Austere times call for austere measures, and that can mean looking for more economical ways to upgrade your existing technology. So if you're one of the many people who still use an 802.11g wireless router, and have never quite been able to afford the upgrade - or potential hassle - of upgrading to an 802.11n device, this TP-Link product is something of a half-way house.

Economical price
Change from £10 is rare in modern-day computing, especially for such a potentially useful device, so it's a big tick in the TL-ANT2406A's favour. It's versatile too, working with both ADSL and cable-based wireless networks. And the box boasts that it requires no software, too.

It would help if there were some cursory instructions, though. We're not quite sure if we just struck unlucky, but the only documentation inside the packaging was a pair of TP-Link catalogues. You're otherwise left to work everything else out, it seems.

Still, it's not too tricky, and the only people who are going to end up puzzled by the product are those whose router has internal antennae, or an external antenna that's not detachable. The TL-ANT2406A is designed to plug into the antenna port on the outside of your router - so if you don't have one, you're best moving on now.

Positioning your antenna
If your 802.11g router boasts external wireless antennae - as most (but not all - it's worth checking) do - then installation is as simple as TP-Link promises. Using the TP-Link's 130cm antenna cable, you position the chunky, but not massive, new antenna. Still, you may be wishing for a longer cable.

Positioning the antenna correctly is crucial, as you might expect, and a little experimentation works wonders here. If you're willing to spend five minutes or so angling the product in slightly different directions (not a million miles away from how you used to hold an aerial by a portable TV set!) then you'll get the best results.

Increased range
We noted definite improvements, as the range of our test wireless network improved. We positioned the antenna downstairs in a sizeable two-storey house, and found that data transfer rates improved by around a third, thanks to the signal boost. It's hard to argue with that for under a tenner.

Still, it's still a short term fix, really, and one that may not be compatible with your router, so it's worth checking first. But if your router's antennae are at awkward angles, or you just need better reception on your network, it's an excellent buy.

Verdict
A great sticking plaster to improve the coverageof older wireless networking equipment - and nice and cheap, too.

Company: TP-Link

Tags: wireless wireless network antennas router tp-link ieee 802.11g-2003 wi-fi data communications