Wi-Fi

Google's Chromecast has gained quite a following of people looking for a cheap, simple way to stream content to their TVs. Part of the device's appeal is its ease of use and extensibility through the use of apps, but it is reliant on a steady Wi-Fi signal. If this represents a problem in your home, there's now a solution.

The new Ethernet Adapter for Chromecast does very much what you would expect -- it adds a wired Ethernet port to Google's streaming dongle. This is great news for anyone with a flaky Wi-Fi signal, or those looking to use Chromecast beyond their router's normal range.

Windows 10 is about to arrive and with it comes a host of new features, like Cortana. There's also Wi-Fi Sense which is designed to allow a Windows Phone to connect automatically to any open network it knows about, and even accept the terms of use automatically. It's a nod towards convenience, and that's something Microsoft needs in its Windows 8x replacement.

Security firm AVG, makers of very good anti-virus software, both free and paid, see the inherent problems with this, and there are several.

Say it’s up to you to pick a Wi-Fi solution. If the Wi-Fi experience is great -- fast and dependable -- you’re a hero. But if performance is slow or connections drop, people get grumpy.

Here, in plain English, are five culprits behind bad Wi-Fi and how to avoid them.

As more official apps are available in Store, more consumers will start paying attention to Windows Phone and, perhaps, be willing to switch from their Android smartphones and iPhones. The selection is improving, even if at a slow pace, and it is nice to see new known developers embracing the platform.

So, having Eyefi Mobi finally available on the platform is a major win. While not known by the majority of users, in the sense that Facebook is at least, it is a very important app for photography enthusiasts. here is what you need to know about it.

If your Wi-Fi isn’t performing well then using a scanner to check for competing networks can often tell you more.

Unsure where to begin? Acrylic WiFi Free claims to be "the most advanced WLAN Scanner", which sounds encouraging. It’s free for personal use and runs on Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10, so we grabbed a copy to take a closer look.

Earlier this week The Register published a story about WiFi Sense, saying the feature "smells like a security risk". The publication is making a huge deal out of it, even though the way it works has been known ever since Microsoft introduced it in the Windows Phone 8.1 preview builds more than a year ago. So it is not news today, and acting like there is something noteworthy to say about it at this point seems disingenuous to me and, quite frankly, clickbait.

For those who are not familiar with it, WiFi Sense is a feature that allows Windows Phone 8.1 -- and Windows 10 -- users to easily share access to Wi-Fi passwords with their contacts and friends. In this day and age, if Apple or Google introduced such a feature the media would go crazy. But, no. Microsoft is criticized for trying to make things easy for its users. How silly is that? Some of the things The Register says about Wi-Fi Sense reveal no proper knowledge of the feature.

It's not uncommon for businesses to have multiple access points, whether on a single site or in multiple locations. This can lead to challenges when it comes to managing access and ensuring software and security are up to date.

To make life simpler NETGEAR is launching a software as a service platform called Business Central designed to provide small to mid-sized organizations with an affordable way to establish and manage key IT networking services and network devices.

According to Gartner 85 percent of enterprises expect to have policies for allowing employee-owned devices in the workplace by 2020. This gives administrators a growing challenge in securing, supporting and managing them.

High-performance wireless specialist Xirrus is launching a new service suite called EasyPass, designed to manage mobile device connections to Wi-Fi networks in the simplest way and with minimal IT involvement.

There is currently a battle underway over the Internet of Things. Samsung has its ARTIK platform while Huawei is pinning its hopes on its tiny LiteOS -- and Microsoft has Windows 10's AllJoyn feature which could prove pivotal in the widespread uptake of the IoT.

There is still plenty of scope for innovation, and it seems that the next great leap forward for connected devices could be the delivery of power over Wi-Fi. A team of US researchers have developed a technique that can be used to power small devices without the need for wires or battery changes.

In a world increasingly dominated by mobile devices it's easy to forget that many people, particularly in business environments, are still using desktop PCs.

Desktops of course tend not to come with built-in Wi-Fi which means adding a PCIe card or a USB wireless adaptor. With the KT9001, what Inateck has produced is a PCIe card that's a clever mash up of wireless adaptor and three port USB 3.0 hub.

A vulnerability that leaves millions of routers and other Internet-connected devices open to remote hacking and similar cyberattacks has been discovered.

Stefan Viehbock of SEC Consult Vulnerability Lab explained in his blog that a piece of proprietary software developed in Taiwan, called NetUSB, is the root of the security flaw.

Wi-Fi access is growing all the time and that’s hardly surprising considering the amount of time we spend online and the need for employees to be increasingly mobile. The number of public hotspots are on the up, but that’s not the only way to get online.

Unauthorized access to your personal Wi-Fi can occur if the right precautions are not taken. One of the first things to do is to check the list of connected devices using your network. There are dedicated software packages that will help you do this, or alternatively, you can usually access your router’s settings by entering your IP address into your web browser search bar.

Aesthetics in technology matters. While I am not a huge Apple fan, I must give the company props for being a trendsetter in this regard. While form should never take precedent over function, hardware should be attractive. I mean, why not?

Today, Linksys announces the RE6700 Wireless Range Extender. While such a thing is normally a boring affair for all but the most nerdiest of nerds, this is different. Why? It is so friggin' cute! Seriously, it is gosh-darn adorable and looks like it has a personality. Most importantly, however, is that the specs are great too.

The router security message really should have been driven home years ago, but it seems that a lack of basic security practices by ISPs, vendors and users has resulted in large numbers of hacker-controlled routers being used to launch DDoS attacks.

A New report from web security specialist Incapsula says it has uncovered a DDoS botnet comprising tens of thousands of hijacked routers. It's now sharing the attack details in an attempt to raise awareness about the dangers posed by under-secured, connected devices.

Increased mobile device use and the rise of Internet of Things devices (Gartner estimates there'll be 25 billion by 2020) has led to greater demands on wireless networks with increased volumes of traffic.

Network specialist Xirrus is introducing Xtreme Density (XD) Wi-Fi access points to meet this need. The Xirrus XD4 is the only 4-radio all 802.11ac access point currently on the market.