In the first of our Tech on the Go Series we take a look at a handy little product from Asus. It is named the WL-330gE. However its name does not give you much of a clue about what it really is. Simply put the WL-330gE is a pocket wireless router. By itself that is great but there is more to it. It is a wireless router that can connect to other wireless routers; you do not need to plug in an Ethernet cable to use the WL-330gE. This makes is perfect for protecting your computer [or a group of systems] at a public hot spot.
Read on as we take this intriguing device for a spin.
Packaging:
The WL-330gE comes in a very busy box with a nice little window on the front to show off the device.
Due to the small size of the packaging it really is not loaded down with information. On the front of the box you get a basic description and a few highlights but the impact of these are somewhat reduced due to the display of the actual product. The artwork on the packaging also does not look in sync with a technology product. The decision to use a window to show off the product makes sense as you can actually see just how small this is, but I think a picture with something for reference would have been a better idea.
The back of the box does somewhat better and provides you with a diagram of where the WL-330gE fits into a network and a visual for all of its uses.
Asus packs quite a bit into this box, basically everything you would need to use the WL-330gE on the road, they also give you a nice padded pouch to put it all in.
On the Green side there is far too much plastic used in the packaging and internally (ties and bags etc). Asus did not go for recycled paper for the internal tray but used regular cardboard.
Construction and Features:
The WL-330gE is tiny, I mean it is tiny. I cannot say that enough, it is very small and compact. It also does not weigh much at all. In this sense it is perfect to carry around on a permanent basis. You could throw this in your laptop bag and not notice the extra weight from the device and all of its accessories.
The front of the WL-330gE has the usual indicator lights to let you know if you have power and Ethernet or wireless connectivity.
The business end has an RJ-45 port, power port and the usual reset button.
The back is pretty plain with the exception of the mounting hole meaning you could permanently mount this on a wall somewhere. And my favorite feature of the back is the tiny print saying “Factory Default Settins[SIC]” I cannot look at the back without chuckling over that one.
Overall the Wl-330gE feels cheap due to its light weight and small size after using it I can honestly say it is anything but cheap.
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