Within the do-it-yourself community of computer enthusiasts
ASUS may be best known for their motherboards and video cards, but they offer plenty of other hardware to help complete your build. One area where people might not necessarily think of ASUS is networking hardware. Whether you need a router, switch, or adapter - and whether you want to go wired, wireless, or over power lines - they probably have a few choices for you to consider.
In this review we're going to take a look at two of their compact wireless N network adapters; the USB-N10 and the USB-N13. These two devices can connect to just about any system with a USB 2.0 port and provide them with wireless data transfers up to 150Mbps (300Mbps with the USB-N13 under the right conditions). The USB-N10 (shown on the left in the image above) is about the size of an adult thumbnail, while the USB-N13 (shown on the right in the image above) is perhaps about the size of an adult pinky finger.
Before taking a look at either network adapter and how they perform, let's cover some published information about both of them.
USB-N10 Features and Specifications:
From the
official USB-N10 product page...
» Excellent Connection - Strong and convenient USB connection for fast downloads, rapid file
transfers, and low-latency media streaming
» PSP XLink Kai Support - Play system games with PSP users worldwide via the internet
» EZ WPS - Improve Wi-Fi security with easy WPS Wizard
» Support the newest Window 7 and Mac 10.6 Operating Systems
» Network Standard : IEEE802.11b, IEEE802.11g, IEEE802.11n
» Interface: USB2.0
» Antenna: 2 * Internal Antenna (3D enhanced MIFA antenna on USB connector ).
» Operating Frequency: 2.4GHz
» Operation Channel: 11 for N. America, 13 Europe (ETSI), 14 Japan
» Data Rate:
» 802.11n: Tx: 150Mbps (Max) / Rx: 150Mbps (Max)
» 802.11g: 54/48/36/24/18/12/9/6Mbps
» 802.11b: 11/5.5/2/1Mbps
» Output Power:
» 11b: 17 +/- 1 dBm
» 11g: 15 +/- 1 dBm@54Mbps
» 11n: 13 +/- 1 dBm (14.5dBm)
» Dimensions: 30mm*17mm*8.5mm
USB-N13 Features and Specifications:
From the
official USB-N13 product page...
» Secure and Consistent connection - Forceful and well-designed for fast download, file transfer
and media streaming
» 2-in-1 device for wireless connection sharing - Enable your WLAN adapter to easily turn into
a wireless AP with design-in software AP
» PSP XLink Kai Support - Game with worldwide PSP player over the internet
» EZ WPS - To configure Wi-Fi setting in steps with WPS hardware push button
» Network Standard: IEEE802.11b, IEEE802.11g, IEEE802.11n
» Features: WPS Push Button (PBC mode) to launch WPS wizard
» Interface: USB2.0
» Antenna: 2 on-board PCB antenna
» Operating Frequency: 2.4GHz
» Operation Channel: 11 for N. America, 13 Europe (ETSI), 14 Japan
» Data Rate:
» 802.11n: Tx: 300Mbps (Max) / Rx: 300Mbps (Max)
» 802.11g: 54/48/36/24/18/12/9/6Mbps
» 802.11b: 11/5.5/2/1Mbps
» Output Power:
» b mode: 18dBm
» g mode: 15dBm
» n mode: 15dBm
» Dimensions: 70 mm (L)* 22 mm (W)*10 mm (H)
The first difference you will notice is that the USB-N13 is much larger than the USB-N10. Additionally, it offers more in way of features, including a button for quick WPS setup and the ability to easily function as a WiFi access point. One other specification to note is that the USB-N13's maximum data transfer rate is 300MBps, while the USB-N10 is 150Mbps.
