Most USB Wi-Fi adapters work reasonably well when close to your router.
Further, even computers with modern Wi-Fi specs can be hampered by poor internal antenna placement, so an external USB Wi-Fi adapter can improve your range and performance. A USB Wi-Fi adapter may give your computer a new lease on life, especially if you hope to stream 4K videos or do any serious online gaming. However, for laptops with poor Wi-Fi hardware or PCs that typically don't include Wi-Fi support, a USB Wi-Fi adapter will help bridge that gap.įor example, you might have an older laptop that doesn't offer dual-band Wi-Fi or faster 802.11ac speeds. The truth is, if your computer already provides reliable Wi-Fi, there's almost certainly no need to add an external adapter. Since most laptops already have Wi-Fi built-in, you may wonder what the point is of a USB Wi-Fi adapter. Lifewire / Rebecca Isaacs Why Buy a USB Wi-Fi Adapter?