Alfa AWUS1900 802.11ac 1900Mbps Dual Band 2.4/5Ghz Wi-Fi USB Adapter AC1900

Description

Alfa AWUS1900- 802.11ac 1900 Mbps Wi-Fi Adapter
Alfa AWUS1900 is a new quad antenna 802.11ac Wi-Fi USB receiver boasting router connection speeds of up to 1900 Mbps (1300 Mbps for 5 Ghz + 600 Mbps for 2.4 Gz).
It is compatible with Microsoft Windows 7, 8/8.1, and Windows 10. This is NOT Linux compatible.
If you buy for use with Linux because of third party web site claims, please do so at your own risk as we do not advertise Linux compatibility or have Linux support for this product. This connects to your computers USB port with enclosed USB 3.0 cable and boosts the Wi-Fi performance of that specific PC. This is not a router or repeater.
Its four transmit/four receive (4T4R) dual band antenna technology allows utilization of both 2.4 and 5 Ghz radio bands on 802.11ac routers for a combined max connect rate of 1900 mbps.
The antennas can be detached and extended or upgraded (extension requires optional coaxial cable extension not included in retail box).
What comes in the box:
1x Alfa AWUS1900 USB adapter
4x dual band 5 dBi gain RP-SMA antenna
1x USB 3.0 USB cable
1x clip (can be used to clip to some laptop bezel)
1x installation DVD-ROM (driver available online if PC has no DVD drive)
Chipset:
Realtek RTL8814U
Speed explanation and testing:
It is important to understand the difference between network file transfer speed and throughput speed to the Internet. Broadband companies in the United States offer speeds varying between 6 mbps and 100+ mbps. The average customer will get about 25-50 mbps offered by their ISP but may find even with a hardwired Ethernet cable connection they only get 20-30 mbps in a speed test. Broadband providers note in the small print that the speed they advertise is their max speed. But even with a max speed of 50 mbps, if you are the only user on your network you won’t see any difference in download speed whether you use this 1900 mbps product or a slower one with a max of 300 mbps.
You will see a big difference if the network has a number of users (provided the router to which you are connecting is 1900 mbps capable). If you use this adapter with an older 150 or 350 mbps 802.11n router, this adapter can only connect as fast as the router allows. If the network has a number of users and the router is 1900 mbps capable, using a quad antenna receiver like this one maximizes your throughput connections to the router giving you better overall performance.
You will also see a big difference on local file transfers. We completed a test here at Rokland where we transferred a game DVD image that had a size of 1.69 Gbps downloaded onto our router’s storage device (Tenda AC1900 router). We then attempted to transfer this file to the same computer on the network, two different ways. First we transferred it via the laptop’s built-in Wi-Fi card, a standard 802.11n card capable of 300 mbps max transfer. The file took 350 seconds to transfer to the computer.
We then deleted the file and connected the same laptop to the Tenda router with this Alfa AWUS1900 802.11ac USB adapter, and achieved an actual connection rate to the router of 1.3 Gbps (that’s gigabits per second!). The transfer time from the network storage drive was just 70 seconds. That went 5 times faster with the Alfa AWUS1900.
TL;DR
if you are using an 802.11n or older standard router not capable of 1900 mbps, this adapter won’t be of any benefit to you. You need an 802.11ac compatible router, preferably one with 1900 mbps capability. Also, if your ISP speed is 25 to 50 mbps, this product won’t get you faster Internet download or streaming times than a standard on-board laptop Wi-Fi card. But it can get you better Internet performance if you have an 802.11ac router and other users on the network also have multi-antenna receivers. Additionally, if you have an 802.11ac router, the file transfer speed to local storage drives can be up to 5x faster as our test demonstrated.
Beamforming
For best range and coverage results, use AWUS1900 with an 802.11ac router with beamforming technology. While AWUS1900 is backward compatible with dual and single antenna routers, as well as older 802.11n and 802.11g networks, you will get the best performance in your home when pairing with a router capable of beamforming. This is a special type of technology that can concentrate signal stronger in directions of connected devices as opposed to just radiating a signal evenly in a 360 horizontal pattern. This enabled better throughput through walls and other obstacles.
Why 4T4R antenna technology (four transmit/four receive) matters
Single Wi-Fi antennas are half duplex. This means they send data, and then receive it, but cannot do both at the same time. The overall throughput is slowed down. With multiple transmit and receive antennas, data can be sent and received at the same time, making the throughput closer to what you may get with a direct Ethernet cable connection.
This adapter can connect directly to a USB port using the included USB cable. A USB 3.0 port is required for maximum speed. Though backward compatible with USB 2.0 ports, it will be limited to 480 Mbps with those ports.
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This item comes with a 30-day return period
. There is no restocking fee for defective or not-as-described items, or items returned for exchange. Otherwise we charge a minimal 10% restocking fee to help cover original postage which is included in the item price. There are no other warranties on this auction, expressed or implied. The exception to this is if the description states there is a manufacturer's warranty.