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Introduction

It comes as little surprise that broadband internet connections would lead to an explosion in the growth of home networks. In the past few years, home networking has gone through big changes, first luring in the technically adept but eventually leading to a mainstream networking renaissance. No longer was the end user required to setup a PC router based off of Linux or Sygate or any other sort of proxy/NAT software. Wireless took the networking craze a step further. No longer did CAT5 have to be dropped through the attic or run along the floor. In general, it was clean and easy to set up and more than sufficient for casual web browsing. The allure of being able to share a single internet connection with multiple machines led to the rise of familiar names such as D-Link and Linksys and some smaller names that may not be as instantly recognizable such as Compex.

Compex is not likely to be a company that is rattled off by the average consumer when they think of networking products. Based out of Anaheim, California, Compex was founded way back in 1987 by four engineers. Compex differentiates itself from its competitors by offering unique features not found on competing products. This is especially important as other major OEMs including the likes of Gigabyte are positioning themselves to cash in on the ever expanding wireless market. The wireless market has gotten especially crowded with another behemoth, Intel, integrating wireless support directly onto their chips and chipsets. In the past we have taken a look at a couple other Compex Products some that we liked and some others that had some mixed results. Today we will take a look at the NetPassage 26G and the iWavePort WL54G PCMCIA card, some of the first Wireless G products from Compex.