USB Network Adapter

If you're a Linux maven, check out the resources for third-party drivers here. They will let you use many standard Windows Wi-Fi adapters with Linux. There's also a great Linux wireless LAN how-to guide on the same site.

Proxim Orinoco Classic
Gold PC Card

For a laptop that stays in the house, or makes only occasional forays to Starbucks, the advice is similar. Buy a PC card from the same vendor as your router, in the same b or g format, unless you expect to upgrade routers soon. If you travel a lot and will be connecting to many different hotspots, the following b cards have wide compatibility:

Proxim Orinoco Classic Gold PC Card (Mac & Windows)
MacSense AeroCard Extreme WPE-800 (Mac & Windows)
NetGear MA521 802.11b Wireless PC Card (Windows)

If you are buying a new laptop, it may well have built-in Wi-Fi as standard or optional equipment, such as Intel's Centrino chipset or Dell's TrueMobile solution. This is a convenient way to get Wi-Fi, and it will be already all set up for you. The downside to built-in Wi-Fi is that signal reception is often worse than with PC Cards (sometimes much worse), and that you can't get 108Mbps capability built-in (if you have a 108Mbps router). On the other hand, you can choose from 802.11a, b and g solutions (and combinations), and your PC Card slot is free for other uses.

IOGEAR Wireless-G to
USB 2.0 Flex Adapter

On ultralight notebook computers that lack a PC Card slot, choose built-in Wi-Fi, or a portable USB Wi-Fi adapter like the IOGEAR Wireless-G to USB 2.0 Flex Adapter, or the SMC EZ Connect g 54Mbps Wireless USB 2.0 Adapter. These also work great if you want to keep your PC Card slot free.

For notebooks that move between home and office, or frequently go on the road see our sections on Wi-Fi adapters for the office, below, and for the road, next page.

Wi-Fi Adapters for the Office

Office desktops will likely have wired connections, or be under the control of your IT manager, so we won't cover those here. If you have a small office and no IT support, follow the advice given for home desktops, above.

For laptops, the same advice given for home applies, with a few added dimensions. First, your company may have an 802.11a network, requiring a multi-mode a/b or a/b/g card in order to travel between home and office networks.

Second, enterprise-class Wi-Fi networks usually have stepped-up security, such as RADIUS authentication and other measures. While Windows XP and Mac OS 10.3 (Panther) can handle enterprise security, not all Wi-Fi adapter drivers can.

Third, the multiple access points found in a large building environment may involve special roaming support not available in all cards.

To make sure your card will work properly in your office Wi-Fi environment, consult your IT manager. He or she probably has a list of preferred cards, which will surely include at least one a/b or a/b/g option for compatibility with Wi-Fi hotspots on the road (and at home). Ask how to set things up so you don't need to redo all your preferences each time you move locations.