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43 reviews
Resisting Microsoft domination with Linux.
I have two HP laptops with a few months difference in age, both are now running Linux Mint. The eldest machine took Mint flawlessly and everything worked out of the box. The second machine took the Mint installation as before but there was no wifi connection. This adapter solved the problem although by the time I received it the cost had rocketed to £40., due to shipping, import & handling taxes. Well worth it to be rid of Windows and the machines are a joy to use. This was a good example of the collusion between Microsoft and the leading manufacturers to favor Windows and block the use of alternatives.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Pricey, but works
Honestly. I purchased this product to support the open source community. It is grossly overpriced for the service it performs. I find it is a bit slower when compared to the $2-3 usb wifi
However, it does indeed work. That said, I have relied on open source Linux for sometime now and view this purchase as chipping in to the open source kitty.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Great product. Works as advertised.
Plugged this adapter into a USB 2.0 on a HP 8000 Elite Desktop with Intel Core 2 Duo CPL E8400 @ 3.00GHz x 2 running Ubuntu 18.04.1 LTS and it found my wireless network immediately. Entered my password and I was connected. Easy!Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Works flawless with Mint 18+
Linux has very poor support for the Ralink type wifi installed on my HP laptop. I've struggled with it for years. Recently, an "upgrade" killed my wifi; I spent hours searching for and testing fixes. This Atheros chip thing fixed it with absolutely no pain. Just plug it in. Yes, it is a little pricey and the shipping charge is excessive but it was the most cost effective solution to my problem.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Performance improvement after not so easy install
When I got it working, the Penguin usb adapter improved reception significantly over the on-board wifi card in my Lenovo laptop with a Ubuntu Linux OS. Getting it working properly took a while because the website instructions, while seemingly clear enough, didn't work for me. I was able to find info on the web that enabled me to shut down the on-board card that was interfering with the network selection of the Penguin adapter. While the cost of the adapter is a bit more expensive than some others, guaranteed operation with a Linux OS and the performance improvement made it worth it to me.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Works perfectly with Ubuntu 16.04.3
It's very small and unobtrusive. I plugged it in, switched the computer on and it worked perfectly. There was nothing to set up. It's literally plug and play. So easy.
My computer is in the same room as the router so it's quite close.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Save your hair - buy this adapter!!!
I recently loaded Linux Mint on an old Dell laptop to see if I could make it useable again. Linux loaded with no problem but I pulled my hair out (not good at my age) trying to get the wifi adapter to work. So I thought, lets throw some more money at the problem and see if it will work. Worked like a champ. Put it in a usb slot, powered up and it said "Hey look what I found. You got a password for the router". We were off to the races. One Dead Dell back in service.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Worked out of the box, plug N play on ubuntu
Just for the record, I tried MANY times to install another Linux "compatible" adapter using Terminal to compile the installer from the poorly translated CD instructions. NOPE. Sorry, I'm a Windows guy, just giving Linux a shot.
I was ready to hunt someone down and pay them to compile the drivers for me when I found this adapter. I figured that I could easily get a refund if it didn't do what it said, so I plunked down the price. At first I thought it was kind of high but realized I would pay somebody more than that to get the other one working.
Happily this item did exactly what it said it would do and fired up my Linux box's Wi-Fi like a boss. And with a much stronger signal than I expected. Thanks think penguin!Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
This device is NOT USB 1.1 compliant.
This product is explicitly claimed to be USB 1.1 compliant, however it doesn't actually work with a USB 1.1 host, or a USB 2.0 host at low-speed or full-speed. This device, like most WiFi adapters, only works at USB 2.0 high speed - and if that's what you need, there's no shortage of superior adapters out there for a fraction of the price.Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin
Free software friendly
It worked perfectly. I used it on Parabola OS with linux-libre kernel, and it worked perfectly with on plug in. The range is also good too!
Verified purchase: Yes • Condition: new • Sold by: thinkpenguin