Setting up 802.11b products can often prove to be a hassle but the TEW-202CF is fairly standardized. Included on the CD is a set of generic Intersil PRISM drivers for the Pocket PC operating system. Setup involves installing a half a megabyte driver via ActiveSync and you're halfway there. The usage of generic reference drivers brings a few conveniences over having customized branded ones. For one, you can simply refer to the Intersil website for frequent updates just like OEM manufacturers relying on Nvidia to provide solid reference drivers. However, in this case, it might be a moot point, since the PRISM chipset is already quite mature in this space. I won't go over the specific mechanics to set up against a wireless access point but suffice to say, the included drivers allow you to connect to both ad hoc and infrastructure environments with support for multiple profiles. Unlike many Pocket PC drivers, the TRENDnet ones allow you to use plaintext passphrases to create 64-bit and 128-bit passwords so there's no need to learn hexadecimal. I find these two WEP cipher strengths are more common than the 40-bit and 128-bit ones I've come across in drivers for the PDA. There's not much in the way of comprehensive signal strength and latency tests but the driver, with a signal meter, will stay on the taskbar in the Today screen at all times. Despite its size, it doesn't bog down the operating system much.

Crucial to the introduction of smaller 802.11b products is power consumption. Tinier products for even tinier PDAs will eventually mean something will have to give and that's usually battery life. Power management is provided with the TEW-202CF. Its drivers throttle bandwith depending on usage. So if you're simply idling while browsing a web page, the drivers will automatically throttle down the bandwith the conserve power. Power consumption is definitely noticeable. If you're going to sit on IM programs all day, you're not going to see a drastic drop in power but it will still be perceivable. The battery life is roughly halved if you're a heavy user. Watching streaming videos, moving large files around and browsing intensive websites will nominally be a drain on your batteries but now with the TEW-202CF also tapping into your PDA's power, the effects will be heightened. On an iPAQ platform, you can cheat death with 802.11b PCMCIA or CompactFlash solutions by hooking up with battery-equipped sleeves. Unfortunately, for Pocket PC devices like the Maestro, which already have a short battery life, the TEW-202CF may not be the optimal networking choice.

Performance-wise, the TEW-202CF is on par with other PDA solutions. Obviously, the demands of the Pocket PC platform will be less than that of the PC. However, I found the TEW-202CF more sensitive to physical obstructions. If you place your hand around the antenna protrusion, you effectively reduce the signal strength by half. On a PCMCIA card, I was able to get wireless access almost to the mailbox half way down the street. With the same access point and placement, I barely got a signal by the time I hit the sidewalk. These results are, of course, unscientific but I think it illustrates the compromises the product had to make for size; signal strength for portability. Moreover, the CompactFlash format lets the TEW-202CF thrive on just about every popular Pocket PC 2002 class device. And for most of these devices, the CompactFlash is built-in.

With a PDA, you're bound to turn the device on and off frequently. One thing I'm beginning to pay attention to is the time it takes for the card to power up and connect to the nearest wireless access point. The TEW-202CF is quick to find the closest access point. Upon powering up, you'll get wireless access within two or three seconds.

While the TEW-202CF is lightning fast in finding access points, it sometimes develops a propensity not to talk to them properly. Testing against two Intersil-based access points, I found some slight snafus with the product itself. Both access points were not TRENDnet products and at times, one of the access points would require a periodic reset for the TEW-202CF to work again, particularly after remaining dormant for some time. Other branded cards would continue to work without the reset. The phenomenon elicits curiosity since the degradation appears to be gradual. Toggling off WEP encryption helps enable access again but eventually, you'll have to reset the access point. That's something that is alright in a consumer setting but not alright in a corporate one or a place where mission-critical tasks need to be performed wirelessly. If you have a wireless router, too many resets might not be a good thing but this could simply be a localized matter since I didn't experience this problem with the other access point.

Overall, the TEW-202CF is a decent card with a strong set of drivers to back it up. Battery drain is a potential problem under heavy use but I think this is a trademark of all 802.11b products in this class. Many of its potent strengths, like power management, are really due to the Intersil-based drivers and the product is competitively priced, definitely reachable for the everyday consumer. The TEW-202CF protrudes beyond a standard CompactFlash memory card. Antennae can often add a huge bulk to CompactFlash cards but I liked the fact the CompactFlash design was not too oversized, unlike GPS solutions or some badly conceived networking products. Because of its solid integration into the Pocket PC operating system, you're able to use this in a variety of settings and the card works securely in the few multiplayer games available for the Pocket PC. This year will undoubtedly be a year that will bring multiplayer gaming to PDAs. Moreover, it will also be the year where wireless will make its way into the household. The TEW-202CF is a solid ticket for getting on board the Wi-Fi train.

Ratings:
[20/25] Performance
[23/25] Ease of Use
[18/20] Flexibility
[14/15] Value
[08/10] Novelty
[05/05] Longevity