Phonex Neverwire USB

Reviews: Networking

Author:
Editor:
Sponsor:
Published:

Richard Poelling
Kurtis
Phonex
Apr. 17, 2004

<< Previous

Next >>

Opening the Box

This product is extremely straightforward. Opening the Neverwire 14 box will reveal the base unit, a power cord, instruction manual, and an included Cat5 cable. The unit is not that large and also has convenient wall mounting holes on the side. The Neverwire USB is even simpler. Included with that box was the USB unit which plugs into the wall, a USB cord, an Installation CD, and a manual.

Initial Setup

To start out, I first plugged in the Neverwire 14 into a wall outlet and then connected it to one of my local Ethernet switches. This is a very simple process, but you will need to check and make sure that the device is set to the hub setting. The Neverwire devices can be used to connect to hubs or to just directly connect two computers. After plugging in the Neverwire 14, I moved on to the USB, which was a bit more involved than the Neverwire 14, but still not too hard.

To begin using the USB I first installed the USB CD. Reading the directions indicates that the software must be installed BEFORE the device is plugged in, so I actually followed the directions on screen and I had the device up and running in no time. I used Windows 2000 for all testing. After installing the USB, it was recognized and I moved on to configuration.

Network Setup

<< Previous

Page 2 of 4

Next >>

Page 1: Introduction
Page 2: Opening the Box, Initial Setup & Network Setup
Page 3: Testing
Page 4: Final Analysis & Conclusion

Subscribe to Powerline [more info]

Add Comment

3 User Comments

1 - Posted by A Person on April 17, 2004 - 11:51 pm

I decided to try this technology out back in December so I bought the Gigafast Homeplug products. Well, after I bought the stuff I realized that the software doesn't support windoze 98, and considering that I have 2 win98 boxes this was a big disapointment. After setting up the rest of the computers I was informed by the Gigafast software that my power lines were poor quality and I was only going to be able to get 1Mb/s max. So I returned the stuff and went with 802.11g.

I have a feeling, based on my experience with Gigafast in the past, that my house (built in the 80's) does not have that bad of power lines. Hopefully anyone who uses Phonex has a better experience with them than I did with Gigafast.

Eventhough I sound bitter, am really happy I ended up going with wireless; the bandwidth is higher than my ISP can ever provide me and my few wireless devices work everywhere in my house.

2 - Posted by Kurtis on April 18, 2004 - 12:24 am

i have an 802.11b wireless network in my house and i love it. no regrets. i'd upgrade to 802.11g, but i don't really need to so I'll save myself the $ for now heh

3 - Posted by Rich on April 18, 2004 - 4:33 pm

I was worried that I might have problems with the wiring in my house. The house (and wiring) is circa 1968. I have fuses, not the circuit breakers that are found in most modern construction, and only 100 Amp service instead of 200 Amp. Why I haven't blown more fuses than I have is still beyond me. Amazingly, when you look at the graphs in the review, you can see that entire house has no problems. I am still looking at implementing a wireless solution in my home, yet have not settled on one yet. The biggest problem with the Phonex was finding a free plug to plug into. For some reason most of my wall outlets are full already. :P

Add Comment

To add a comment without being a member, you may omit the password field, but you must enter your name (or nickname) along with your comment. * Denotes required fields.