Hawking Broadband Booster (HBB1) Review

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(More customer reviews)Pros: Works as advertised - makes better use of limited upstream bandwidth.
Cons: A bit black-boxy. Not a whole lot of info out there on how it works - some reviewers test it all wrong.
Despite the lack of solid information, I took the plunge and got one - and I'm glad I did. In my opinion, this is the most innovative home networking product I've seen since the first broadband router came out.
Installation was a breeze - all you do is hook it up. It is the size of a deck of cards with 3 connections (network in, network out and a tiny transformer). Plug it in and it tests your upstream line speed. About 30 seconds later, the 4 lights come on and the thing is up and running.
One thing Hawking did which is really nice, is the last LED goes from green (indicating standard traffic) to bright, super intense blue when the booster does something to optimize the network traffic. Let me tell you, once it is plugged in, you'd be surprised how much that light stays blue.
What this thing does is to prioritize outgoing traffic. Outgoing, you say. Who cares, right? That's what I said until I hooked this thing up. The small, outgoing broadband upstream pipe (usually 128k - 384k) is pretty overloaded with all the Internet-aware applications we're all running these days, and the pipe gets used pretty inefficiently.
The official press states that the booster prioritizes the traffic, so more "time sensitive" requests such as voice-over-IP, gaming and certain UDP packets are sent out first. Bumped to the bottom are the HTTP web page requests, FTP traffic and so forth. This is seems to do as advertised.
What was not advertised (and was quite surprising) is what happened when only ONE machine is on the network. We turned on my wife's computer and she connected to work via a Citrix connection - which is always extremely slow even when noone else is on the network. I shut down all the other machines on the network to ensure it was as slow as normal, then I installed the booster. When she reconnected, the booster's little blue light came on and hardly went out. The remote session became as responsive as working with a non-remote machine! Three days later, she is still happy. Now I'm just guessing, but it seems as if the booster is not only prioritizing, but is actually combining the barrage of small, outgoing packets of data into larger ones.
I didn't go crazy and bog down the network with a ton of artificial activity - plenty of other folks have tried that. I did fire up two more machines with browsers and my XBox Live. They had no effect on the Citrix session and my XBox Live session (voice and gaming) seemed a bit more zippy than normal.
A friend at work did some similar tests on his network and was equally blown away by the results.
Bottom line... I'd whole-heartily recommend this to anyone who:
1. Has more than one machine running on their home network. I'm guessing it would help a lot if you had kids doing any sort of file sharing.
2. Has a single machine performing a lot of Internet-related activity that you want prioritized (e.g. FTP's to the back of the line).
3. Anyone who runs remote connections a lot - I will definitely be recommending this to folks at work that complain about slow Citrix and Remote Desktop connections.

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Hawking Hi-Speed 54M Wireless G Router (HWR54G) Review

