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Panda 300Mbps Wireless N USB Adapter - Windows XP/Vista/7/8/8.1/10, Mint, Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, CentOS, Lubuntu, Zorin, Kali Linux and Raspbian Wheezy - Panda
AsusSee Similar
ASUS Dual-Band Wireless-AC1900 PCI-E Adapter (PCE-AC68) - Asus

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Panda http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41GU9uQcYPL._SL160_.jpg
Panda 300Mbps Wireless N USB Adapter - Windows XP/Vista/7/8/8.1/10, Mint, Ubuntu, Fedora, openSUSE, CentOS, Lubuntu, Zorin, Kali Linux and Raspbian Wheezy - Panda
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Asus http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41jQspPMRSL._SL160_.jpg
ASUS Dual-Band Wireless-AC1900 PCI-E Adapter (PCE-AC68) - Asus
Rating info
eComparisons Score
eComparisons ScoreThe "Comparison Score" Is calculated based on the average number of times this item was compared with other items in this category by our users
8.4
8.2
User Rating (Amazon)
User Rating (Amazon)

Five Star Reviews:

70%
You might be better off with a 150 Mbps adapter
February 12, 2017
This is a single (2.4 GHz) band device with two radios, supporting the 300 Mbps claim and accounting for its larger size. You get the faster speeds with "channel bonding", i.e. using two wireless channels at once. This is of dubious value if, like most of us, you live in a place where there are many wi-fi routers competing for channels in the crowded 2.4 GHz spectrum, and aside from that it's not always clear how to get channel bonding working (it doesn't seem to be happening for me and I have no idea what to do about it).

Anyway it's working fine in single channel mode out of the box with Raspbian Jessie on a Raspberry Pi 2. It does not work with my other RPi2 running OSMC, but there's probably a way to fix that.

Finally I noticed the USB connector gets very hot to the touch; am guessing at least the advertised maximum operating temperature of 50C (122F). This makes me wonder if it will fail prematurely, and I'll update here if it does.

UPDATE 2017-02-14: I talked with Panda support about the heat concern and they mailed a replacement out (PAU03 150Mbps version at my request), no charge. Comparing the two, I find the PAU05 gets a better signal, I guess because it's bigger. I will continue to run it and see if it holds up. 5 stars for awesome support!

UPDATE 2017-04-02: Still working well with continuous use under Raspbian.
Great Support & Wireless Adapter
January 4, 2017
I had some problems getting this setup at first and reached out to their support who were super responsive and helpful throughout troubleshooting. My problem was that I could connect to my wifi but couldn't get an IP address. If I configured a static IP, it worked. I remembered that I had a static IP configured for my Ethernet card even though at this point I didn't have any network cable plugged in. After clearing the static IP config on my network card, I was able to get a DHCP address off my wireless network and all is working fine since then.

5 stars to their support and for the product itself. Just had to get over that initial problem which is probably specific to my computer.
Worked on two Windows 10 pc's, both upgraded from Windows 8
May 23, 2016
We recently brought home 2 Lenovo work computers that are 2 years old, both were upgraded to Windows 10 from Windows 8. They both had ethernet only as an internet connection, no onboard wifi. So we were in need of wifi adapters to connect at home without having to string cables everywhere. After researching different wifi adapters online, it appeared that a lot of them had issues with Windows 10. So I thought it would be best to get one at a midrange price and well known brand just in case of problems. So I originally purchased 2 Netgear AC600 mini adapters for forty bucks each, which were also supposedly backwards compatible with N routers. They were installed as instructed with the provided CD. No initial problems. However, after restarting the computer it would not connect to the internet. It actually kept shutting down our whole network with 2 iPads, laptop, and the tv, whoever was on it. I had to keep resetting the router, which did not have issues until adding the adapters. This happened for over a week. I tried all the install, reinstall, driver updating from manufacturer and Windows, disabling certain settings, etc.. All to no avail. I finally decided to return them and search for something else. I checked out a bunch of ones here on Amazon, and decided to go with this Panda Wireless PAU05. I was worried about the same type issues happening again, but for seventeen bucks each was worth a try. It had very good feedbacks and said it was plug and play, so I figured I would give it a shot even though I had not heard of this brand before. I got them on same day shipping, put them in, turned on the computer, and voila! Internet connection. These have been awesome for like 10 days now, without a single issue on both computers. They are pretty quick too. Take a chance and go for it. You might just be surprised as I was. Thank you Panda Wireless!!!
Quick fix, plug and play Windows10
December 28, 2015
Saved functionality on my new Dell Inspiron 2-in-1 laptop, which apparently has a faulty/finicky wireless adapter. after checking on Dell's site and googling reviews I found this common problem- none of the Dell suggested fixes, resetting my router or "troubleshooting" the wireless seemed to help, it would completely lose my "Favorite" network as well as the 5 or so neighboring networks I always used to "see". all of a sudden NONE of them exist? when I read to try USB wireless adapter and bypass my computer's internal wireless altogether I thought, sounds simple enough for me! I saw so many good reviews on this one by Panda Wireless, it's not too big, but has good range. I sit in an alcove of sorts, surrounded on 3 sides by walls, with the router a good 30+ feet away, through several other walls. this dongle has no trouble connecting to my wireless with full signal strength (4 bars!). it was plug-and-play with Windows 10, didn't need to download anything. this computer came loaded with 8 but I upgraded to 10 Prior to purchasing this wireless adapter
Works fine after you figure out how to install it
March 25, 2014
My Windows 7/64bit did not recognize the dongle. Not a problem, I thought, a mini-CD is included with the Windows driver and a "utility application" on it. I installed the driver and the utility app and then went through several hours of frustration trying to get the thing to work reliably at something better than dial-up speed. I even removed and re-installed it twice without any improvement.

