Hawking HWU8DD Hi-Gain USB Wireless-G Dish Adapter
by Hawking Technology
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Our Price: $174.99 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $54.99 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Hawking HWU8DD Hi-Gain USB Wireless-G Dish Adapter
Customer Review: Goodbye, Comcast!
Summary: 5 Stars
I live in the Lincoln Square neighborhood of Chicago and about 200 ft. away the local library which is a public wifi hotspot. One day after paying my totally inflated cable internet bill I got to thinking about tapping into the free wifi service and telling Comcast to shove it. I started here at Amazon researching several products and this one moved to the top of my list. I ordered it and when it was delivered I connected it to my desktop and placed it my window overlooking the library. It grabbed the signal perfectly and with a consistant four to five bars of strength. Within a few minutes (installation was easy and user-friendly) I was surfing and downloading at the same rate I was through Comcast. I cancelled my cable that very day and haven't regretted it once. FREE public internet access from my home thanks to this little jem of a product and the wonderful city of Chicago!Customer Review: Increase of range
Summary: 3 Stars
This unit DOES increase the range. I am able now to use a signal in the neighboring office building (maybe 300' away) while sitting in my favorite coffee shop. It does take a bit of pointing to get it just right, but the signal is quite usable.
With my built-in adaptor, on the other hand, the signal strength was inadequate.
Complaints: the design is bulky (the dish does not fold conveniently flat or anything) and be forewarned to transport with care. I already popped the dish off its internal spring (secured by the usual flimsy plastic), but managed to reattach it (unscrewed the base and got the snap ring back on and gooped some abs cement on it to reinforce it).
Also noted in my old XP portable some complications in switching between multiple wireless adaptors; but nothing I haven't found fixable via a reboot.
Customer Review: Easy as toast - if you broadcast your SSID
Summary: 5 Stars
At first I couldn't get the dish to co-operate...it just wouldn't recognize my wireless router even though it was sitting next to it. Finally I turned on the 'broadcast SSID' option of the router and the little dish sprang to life.
I took it with me on my way to work in a small town hoping to find an open network (hotspot). I wasn't disappointed and soon located a network 'Angeline'. However with the directional antennae I soon found out that it wasn't a business broadcasting an open network, it was the private residence next door! 'Angeline' turned out to be the sister-in-law of a colleague of mine (I told you it was a small town)who hadn't enabled her wireless network security options.
All up? A great product that works as advertised (if you turn on the SSID...a detail not mentioned in the instructions)
Customer Review: Fabulous Device!
Summary: 5 Stars
Not sure why the performance of this great little antenna has been rated poorly in some of the other reviews. Works great for me. I'm in a friend's guesthouse at the moment (and no, I'm not Kato Kaelin). I was previously lucky to even pick up a signal from the main house and I only received the weakest signals from two of the neighbors. Not only am I online at lightning speed from my friend's router, but I'm also picking up 11 other signals from around the neighborhood. As others have mentioned, the device is a little bulky and takes up about 4"x4"x4" when folded down, so it's a bit awkward to carry about in a notebook case, but I'll just have to find room in my suitcase for this electronic marvel. I own a motorhome and this should be great in RV Parks which typically have terrible wifi set-ups.Customer Review: Not so good on Vista
Summary: 3 Stars
I've used the Hawking HWU8dd on a computer with XP for about a year and it works very well. I suspect that most of the people who found it ineffective failed to disable an existing wireless adapter in their computers. It's fragile but I transport it in the original container which has very good foam protection. You could drop it off a building without damaging it.
On Vista, however, the adapter works fine once you download the Vista drivers from the Hawking web site BUT, the Hawking software that shows you the available connections is nowhere to be found and the blue bars on the unit that indicate signal strength never show more than one bar even if you're on top of the WiFi antenna.
I e-mailed Hawking about this but never got a reply.