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(More customer reviews)I got this one as a replacement for a wireless D-Link DI-784 router that was glitchy and could not be programmed at all. And this was quite a change! While this router is not too sophisticated in terms of either available wireless security protocols or some other features, it has everything one needs to create a home network, and more.
Namely, compared to similar wireless routers from better known brands (DLink, NetGear, Linksys) this one:
1. Is PROGRAMMABLE. That is, it does not stop working or deos not develop glitshes when you change modes and parameters. (Many others present you with a whole spectrum of glitches when you start changing default settings.)
2. Supports any Internet connections, not only cable/DLS. You CAN use it with a leased line, you CAN connect it to another router with a static address, etc.
3. You CAN assign it a static IP address, and it works. (MOST others don't.)
4. It does support opening additional ports for your special applications (such as IP telephony - see below), and it works. (Many others don't do it properly.)
5. You can switch the DHCP feature off, and the router still works. (Many others don't.)
6. VPN pass-through works, and one can really connect to your work networks from home without glitches.
SUMMARY: I have successfully set the router up so that it currently supports 3 wired computers, 1 wireless, and a Vonage IP phone router. I couldn't do it with other routers from manufacturers mentioned above, because all of them were glitchy and actually could not work with static IP addresses and/or other routers and/or DHCP off, etc.
All wireless features work fine, and the speed/range are acceptable. One can use a long WEP key (26 Hexadecimal characters), and communication is fast and stable.
For those who are interested in configuring IP telephony: Vonage offers great phone plans, but it currently sends you a regular Linksys router of of its own with 3 RJ45 ports and 2 phone ports. So IF you have more than 3 computers and/or computers using wireless, you need to set up TWO routers to work together. And I succeeded in doing this with the Hawking one. Namely, I have connected the Hawking HWR54G to the cable modem, and it is the "primary" router with DHCP enabled. All 3 wired computers are connected to it as well as the wireless laptop.
The "secondary" Vonage router is connected to the primary one using a STATIC IP address (outside of the range used by DHCP). That way you can guarantee that it will always have the same address irrespective of the number of reboots. This configuration makes it possible to MAKE calls, but not receive them, because the system (primary router) doesn't know where to send incoming call data packets, and also blocks some of the ports by default (firewall function).
So I opened the IP telephony ports on the Hawking router and set up re-routing of these data packets to the Vonage Linksys router at its static IP address. Also, I had to open port ranges used by Vonage by adding these to the list of custom applications. Ports to be opened on the router/firewall:
69-69 (Vonage 1)
5060-5063 (Vonage 2)
10000-20000 (Vonage 3)
All three apps should be checked.
That way the phone works both ways, i.e. you can receive calls as well!
On the negative side, the only thing that I noticed was as follows: from time to time (once a day if you work intensively for the whole day) the router can "hang", and wireless networking stops working. As soon as you unplug it and then plug it in again, it reboots, and everything works fine. Nothing else is needed (no computer reboots). Generally speaking, this is quite a good result compared to some other models, and I can live with it. Recommended.


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Hawking Wireless G USB Network Adapter with external SMA jack, Apple Compatible - HWUG1A Review

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(More customer reviews)I've been waiting a couple years now for a wireless manufacture to "get it" and realize there is a market for a USB wi-fi dongle with a detachable antenna. For all the PC Card versions out there with detachable antenna, it's taken forever for someone to come out with a USB equivalent. Finally, Hawking has, with the HWUG1.
The version I purchased is the Macintosh version (HWUG1A). This comes with a driver from a chip maker called Ralink. Ralink has been doing a public beta with this driver for a few years now, and I was already familiar with it. It's in pretty solid shape now. I guess you could say it's ready for prime time. And now that Ralink are actually getting money for it directly from OEMs like Hawking, MacSense and a couple of others, the driver is likely to be maintained and kept in good condition through OS X upgrades. This is an important consideration because, unlike some other nework interfaces, a wi-fi dongle requires a driver apart from anything that comes with the standard Mac OS X install.
The screw on antenna uses the popular and common SMA connector. Hawking sells several omni-directional and directional antennas that are compatible. I have also attached it to a Cantenna which works very well. But lately my favorite solution is to add a Tritium Flatenna reflector. I like the Flatenna because it packs so flat and slips right into my laptop case with my papers. Ironically, the Flatenna doesn't require a detachable antenna. But I still regard this feature as important.
Overall I'm very pleased with my purchase. I wish it had cost a bit less. I have been able to purchase D-Link wi-fi USB dongles, that I was previously using with the Ralink beta driver, for as little as $20. I paid over $50 for the Hawking. Also, the D-Link comes with a nice, weighted USB stand and extension cable. The Hawking does not. But with the included, foldable antenna, there is less need of a remote stand base.

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Hawking Hi-Gain Wireless-300N Router Review

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(More customer reviews)I purchased this router after I bought the Hawking 300N Range extender. (I was so pleased with the range extender that I thought I would give the router a try.) Overall, this router is a very good ,easy to set up device. It has functioned well for me with no major issues. Keep in mind that this is a basic wireless N router with no frills. If you want something with a USB storage option,dual band capabilities,or fancy tracking software then this router is not for you. I will say that this router is a solid performer handling music and video downloads much smoother and faster than my previous Linksys WRT 610N (even with the dual band function offered by Linksys!!!) Range is about the same as with the 610N. For the money, I feel that this router gives you the best bang for your buck.

