Should I Upgrade USB-N66 on USB2.0 Device?

[IanEnc]

Should I Upgrade USB-N66 on USB2.0 Device to AC?

I will be upgrading my network to 802.11ac in the coming weeks (thank you income tax return!), and have been determining if I should be upgrading my adapters on my devices that only support USB2.0?

At the present time, I am using the ASUS USB-N66 and am getting 10-12MB/s (80Mbps - 96Mbps) real world transfer rates on the 2.4Ghz band throughout my network. This is to and from my wired client. Unfortunately, my current setup only has 10/100 LAN ports.

With the limitations of USB2.0 in devices that cannot be upgraded, would it be beneficial for me to upgrade to AC adapters on said devices?

 

[stevech]

I will be upgrading my network to 802.11ac in the coming weeks (thank you income tax return!), and have been determining if I should be upgrading my adapters on my devices that only support USB2.0?

At the present time, I am using the ASUS USB-N66 and am getting 10-12MB/s (80Mbps - 96Mbps) real world transfer rates on the 2.4Ghz band throughout my network. This is to and from my wired client. Unfortunately, my current setup only has 10/100 LAN ports.

With the limitations of USB2.0 in devices that cannot be upgraded, would it be beneficial for me to upgrade to AC adapters on said devices?

Opinion: buying 11ac client upgrades and 11ac router - poor ROI. Fancy dinner(s) out, other recreation better ROI.

 

[IanEnc]

Opinion: buying 11ac client upgrades and 11ac router - poor ROI. Fancy dinner(s) out, other recreation better ROI.

Very true, stevech.

Not to worry, though. I have reserved a good chunk of my refund for that fun stuff.

I'm currently using the wireless capabilities built in to my vDSL modem provided by my ISP, and my wireless signals are getting way too much interference from the neighbours in this new place I just moved to. On channels 1, 6, and 11, I am sharing the channel with at least 6 others, and overlapping up to 10 other networks.

It's too bad that my refund isn't enough to buy me a 5 acre lot.

 

[IanEnc]

I guess this question isn't juicy enough for anyone to chime in and contribute anything objective.

For anyone else browsing these forums that may have even the slightest interest in my inquiry:

From what I have been reading, the limitations of USB2.0 would definitely make using an AC adapter redundant and useless. The theoretical limit of 480Mbps of the USB2.0 would not be able to provide any gain on the theoretical air speeds of the 450Mbps - 600Mbps on the 2.4GHz band of the AC1750 or higher routers on the market today. There definitely is no chance in reaching the 1300Mbps+ on the 5GHz side of bands.

The independent reviews on lesser known sites show that the USB-N66 significantly outperformed the USB-AC53 (which is only USB2.0). Whether this is firmware related or a result of the 3 antennas of the N66, I can not comment for certain.

I will leave the USB-N66 adapters on the USB2.0 devices, and save my money for at least another fancy dinner.

 

[stevech]

It's too bad that my refund isn't enough to buy me a 5 acre lot.

I vaguely remember income tax refunds. In my youth!

Tweak your withholdings! Don't give Uncle a nickle more than you have to- tax refunds are you lost interest income!

 

[sfx2000]

I will be upgrading my network to 802.11ac in the coming weeks (thank you income tax return!), and have been determining if I should be upgrading my adapters on my devices that only support USB2.0?

At the present time, I am using the ASUS USB-N66 and am getting 10-12MB/s (80Mbps - 96Mbps) real world transfer rates on the 2.4Ghz band throughout my network. This is to and from my wired client. Unfortunately, my current setup only has 10/100 LAN ports.

With the limitations of USB2.0 in devices that cannot be upgraded, would it be beneficial for me to upgrade to AC adapters on said devices?

Gotta love Tax-Season...

If you've got 802.11n clients in the 2.4Ghz/5Ghz space, upgrading doesn't really made sense to be honest.

2.4Ghz won't be any faster than what you have right now...

 

[KGB7]

You didnt say if you are using laptops or desktop computers.

What ever they are, its worth upgrading internal Wifi cards to AC, then you will see an actual benefit from AC speeds.


If usb-n66 is connected to a "smart" TV via usb, then you wont see any benefit if you upgrade to AC hardware.

 

[IanEnc]

Thanks for the additional responses.

My laptops and pc clients will be upgraded to AC either internally or USB3.0. This question was more towards the Smart TV and gaming consoles that are limited to USB2.0.