Wireless Reviews

Wireless Performance

NOTES:
• Testing was done with a USR5410 Cardbus client card in a WinXP Home Dell Inspiron 4100 laptop, unless otherwise noted.

Since the 5450 is the first TI-based 802.11g product that I've tested, I gave it some special attention, checking it with Broadcom, Intersil, and Atheros-based clients. But first let's see how it did in my usual four-location Chariot throughput test shown in Figure 6.

Figure 6: Four location 802.11g throughput comparison
(click on the image for a full-sized view)

The good news is that throughput held up well in the tougher Location 3 and 4 tests and is better in those locations than both Broadcom and Intersil-based 11g products that I've seen so far. However, throughput variation - even under best-case signal conditions - is greater than found in Broadcom and Intersil-based products. Figure 7 shows the four-location test results for the Broadcom-based Linksys WRT54G / WPC54G combination so that you can do your own comparison.

Figure 7: Four Condition Throughput test - Linksys WRT54G & WPC54G
(click on the image for a full-sized view)