Can I connect both a PC and a Mac to a wi-fi home router?

Question

I have a PC desktop (Windows XP and about 4 years old) at home and will be getting a Mac laptop. I am planning to get a wi-fi router, but I'm not sure which models work with both Mac and my old PC. Which router and other necessary adapters should I get if this is possible?

Answer 1

You can absolutely do that with no problems at all.  I do that with my Dell Inspiron and my MacBook Pro.  A router is a router.  I have a D-Link DIR-655 router and it cooks-I have no problems whatsoever.  That Pre-N router is regarded as the best for residential use and will run you $90-use to be $120.  Its 14X faster than a G speed and has the broadest range.  In addition, it's color is White (Like the whiite of Macs) and made of a heavier,sturdy, thick steel.  It also has MIMO and QOS that enable the clearest VOIP without interrupting speed to your other wireless devices. Beyond that, if you already have a modem, you should be good to go.  If you buy the modem and router together and contact your cable company,you should be able to get some money back (discount) if you buy it from your retail store like circuit city.

Answer 2

It shouldn't be that difficult to set up for either Mac OS X or Windows XP/Vista. All you need to do is set up the router through your browser, usually at address 192.168.x.x, and then copy the appropriate settings to the respective WiFi settings control panels to access the router (I'd write down or type down, in TextEdit or notepad, save and print out your proposed settings first though to avoid locking yourself out of your WiFi network). No one brand will give you anything over another when it comes to compatibility. It's all fairly standard. Any respectable N router will be compatible with A, B. and G hardware. And any respectable N hardware will ratchet down to the speed of any A, B or G router.

Just remember that your router can (and should) be accessed through your browser if the proprietary software fails you. Just follow the instructions that come with your router. The Airport Extreme can work with Windows as well as Mac OS X. It's just an N router with some extra Mac-centric features that may work with Windows too. Those features, IIRC, are standard tech too. Meaning they can be used with any OS that's standards compliant. I think the Time Capsule feature is simply a NAS for instance.

And if you accidentally lock yourself out of the WiFi by setting up the router first with security measures you can always reset it or access the settings by connecting directly into the router with an Ethernet cable and browsing to the 192.168.x.x page. It'll tell you how to do it in the instructions.

I heard Buffalo routers are good. I use Netgear. Lots of people use Linksys. And always set up your security right. The router may work out of the box, but that doesn't mean it's set up to be secure. That's up to you. Use WPA. Change the SSID from linksys or default to something you'd like. Change the password to the router. Turn off SSID broadcast (not that that helps against experienced hackers, but it's a deterrent at least). Nevermind MAC address filtering, that's a useless security feature. Turn off UPnP, that can get you into trouble.

Answer 3

Routers are not dependent on a particular operating system.

Answer 4

Both MAC and the PC use the same wireless and Ethernet protocols. The router is OS independent, no adapters are required.

Answer 5

It is not the type of computer (i.e. PC, Mac, etc) that matters, nor the brand of router that matters.   What matters is the wireless technology type (i.e. 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, etc). Different technologies run at different speeds, for example 802.11b runs at 11mb/sec, 802.11g runs at 54mb/sec, and 802.11n runs about 275mb/sec.  I would get a type of router that is the same for all.   If your cable modem or DSL modem is located next to the desktop PC, you may not need a wireless card for it, instead you could get a router with a built in ethernet switch, and use an ethernet cable.    As to the Macintosh Laptop, you should see which Airport card it has.

If it is the original Airport card (very old models of iBook), it is 802.11b.    If it is the original Airport Extreme card, it will be 802.11g.   If it is one of the newest models of Macbook or Macbook Pro, it is likely 802.11n.   With this information, I would recommend getting a router that is for the technology your computer has.  Often the newer ones are backward compatible (except 802.11a), but this sometimes causes them to run slower.  For example, a computer with 802.11n card can be used on a 802.11b or 802.11g router, but at a slower speed.  Additionally, a 802.11b router can allow 802.11n computers to connect, but at 802.11b speeds.

Answer 6

Any wireless router will do. You dont have to change your router for different operating system. If you iMac has ability to connect to the wireless network then it should be able to connect to any.