Thoughts on the TP Link TL-WN725N 150Mbps Wireless N Nano USB Adapter

The time had come for me to relocate my working space.  My lovely wife suggested she make space in her art area of the front room for my desk.  Seemed perfect to me!

So, I move my work computer and settle into this new space.

"Hmmm, I could really use a desktop here.  Maybe get more into digital photography?  Maybe do more with my extracurricular programming projects?"  And, there it started.

The next day I disconnected our DVD/Hulu/Netflix computer that we have used once in the last ten months or so, and relocated it to my work area.  Only one thing...  Networking.  Only a few things are wired in our house, such as the Dish Satellite receivers and a Verbatim NAS server.  The family's computers all use 802.11 wireless.  With two wireless routers/APs a person could walk almost anywhere on our property and still be connected.

At any rate, that meant running a CAT5 cable from a router to my workspace so that this computer could talk to the internet, or purchasing a wireless card for the desktop.    While ordering holiday gifts for the family on Amazon, I happened onto the TP-Link TL-WN725N.

At a measly $8 I thought...  Why not give it a shot.  And now that I have been running the adapter for about 48 hours, I thought why not write some of my thoughts about this little thing.

First of all, the packaging is nice and instructions clear.  5 Stars

On my Windows 7 Ultimate machine, it did not attempt to install a driver as soon as it was plugged into an open USB port. The included mini-CD quite seamlessly walked me through the installation.  5 Stars

After installing the drivers and a little TP-Link Wireless Configuration Utility, and the obligatory reboot, I was able to connect to either of my APs without problem.  It is up and running.  5 Stars.

Side by side, I compare how many other wireless networks my work laptop can see, versus my desktop with  the TP-Link adapter.  On my laptop I see six networks.  On the desktop I only see my two APs.  Sensitivity is not all that great.  3 Stars.

In a side-by-side comparison I transferred about 26GB of files back and forth between the desktop and the Verbatim NAS, and then between the NAS and my work laptop.  I was shocked...  My desktop required nearly 30 minutes more to copy the files down.  Not sure if this is due to the USB or the wireless card or something else.  I just know that network I/O is not as speedy as my laptop.  3 Stars.

In summary...  If you want to give wireless capability to a desktop or older laptop and do not expect amazingly fast internet access, this little adapter is worth the money.  The TP-Link TL-WN725N may be tiny but can get the job done for the typical person who browses the web, handles e-mail, watches a few videos and plays a few online games.  Overall, I give this 802.11n adapter a 5 out of 5 stars because of its ease of installation, price, stability and clear instructions.  For me, it gets the job done fine.