Netgear WG602 review

The benefits of a wireless network are obvious: you can hook up two or more PCs without the usual tangle of wires.

Better still, you can wander around the house with a laptop and still connect to the Internet, swap files and share a printer - even if you're out in the garden! And now that the new, faster networking standard 802.11g has been agreed on, everyone wants a piece of the action. Obligingly, network specialist Netgear has brought out a neat little wireless access point for less than ninety quid.

To add wireless capabilities to your network, you simply plug the WG602 access point into a spare port in an existing network hub or switch, and change a few settings. You can access these on any of the PCs on your home network using the Web browser program.

Usually, even the most expensive wireless access points work over a fairly limited distance - generally much less than the advertised figures. Walls, floors and filing cabinets all weaken the signal, reducing the range even further. But despite its low price, the WG602 has a fantastic reach. We were able to establish connections at a decent speed even from outside the building, 50 metres away from the access point itself.

What we rate as a decent speed, though, doesn't compare to the figures claimed by manufacturers. You're unlikely to get 54Mbit/s under any conditions. Placing the test laptop 30cm away from the access point, where the signal is strongest, gave a sustained data transfer rate of 13Mbit/s. Don't let this put you off - it's about the norm for this kind of wireless network. We found a consistent rate of 7Mbit/s in normal use, where the laptop moved around within 20 metres of the WG602, and 4Mbit/s when we locked it in a small office 25m away.

The WG602 is easy to install and use, is attractively priced and works with any older 802.11b (11Mbit/s) wireless equipment you may have. A worthwhile upgrade.