Homeplugs, pci or usb wifi adapter?

[zappaDPJ]

I need a temporary network so that I can connect a remote PC to my network. My router is quite some distance from it but iPads work well in the same location. I don't want to spend much money on it and the PC is only used for surfing and email. I'll cable it eventually. In the short term I'm wondering what the preferred option would be, homeplugs, pci or usb wifi adapter?

[stevenrw]

Not quite clear on what you are asking Zap. Do I understand that you have an additional new (or old) desktop that you want to add to your existing network to be used for basic surfing, and you are asking what is the best device to use to connect it to your wireless network?
If that is an accurate interpretation of the situation, and tablets manage to connect to the router wirelessly ok then I can see no reason to choose anything other than a usb adapter.
Do you have a normal windows laptop you can try in the chosen location? Does that connect with good strength?
I've got two desktops connected wirelessly to my Billion BiPac 7800n via USB2.0 adapters. One has a pricey Netgear WNDA3100v2, http://www.amazon.co.uk/NETGEAR-WNDA3100v2-N-600-Wireless-Adapter/dp/B0018782HW and the other has a cheapo Edimax Nano http://www.amazon.co.uk/Edimax-EW-7811UN-150Mbps-Wireless-Adapter/dp/B003MTTJOY
Both give similar results, both excellent signal strength. The 150vs300 limitation is academic for me as my d/l speed is normally 30 at best. The Netgear is Dual Band which may be better for you, depending on your router, but I'd investigate the Edimax first, as its so much cheaper.
The Edimax has the advantage of being tiny, so if you need to have it in one of the front USB ports on your machine it will not stick out very far, whereas the Netgear unit is much, much bigger and could be knocked by a knee for example. I run a male to female USB cable from the back of the machine and plug the Netgear adapter into that, siting it on the floor, out of the way under a set of drawers (because the router is on the floor below).
Of course it depends on the "geography" involved. You don't want the USB adapter to be obscured from the router by the case itself, so go front or rear to suit. The only things you cant avoid are walls, floors, furniture etc, but if it works ok, there's little to be gained by cabling the machine, just stay with the USB wireless setup.
As an afterthought, I had problems with both initially when trying to use them via a USB hub, they both didn't seem to like that much, so use a case port that goes straight to your mobo header, not via a USB port on a card reader for example.
Edit: Just noticed that theres an updated version of the Netgear unit available at half the price http://www.amazon.co.uk/NETGEAR-WNDA3100-200PES-802-11n-Wi-Fi-Adapter/dp/B002RLC7WO/ref=dp_ob_title_ce so that would be a strong choice.

[zappaDPJ]

Not quite clear on what you are asking Zap. Do I understand that you have an additional new (or old) desktop that you want to add to your existing network to be used for basic surfing, and you are asking what is the best device to use to connect it to your wireless network?
If that is an accurate interpretation of the situation, and tablets manage to connect to the router wirelessly ok then I can see no reason to choose anything other than a usb adapter.
Do you have a normal windows laptop you can try in the chosen location? Does that connect with good strength?
I've got two desktops connected wirelessly to my Billion BiPac 7800n via USB2.0 adapters. One has a pricey Netgear WNDA3100v2, http://www.amazon.co.uk/NETGEAR-WNDA3100v2-N-600-Wireless-Adapter/dp/B0018782HW and the other has a cheapo Edimax Nano http://www.amazon.co.uk/Edimax-EW-7811UN-150Mbps-Wireless-Adapter/dp/B003MTTJOY
Both give similar results, both excellent signal strength. The 150vs300 limitation is academic for me as my d/l speed is normally 30 at best. The Netgear is Dual Band which may be better for you, depending on your router, but I'd investigate the Edimax first, as its so much cheaper.
The Edimax has the advantage of being tiny, so if you need to have it in one of the front USB ports on your machine it will not stick out very far, whereas the Netgear unit is much, much bigger and could be knocked by a knee for example. I run a male to female USB cable from the back of the machine and plug the Netgear adapter into that, siting it on the floor, out of the way under a set of drawers (because the router is on the floor below).
Of course it depends on the "geography" involved. You don't want the USB adapter to be obscured from the router by the case itself, so go front or rear to suit. The only things you cant avoid are walls, floors, furniture etc, but if it works ok, there's little to be gained by cabling the machine, just stay with the USB wireless setup.
As an afterthought, I had problems with both initially when trying to use them via a USB hub, they both didn't seem to like that much, so use a case port that goes straight to your mobo header, not via a USB port on a card reader for example.
Edit: Just noticed that theres an updated version of the Netgear unit available at half the price http://www.amazon.co.uk/NETGEAR-WNDA3100-200PES-802-11n-Wi-Fi-Adapter/dp/B002RLC7WO/ref=dp_ob_title_ce so that would be a strong choice.

Looking at my post I think auto correct ate some words But you've got it in one and that's really helpful, I think I'll check out Netgear

[MisterW]

Have you thought about something like this http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/computing-accessories/networking/network-routers-and-switches/routers/tp-link-tl-wr710n-150-mbps-wireless-n-mini-router-n150-21735171-pdt.html . Connect it in 'client' mode to your wireless and it'll give you 2 ethernet ports.

[zappaDPJ]

Have you thought about something like this http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/computing-accessories/networking/network-routers-and-switches/routers/tp-link-tl-wr710n-150-mbps-wireless-n-mini-router-n150-21735171-pdt.html . Connect it in 'client' mode to your wireless and it'll give you 2 ethernet ports.

So many options. Thanks, I'll take that one into consideration as well

[zappaDPJ]

I went for the NETGEAR N600 which just arrived. Installed the driver, plugged in the device and connected. Job done. So far it's worked flawlessly with surprisingly little increase in latency and very good throughput (I'd guestimate at least 80% compared to wired). It's certainly good enough for the other half to browse shoes and send mail to the wrong recipients

So thanks again for the recommendations

[stevenrw]

Glad it works ok for you Zap. Just be aware that these puppies seem to all be very sensitive to positioning, so if you don't get 4 or 5 bars on the signal strength thingy, just use the extension cable supplied and move it a bit.
Infuriatingly sometimes a few millimetres seems to do the trick, similarly which USB port you use.

[zappaDPJ]

Thanks