Here's what finally made it work...install the driver ONLY, do NOT install the utility app. Windows 7 sets it all up automatically as soon as it has the driver. It works great when you install it this way.

Ed
62%
Works amazing. Very pleased.
August 8, 2017
This thing WORKS. I was skeptical being so far from the router where my phone and PS4 were barely pulling any signal but this thing had full bars and maxed my network speed on speedtest.net both up and down. I ran a diagnostic over a 12 hour period and it didn't drop off once. I just bought another one for my girlfriend's computer. We actually have a repeater set up between the main router and the room we have the computers set up in but I just connected my computer to the 5.0 and my girlfriend's to the 2.4 hz and they work perfectly. Follow the other guy's directions on getting drivers, though.
Best wireless adapter I've found
February 12, 2017
I have a 125 Mbps internet connection, as measured on a computer with a wired connection to the router. Remarkably, with this adapter, I was able to achieve 100% the same speed over a wireless connection, when located in a bedroom upstairs and across the house from the router. Lesser adapters have never done better than 1/3 the speed, e.g. 40 Mbps was the best that the TP-Link AC1900 Wireless Dual Band PCI-Express Adapter with Beamforming Technology (Archer T9E) could do, though that was itself a big improvement over other adapters I've tried. I suspect that the ability to select the best location for the Asus' antenna array has a lot to do with its impressive speed and stability. Problem solved for a tough location, saved me $600 over what it would have cost me to get an electrician to run wired Ethernet.
ASUS internal wireless card
August 16, 2016
I have this on two home computers which receive constant daily use. I used to buy USB Wireless cards which plugged into the back panel of my systems, but I started having problems with the USB controller malfunctioning and failing to recognize the cards. They also had frequent interruptions of service, and suffered from low signal strength. No more. I ordered one of these, and used it on an existing system. I installed the card in a free slot and then attached the included wires to the connectors on the back panel. Whole job took about 15 minutes. Since that day, I have had smooth, uninterrupted and fast wireless service with no issues from the wireless card. I bought a second one for a new PC build I did (my third build total). Again, there are no issues with the other system. One runs Windows 7, and the other runs Windows 10. No problems with either one. Great wireless card. Note: Both systems use ASUS motherboards.
Finally found a decent wi-fi adapter that actually delivers on ...
March 29, 2016
Finally found a decent wi-fi adapter that actually delivers on range and performance. I have gone through a half-dozen different 802.11ac adapters before buying this one and each had the same problem. None of the other ones would keep a consistent connection and speed to my wi-fi router. They all ended up dropping down to lower speeds. What is the point of having 802.11ac if you cant use it?!? The ASUS XC1900 adapter finally provided the performance I expected. It connects to my wi-fi router without any issues and maintains full speed. This card is blazing fast. If you want a reliable 802.11ac card that does what it says then get this one.
Fast, Fast, Fast... solid so far with Win 10 Pro and Verizon Quantum router
February 9, 2016
Windows 10 Pro on an Asus Crosshair V formula-z motherboard, AMD 1100t processor. My router is Verizon Quantum Gateway G1100 with Verizon FIOS 150/150 internet. I downloaded the ASUS PCE-AC68 windows 10 64 bit drivers first. Uninstalled my old wifi adapter, drivers and utilities (NG A6200). powered down system. Installed AC68 adapter in available PCI 2.0 express slot. Placed the antennae on my desktop. powered up machine, windows did not load drivers for the card, so I ran the setup for the asus driver I downloaded earlier. Everything installed just fine. initial connection to my router was at 216.5 connection speed..that is wireless N. remoted into my router...and ensured 5Ghz was activated and it was. My new Asus card didn't even see the 5ghz SSID..I run it separately. I changed the channel on my 5ghz from the default to channel 161 since nobody in my area was using that channel (I used nirsoft's wifiveiwer). when I saved the change, the asus card saw my 5ghz SSID! I connected to and now have a 1.0gps connection speed :) ran speedtest and I maxed out at 155/155. so using every bit of my Verizon FIOS 150 connection. so far, no issues. no connection drops. It's been rock solid for a few days now.
Great WLAN NIC for both AP use and regular NIC card use
December 31, 2015
Very stable and consistent WLAN NIC. Easy install and great range. Using to a specialized WiFi channel for a home office. Main wireless router provides connection for home and guests, while this WLAN NIC, installed in a system running Windows Server 2012 R2 (recently upgraded from Win Server 2008 R2 with same NIC setup) , provides the home office WLAN for my business specific devices. Also very useful for setting up a private W-VLAN.Magnetic base for the antenna extensions provides a nice feature, holds well on most metal surfaces. When I wanted it to stay in a fixed place on the shelf, I just attached it to the metal base of a metallic desk statue, which helped to hide the antenna and kept the antenna kit from sliding around.

