USB WiFi Adapter: What it is, How to Use it, Features and Tips

USB WiFi adapters are one of the most recommended devices if you want to have Wi-Fi wireless connectivity in desktop computers. These types of devices can also be used in laptops, to improve the wireless capabilities of the internal WiFi card that we normally have. Currently we have a wide variety of USB WiFi adapter , depending on your needs, you can buy some models or others. Today in this article we explain everything you should take into account of this type of device.

What is a USB Wi-Fi adapter and what is it for?

A WiFi USB adapter is a device that connects via USB to our computer , be it a desktop or a laptop, and it has the appearance of a pendrive, and allows us to connect to Wi-Fi networks . Normally we must install the drivers that come with the WiFi USB card itself, although if you use Windows 10, it is very likely that it will automatically recognize the WiFi adapter, and then install the drivers without user intervention. In just a minute, we will have this device in operation.

USB WiFi Adapter: Features and Tips

The WiFi wireless adapters will give us the possibility to connect via Wi-Fi to our router or Wi-Fi access point, in case our computer did not previously have a WiFi card. In the case of laptops, all of them have a WiFi card inside, but low-mid range computers usually have very weak WiFi cards and will give us poor wireless performance, both in terms of coverage and speed.

Types of USB interfaces

There are currently two different types of USB WiFi adapters, those that support USB 2.0 are the lowest-end and the cheapest, these types of adapters will not provide us with too much real speed, although we will have better coverage (as long as they have external antennas). Those that support USB 3.0 will always be the fastest , those that will provide us with the best real speed and will not be limited by the maximum speed of the USB 2.0 interface itself. Logically, adapters using the USB 3.0 interface are the highest-end and the most expensive.

Nowadays, the most normal thing is to find adapters with a USB 3.0 interface, but if you buy a low-end device, the most normal thing is that it be USB 2.0 to save costs, and therefore, you will get a lower wireless performance in terms of speed .

Dual band selectable 2.4GHz or 5GHz

With the output of the Wi-Fi 4 standard, or also known as 802.11n, the USB WiFi routers, access points and adapters began to use the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands widely, both simultaneously and selectable through firmware . Today there are USB WiFi cards that only support 2.4GHz, and other WiFi cards that support both 2.4GHz and 5GHz.

Diferencias entre 2.4 y 5 GHz

It is essential that, if you buy a USB WiFi adapter, it has support for both frequency bands , both 2.4GHz and 5GHz. Just because they’re dual-band doesn’t mean you can connect to both bands simultaneously , in fact, while routers and APs are simultaneous dual-band (broadcast on both bands at the same time), WiFi adapters are selectable dual-band (can connect the two bands, but one band or the other, not both simultaneously) due to hardware limitations, since they do not have two chipsets inside but only one compatible with both bands.

Internal or external antennas

A fundamental aspect of a Wi-Fi adapter is its antennas. The more antennas a WiFi adapter has, the more real speed we will achieve thanks to MIMO technology, therefore, it is recommended that at least one adapter incorporate two antennas.

Regarding whether they must be internal or external, if we are going to connect in places close to the access point or router, they can be internal without problems and we will obtain a very good wireless performance, normally adapters with internal antennas are very small physically, ideal for connect them to laptops.

If we are going to connect in places far from the access point or router, it is highly recommended that the antennas be external, otherwise, we could have low coverage, and therefore low real wireless speed. Normally, these types of adapters with external antennas are physically larger than those with internal antennas, and, in addition, they usually have a USB base to connect the device on the table, and not in a rear USB port where it achieves less Wi-Fi speed. real.

If you don’t care about the size of the adapter, you will always get better performance with WiFi adapters with external antennas, but if you are going to use it on a laptop continuously, the size is very likely a problem. However, there are Wi-Fi cards with two antennas, one internal and one external for the cases in which we will connect from very far, this “hybrid” combination is ideal for not having as many external antennas.