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Hawking HiGain Directional Corner Antenna, indoor, 15dBi - HAI15SC Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a "deconstructive" review of Hawking's corner reflector. Basically I took it apart so you don't have to! BTW - I am an RF engineer, so I apologize if it gets too technical.
First let me provide a explanation of what a "corner reflector antenna" is. A corner reflector antenna is a very simple, but high gain type of antenna. It consists of a dipole antenna (a dipole is just a straight piece of wire cut in a precise way) and behind the dipole is an angled metal screen or plate which is called the reflector. The angle of the reflector is typically 90 degrees, which forms a corner and thus the name. The reflector focuses the signal so it is more concentrated, which results in higher gain versus a simple dipole.
Taking apart the corner reflector is straightforward, but it does take some time and muscle. I carefully but forcefully pulled on the gray plastic end caps. After some time, the end caps finally came off. This revealed an unlabeled, rather ordinary black "stick" antenna inside the white plastic pipe. It's probably a 5dBi collinear dipole. The antenna is connected to the coax cable via a panel mount SMA connector. I was able to remove this antenna, but it does take some torque because Hawking applied thread locking glue.
Based on it's construction, I have no reason to doubt the 15dbi gain claim. However, I seriously doubt the 90 degree vertical and horizontal beamwidths that the manual seems to claim. I guesstimate that 3dB beamwidths are in the order of 40 degrees horizontal and 30 degrees vertical, based on my experience with similar corner reflectors. This makes orientation MUCH more critical. If you are 15-20 degrees off, you could be losing half (3dB) of your signal! On the other hand, such a narrow beamwidth is a good thing if other people's AP's/client's are interfering. Any other transmitters outside of the main beam will be weakened, reducing your noise and improving signal quality.
Now to analyze the coax cable. The outer jacket is unlabeled white plastic, so you can't tell who made it or what type of cable it is. It's thin, about 1/8" thick . I cut off one end to see what's inside. The shielding is quite good. It's a dual shield, foil plus braid. The foil provides complete coverage. The braid is tin plated copper and has excellent coverage, probably 95%. The center conductor looks and cuts like pure solid copper, not copper clad steel. The center insulator (the dielectric) is a clear translucent, solid (not foam) plastic. When I soldered on an SMA pin, the dielectric easily melted! It's probably NOT teflon, but cheaper, higher loss polyethylene. Based on this, it's probably a RG-174 type cable, not the lower loss RG-316. Cables of this type generally have a loss of 0.6dB per foot at 2.4Ghz. The cable is 6 feet long , so you lose more than half (3.6dB) of your signal in the coax! Making a shorter cable and/or using better cable would help.
Considering how it's made, a lot of the negative reviews make sense. It's a 15dBi antenna, but you lose 3.6dBi in the cable so effectively it's only 11.4dBi. Plus if you don't point it within 15 to 20 degrees of your target (both horizontally AND vertically), you will lose even more signal. Used indoors, there is so much RF scatter that the actual direction of maximum signal can very often NOT be in the direction of the target due to signals being bounced around. You'll have to rotate the antenna in different directions vertically and horizontally to find the maximum signal. Used outdoors or in unobstructed area, just point it at the target and you're done. However, keep in mind that this IS NOT a weatherproof antenna, so don't leave out outside where the rain and sun will beat down on it.
Used properly, this antenna really shines. It provides a tremendous value for under $50. Antennas with similar gain will cost MUCH more.

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Increase Your Wireless Network Strength, Works with 2.4GHz 802.11b /g Wireless Standards, Extend your Network Range, Great for Large Conference Rooms or Open Spaces, East Installation (No Software Required).Main FeaturesManufacturer: Hawking Technologies, IncManufacturer Part Number: HAI15SCManufacturer Website Address: www.hawkingtech Product Type: High-Gain AntennaFrequency: 2.4 GHzGain: 15 dBiImpedance: 50 ohm NominalConnectors: 1 x Reverse SMAStandard Warranty: 1 Year(s)

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