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Plugable USB 2.0 to 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN Network Adapter (ASIX AX88178 Chipset)

Plugable USB 2.0 to 10/100/1000 Gigabit Ethernet LAN Network Adapter (ASIX AX88178 Chipset): Electronics

Rating: 
Amazon Price: $39.99 $25.00 You save: $14.99 (37%). (as of May 21, 2013 12:01 am – Details). Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on the Amazon site at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.

Add a network interface to your computer via USB. Common uses are for improved speeds vs. 10/100 adapters and wireless networks, for replacing a broken internal network card, for adding a separately routable network interface, and for peer-peer file transfer over Ethernet. It is not a solution for connecting a USB device to a network.

Performance

Plug into any USB 2.0 laptop or desktop currently limited to 10/100 ethernet, and benefit from faster transfers on your Gigabit Ethernet Network. USB 2.0 supports theoretical speeds up to 480Mbs. In practice, most machines will see up to a doubling of network speed by moving from 100Mbs Fast Ethernet to 1000Mbs Gigabit ethernet via USB. Also works on 10/100 ethernet networks at their native speeds.

Drivers
Microsoft signed 32/64-bit drivers for Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2000, ME, and Win98SE. Mac OS X 64-bit kernel and 10.6 and later must download the latest driver. Driver for Linux kernels 2.6.9+ (advanced users only: must download source from ASIX and build as a kernel module). Not compatible with Tivo Series 2, Wii, or most other non-PC devices.

Included in Package

USB 2.0 to Gigabit Ethernet Adapter with standard USB type A connector to PC and female RJ45 jack to network, Quick Install Guide, and Driver Disk for Windows, earlier Mac versions, and Linux.

Technical Details

  • Add a network interface to your computer to replace a bad card, for higher performance, or for peer-peer transfers
  • USB 2.0 male A to RJ45 female adapter supporting gigabit Ethernet at USB 2.0 speeds (480Mbs)
  • Drivers for Windows 7, Vista, XP. Limited Mac and Linux support. Not Wii compatible.
  • Supports 10/100/1000 with auto-sensing. Supports auto MDIX (straight and cross cable auto-detection)
  • ASIX AX88178 Controller and Realtek RTL8211CL PHY – Jumbo packets up to 9KB on Windows. Suspend mode and remote wakeup

Product Details

  • Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 1.2 x 0.8 inches ; 1.4 ounces
  • Shipping Weight: 3.4 ounces
  • ASIN: B003VSTDFG
  • Item model number: USB2-E1000
  • Date first available at Amazon.com: July 14, 2010

Customer Reviews

Works Great on my MacBook Air and Linux workstation

 June 21, 2011
By Jeff Jacobs
This is a fantastic addition to a MacBook Air. I have the latest MacBook Air (as of June 2011) and wanted to add wired Ethernet. I considered buying the Apple USB Ethernet adapter, but stopped because it is 10/100 Mbps only. This Plugable adapter is 10/100/1000 Mbps. It’s important to note that the USB 2.0 interface limits the maximum throughput to 480 Mbps max — so gigabit speeds (1000 Mbps) will never be possible, although I’ve found the increased performance over 100 Mbps is definitely worth considering this over the Apple adapter.

I just tested some file transfers from my home server to my MacBook Air, and they transferred at 312 Mbps. Keep in mind, this particular test was possibly limited by something other than the raw network speed, however writing to the Air’s SSD and reading from the server’s disk were probably not limiting factors. This just demonstrates that this interface is much faster than the 100 Mbps maximum available with the Apple adapter.

I strongly value reliability and consistency, and although I’ve used this device for only a couple days it has worked flawlessly.

Installation was straightforward, but required a driver to be downloaded and installed. There was even a little adhesive tag on my adapter saying “Download the drivers from …” This was a painless process both on the MacBook Air, and later on a Linux workstation that I tried this device on.

I am very impressed with this device and have no reservations in recommending it to others.

Great customer service

 September 30, 2010
By Cara Feeney
This device worked out of the box. Windows Vista recognized it automatically without using the install CD. Less than 30 days later the device quit working. Vista no longer recognizes the USB device. Initially I couldn’t contact Plugable via their website as they were having hosting issues. Plugable made contact with me via email and sent me a replacement adapter, without waiting for the defective adapter to be returned. The replacement device is working properly. I definitely would buy another product from Plugable based on my positive experience with the replacement.

Perfect companion for Macbook Air

 September 2, 2011
By Nikolaus Brown
This is the perfect companion to my new Macbook Air. It is significant;y faster than the Apple 100Mbps adapter. No, you don’t get full gigabit speed from a USB2.0 device but it’s way better than 100Mbps.

It seems to max out on my air at about 38.2MB/s when pulling files from my NAS.

The ONLY downside is you have to install a driver from the manufactures website to make it work, but the driver works perfect in Lion once installed!

as easy as pluging in

 October 8, 2010
By Kasra
It is easy to install, simply plug it into the USB device and let system find it; works very well with windows xp, vista, and windows 7. It is highly reliable, fast, and cool.

RJ45 Network connection for tPrime TF201

 May 13, 2012
By Frodo Baggins
Heard the news that ASUS /Android was including this in the the OS or ASUS’ special software. Checked it out online and found a you tube link demonstrating this specific USB 2.0 to Ethernet Lan adapter. Found this “Plugable” adapter on Amazon. This adapter works great with ASUS’ 40pin connector to USB to provide LAN access. Not every location has wireless access. Recommend

Works Great

 February 5, 2012
By James Dennis Nowlan
Works great connecting to my router at 1Gbps. My transfer speeds to my network hard drive are around 20MBps now, limited only by actual hard drive transfer speed.

Running this on Windows 7 64-bit. Driver would not automatically download. I had to find the driver online:
[...]

Just what I wanted

 June 29, 2012
By tbmarchant
I recently got a Dell XPS 13 ultrabook and needed an ethernet port for work. This product was truly plug and play. I was connected to the internet instantly.

ethernet adapter used for MacAir with LionOS

 August 15, 2011
By duevy
Great device but needs a special driver downloaded for LionOS. My first attempt did not work. I had to re-install and follow step by step instructions on plugable.com/driver for the installation. Now it works perfectly. It allows even the fastest internet speed I use to work without any problem.

WONDERFUL

 January 13, 2012
By Hotdogstorm
Works wonderful on windows 7;
you will get full connection speed. which mine was 3mb sec.
The devise does not get warm, and nice little neat device.

thank you

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