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Recently, when I was looking for a way to use my business laptop in our family room without running additional cabling, I decided to upgrade my Linksys four-port DSL router with the companys BEFW11S4 Wireless Access Point. The installation went quickly and smoothly, but problems emerged when I attempted to use my laptop: I couldnt get enough signal strength.
My lack of signal was associated with the location of the Linksys AP. I had installed it in the same location that housed my DSL router—in the basement, close to all the cabling demarks.
I know that the Access Point should be located higher and more centrally in the house, but all of my cabling ran to the basement. Since I no longer had the DSL router, my options were the following: Rewire everything to accommodate the Access Point; install a hub with some rewiring; or implement some Pringles-can signal-boosting technology. Given the cost of rewiring, I chose the latter.
Thats when I came across Linksys WSB24 Wireless Signal Booster. The Wireless Signal Booster is designed to piggyback the Linksys WAP11 or BEFW11S4 Wireless Access Point. It is a no-brainer to install, and took the signal strength in my family room from 33 percent to 86 percent. Link quality likewise jumped from 26 percent to 93 percent. No configuring is required—just connect two cables and move the antennas.
If you have dead spots you would like to fill or would like to stretch your Linksys Access Point signal a little further, this is a worthwhile purchase. You couldnt hire someone to run cabling for the $76-to-$99 street price of the WSB24 Wireless signal booster.