Medialink Wireless-N USB Adapter - 802.11n, 2.4 ghz - Compatible with Windows 8 / Windows 7 / Windows Vista/Windows XP (150 Mbps)

Mediabridge said it was MY PROBLEM that the adapter would not work because they didn't know what the problem was! Despite trying a couple of dozen times AND would not enable AND gave the blue screen of death repeatedly, when I tried to shut down my computer.I have a relatively new computer, with Windows 7 Ultimate, 64-bit and have NEVER had any problem with it and have never had the blue screen of death before!This USB adapter has been quite the nightmare! The manufacturer (Mediabridge) finally told me that they couldn't help me in that it was my problem because they didn't have the answer.After about five hours on the phone with tech support numerous times, and working with techsupport dotcom and sevenforums dot com, it still didn't work and I keep getting the blue screen of death, when it is plugged in and IT WOULD NEVER ENABLE!The forum discussions are at sevenforums (dot)com, do a search for "BSOD W7 shutting down, only with USB wireless adapter plugged in"andtechsupportforum(dot)com (shutting-down-only-with-usb-wireless-adapter-plugged-in)My problems started when I wanted to change from a wired connection, in my office, to wireless.I have two other computers running wireless, off the same router, with no issues.I thought it would be super easy to plug in a USB card/lan, to make this happen. WRONG! It was super easy on my other computer.I purchased at Medialink USB adapter, due to the rave reviews on Amazon.It seemed to install correctly, after installing it in safe mode and it finally loaded the driver but then I have to go to the Network and Sharing Center, in order to enable it.I click on "change adapter settings" and on that page I try to enable the adapter but it will never enable.Someone on Amazon reported the same problem, and said to do this in safe mode. I have tried that to no avail.The interesting thing is that in Network and Sharing Center, a pop-up window says enabling and then shortly after it says enabled, but it does not show as being enabled on the screen.However, when I go to device manager, it shows the USB adapter and the driver installed and the only option there is to disable it - which seems to imply that the adapter is already enabled???Very confusing and not right, by any stretch of the imagination.This has not been a problem with any other hardware, software or anything else, ever!The bottom line though is that the adapter does not work and the software that they supply you with, does not show any networks in the area, even though the new ASUS router (bought on Amazon) is within 10 feet of me, and works extremely well with the other computers in another room, through several walls and about 30 feet away and a floor above me.I never did get it to enable but I kept getting the blue screen of death, when I try to turn off my computer, ONLY happening with the USB adapter plugged in.This has happened EVERY time I try to turn off the computer.The computer will immediately turn off as soon as I unplug the USB adapter and will not give the BSOD then!It also has an equal issue trying to start up, if the adapter is plugged in. the computer WILL NOT START UP and go to the password screen, until I unplug the adapter.The BSOD says "driver power state failure" which would seem to indicate to me that there is a problem that the driver?? But I have to admit that I know nothing about this. I only know that the USB adapter does not work and causes a problem if it is plugged in.I did call the manufacturer (Mediabridge), and to their credit, they quickly sent me another USB adapter (Medialink WirelessN WWN-USB150N), thinking that it was a defective adapter bit I know now that it is NOT a defective adapter, per se but either defective drivers or defective software or both.One of the technicians on the forum said that the driver was a couple years old and that there were new ones available but they are not on the CD supplied! I downloaded the new driver but it did not help the problem.I would really like to get my system wireless so that there isn't a wire running across the floor!!The manufacturer told me that the only time that they have seen this problem (the adapter not enabling) was when an antivirus program was present.However, they said they have NEVER seen this issue with AVAST, which is what I use (the paid Internet security version).Nonetheless, I contacted Avast and they sent me software to completely uninstall the program, without any trace left.I tried reinstalling the adapter and tried to enable it again, but it did not work and so the antivirus program is NOT the issue here... But even tried it with no antivirus program anywhere on my computer.After many hours of trouble shooting, I was finally told, "it is your problem" because they didn't have an answer.One of the technicians on the form said that a USB adapter generally does not have sufficient power to run it off the USB port but often they do manage to work.He then said, "Maybe it's time to chuck this adapter and get a PCI card..."They were right!I bought a EDIMAX PCI card http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0067I4Z6O/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00, right here on Amazon! IT IS 5 STARS and works GREAT!I could have save 5 hours of my life and a lot of grief and frustration!Do yourself a favor, open up your computer and put in a PCI or PCI-e card and install it with just one screw and it will work every time with no fuss, no muss and no problems trying to enable it!

I recently added Mac OS X to my Windows Dell Mini 9. I had replaced the WiFi card in the Mini with an Intel 5300 which is great, but there's no Mac OS support. So I was on the lookout for an inexpensive USB adapter that supported OS X and Windows - if it was wireless N also, that would be a bonus. A couple of weeks ago when I started this search, I came up empty, but this time I found the Medialink adapter, which claimed to support Windows, OS X and Linux. I decided to give it a try.When I received it I was upset to see that the packaging claimed support for Windows only, and the Medialink web site has only Windows drivers. But the instruction leaflet says that OS X and Linux drivers are on the CD and sure enough, they are.Medialink claims that this is one of the smallest Wireless N USB adapters and I believe them - it's half the size of an Actiontec adapter I recently reviewed.I first tried it under Windows 7. The driver installed nicely and the adapter worked, though I found the configuration utility confusing and could not figure out how to use WiFi Protected Setup (WPS). I did manage to create a profile typing the WPA2 key by hand and that worked. The signal strength was somewhat lower than the Intel card (with its three antennae in the netbook lid), which was understandable. Speed was excellent, though. Note that this is a 2.4GHz only adapter - 5GHz is not supported.I then tried OS X. The CD contains drivers for several earlier versions of OS X, but not 10.6 (Snow Leopard). I tried the 10.5 driver and the installation appeared to hang after a while. However, when I rebooted and inserted the adapter, everything seemed to work. This time I managed to figure out how to use WPS and it connected with my router without problems. Unlike with an AirPort or some Apple-supported device, there's no indication in the menu bar that there's a connection, but the "Ralink Wireless USB" utility that launches when the adapter is connected confirmed it was there.Medialink also includes a rather large desktop base with a hefty USB cable attached, should you want to use it. I tried it and it did work.Pros: Support of Windows, OS X and Linux (I suppose - I didn't try Linux), compact size, good performanceCons: Confusing configuration utilityEdit: December 29, 2010I noticed that the Amazon description no longer mentions Linux and Mac support, so I called Medialink to ask what's up. I was told that they found the market for the adapter on Linux/Mac OS smaller than they thought and they didn't have expertise in those operating systems, so they no longer advertise Mac and Linux support. However, drivers for those ARE still on the CD and if they get any newer driers from Ralink (the chipset vendor), they'll pass them on (on the web site, I assume.) I still recommend this adapter for Mac OS users, but be prepared to be "on your own" if you're using Mac OS or Linux. (And sorry, I can't provide support either!)