The Compaq WL Series wireless net working products provide basic, no-frills 802.11b connectivity. While the wl400 access point (US$899 list) and wl100 Wireless LAN PC Card (US$199) are among the least expensive in this roundup, they placed second to last (the Apple took last place) on our throughput test, with about 23 percent less throughput than the speedy Cisco Aironet. We also found Compaq's access point management and client software to be very limited, especially when compared with the software that came with the Cisco and 3Com products. This product may appeal to all-Compaq shops, but given the product's sparse feature set and lagging performance, we would have a hard time recommending it to anyone else.
The wl400 AP unit is largeââ,¬"about twice the size of the Cisco Aironet's comparable unit. Its two antennas can swivel up and down to ac commodate desktop or wall mounting. A Windows- based wizard, which can run on any PC in the network, assists with the initial setup of the access point. This wizard automatically locates unconfigured wl400 units and lets you set the IP address, station name, and other basic operating parameters. The wl400 lacks a browser-based configuration utility; you perform ongoing configuration and maintenance using the Windows-based access point Manager. While simple to use, it provides no network statistics or monitoring features, as do the Cisco Aironet and 3Com products.
The wl100 PC Card is the slimmest of the bunch and simple to install. It comes with some basic signal strength-monitoring and configuration tools, but Compaq doesn't provide any other site survey tools with the system. For installations where security is a big concern, Compaq offers only 40-bit encryption cards (though 128-bit encryption should be added by the time you read this), but in our testing, performance fell another 9 percent with 40-bit encryption activatedââ,¬"a bigger drop than in any other product except the Lucent Orinoco Wireless Network.
All in all, unless you're a Compaq shop, you should probably look elsewhere.
Compaq WL400 access point, US$899 list. WL100 Wireless LAN PC Card, US$199.
PC Magazine Rating: Average
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