Westell Wireless USB Adapter - network adapter overview and full product specs on CNET. Credit Cards Taxes Budgeting Investing. Upgrade to Windows 10 for free right now. Westell was founded in October 1980 in Willowbrook, Illinois, and initially produced electronic equipment used for signaling and transmission on telephone lines leased to private customers. Clinton Penny, who had previously founded Wescom Switching, founded Westell. Beginning in 1992, Westell began developing ADSL products. WESTELL.COM Westell’s VirtualEdge® Enclosure is a secure access hand-off solution that offers flexibility to handle copper, coax, and fiber connectivity. The VirtualEdge Enclosure’s unique swinging bulkhead design minimizes the mounting footprint while giving both network and customer technician’s adequate room for.
You can use a combination of wired and wireless connections to link your computers to the network. For example, you can use an Ethernet cable to connect a desktop computer that is right next to the router, but use wireless network adapters to connect your laptop or computers in other rooms. Since network interface cards (NICs) are less expensive than wireless adapters, this is a way to cut the cost of your network hardware. Wired connections are also faster and more secure than wireless connections.
Generally, Ethernet cables connect computers to the wireless network if they are in very close proximity to the router.
Now that you have set up the computer connected to your router and updated your router security, you're ready to add other computers to your home network. This is a two-step process.
Note: If you're creating a wireless network for a single laptop computer, you can skip this step and continue with Step 6.


Desktop Computers
Install a Westell wireless USB network adapter in each desktop computer you're connecting to your home network. A USB cable connects the wireless adapter to an available USB port on your computer.
Note: The Westell wireless USB adapters are not compatible with WPA encryption. If you want to use WPA encryption with a wireless USB adapter, you must upgrade to the ZyXEL G-220 wireless adapter.
Notebook Computers
If you're connecting a laptop computer to your home network, you have two options for wireless network adapters.


Note: The Westell wireless USB adapters are not compatible with WPA encryption. If you want to use WPA encryption with a wireless USB adapter, you must upgrade to the ZyXEL G-220 wireless adapter.
Note: Many of the new notebook computers are manufactured with wireless network cards installed. Use Windows Device Manager in Windows XP to check whether you have a wireless network adapter installed.
6. Enter your network's encryption key, if you're prompted.
7. The status will change to 'Connected' when you have successfully connected to the selected network.