Wi-Fi versions you should use

When we go to buy a WiFi adapter, the most important thing is to always look at the compatible Wi-Fi version, and also the Wi-Fi class, these two parameters will tell us the maximum performance that we will be able to achieve, that is, the speed maximum that we will achieve.

Today we must buy USB WiFi adapters that are at least Wi-Fi 5, this means that it is compatible with the 802.11ac standard, and therefore we will have great wireless performance. Very soon we will see the first WiFi adapters with Wi-Fi 6, which will allow us to obtain high wireless transfer rates if you have a Wi-Fi router or an AP with this standard, some of the improvements that we will obtain with Wi-Fi 6 cards They are:

  • MU-MIMO support so that the router can send us information together with other devices, and optimize the overall performance of the wireless network.
  • OFDMA
  • Energy saving thanks to TWT (Target Wake Time), ideal for laptops.
  • BSS Color, to mitigate interference with other Wi-Fi networks.

Not only is the Wi-Fi version to be used very important, but we must also check if it supports the 802.11b / g / n standards, that is, if it supports the 2.4GHz band to connect. There are some models of Wi-Fi adapters that do not support this band, and only support the 5GHz band.

Class of Wi-Fi 5 or Wi-Fi 6 you should buy

As important is the Wi-Fi version of the adapter, as the Wi-Fi class. Normally we can see a nomenclature like «AC1200» on the adapter, this means the combined speed of the two Wi-Fi frequency bands. The higher this number, the higher performance (real speed) we will get, if we see that “AC” appears, it is Wi-Fi 5, and if we see “AX”, it means that it is Wi-Fi 6.

Currently, we can find the following Wi-Fi classes in Wi-Fi adapters, depending on our needs (and budget), it would be advisable to buy one or the other:

  • AC433 : it is an adapter with an antenna, capable of achieving up to 433Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5 only, it is not dual band.
  • AC600 : it is a WiFi adapter with an antenna and dual band, we can get up to 150Mbps in the 2.4GHz band with Wi-Fi 4, and up to 433Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5.
  • AC750 : it is a WiFi adapter with two antennas and dual band, we can get up to 300Mbps in the 2.4GHz band with Wi-Fi 4, and up to 433Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5.
  • AC867 : It is a WiFi adapter with two antennas, capable of achieving up to 867Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5 only, it is not dual band.
  • AC1200 : it is a WiFi adapter with two antennas and dual band, we can get up to 300Mbps in the 2.4GHz band with Wi-Fi 4, and up to 867Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5.
  • AC1300 : it is a WiFi adapter with two antennas and double band, we can get up to 400Mbps in the 2.4GHz band with Wi-Fi 4 and 256QAM, and up to 867Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5.
  • AC1750: it is a WiFi adapter with three antennas and dual band, we can get up to 450Mbps in the 2.4GHz band with Wi-Fi 4, and up to 1,300Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5. They are high-end.
  • AC1900 : it is a WiFi adapter with three antennas and dual band, we can get up to 600Mbps in the 2.4GHz band with Wi-Fi 4 and 256QAM, and up to 1,300Mbps in the 5GHz band with Wi-Fi 5. They are high-end .

Currently, manufacturers have not yet released Wi-Fi USB cards with the Wi-Fi 6 standard, but most likely they are AX3000 class maximum (2 antennas).

Compatible with 160MHz channel width

In the 5GHz band, with either Wi-Fi 5 or Wi-Fi 6 standards, Wi-Fi access points and routers have the ability to use channel widths of 160MHz. This means that, with the same number of antennas in the WiFi adapter, we can achieve double the speed. Normally the Wi-Fi 5 and Wi-fi 6 standard have 80MHz of channel width only, if we double this channel width, we will be doubling the speed without doubling the number of WiFi antennas inside (or outside) the adapter.

What are the best to buy?

In this article we have tested a large number of WiFi adapters, both USB and PCIe, you can access our ranking of the best USB WiFi adapters where you will find all the analyzes in depth and ordered by rating. Before buying any of them, we must pay close attention to their technical specifications, both in the Wi-Fi version, WiFi class, whether it supports 160MHz or not, and even if they have external or internal antennas.