Four Star Reviews:

11%
There's a Work-Around For a Dual-Boot OS
August 15, 2017
Great device that instantly connects to WiFi without fail on a Linux Mint 17.3 operating system.

One quick caveat: On a dual-boot operating system, if the Panda Wireless USB Adapter is plugged into a USB port when booting the computer, the bootloader on our computer will not function and no operating systems will appear; the Panda Wireless USB adapter is somehow interfering with the boot loading sequence and the computer display remains blank. The cure for this problem on our dual-boot system is to unplug the Panda adapter before booting the system and then plugging the adapter in after the operating system has loaded.

Once the operating system has loaded and the Panda WiFi adapter is plugged into a USB port it's off to the races with fast and consistent WiFi connection and speed. No drivers were needed with Linux Mint 17.3, it was a quick plug and play. We've used several wireless USB adapters over the years and this one is the best we've seen so far (small USB WiFi adapters the size of a thumb-drive all seem to fail over time, probably due to the great amount of heat they produce internally.)

On a single boot computer (a machine running one operating system), there probably won't be any bootloader issues so you might not have to unplug the Panda Wireless USB Adapter before turning on the computer, but if you do experience a problem with the operating system booting up, just unplug the Panda adapter until the machine loads.

The Panda 300Mbps wireless N USB Adapter is a solid performing WiFi adapter and works with Linux Mint, so will work with Ubuntu and likely other Debian derivatives without needing to add WiFi drivers.
Works well, takes a little elbow grease to use on Debian
August 2, 2017
I bought this to use on a Debian Linux machine. It did not work immediately, and the drivers included were not helpful, but with the appropriate apt-update I was able to get this to work. It's not the strongest WiFi adapter, and I found to get a 5-bar signal I needed to put it on a USB extension above the desk. But it does work, and has been reliable. I've not tested network speeds through it, but for what I've used it for it's been fine.
Very satisfied; highly recommend!
August 27, 2016
I got this mainly because I needed a wifi connection for Linux on my desktop PC. I dual boot Windows 7 and Kubuntu 14.04. I'm quite happy with this device. It is truly plug and play under Kubuntu 14.04: I didn't have to install anything. I just plugged it in and Kubuntu found nearby hotspots. From there, I just logged into the wifi network and was connected. Regarding Windows 7, I did what one or two other reviewers did: downloaded the latest driver from the manufacturer website, installed it, and **then** plugged the adapter into a USB port. From there, it was the same experience as Kubuntu.

Under Windows 7, the connection seems quirky at times, though I am not sure since I have had this for only about two days. I tried it out with Netflix, and it seemed to handle that kind of video streaming fine. Under Kubuntu, the connection is great. It seems fast and, like Windows 7, video streaming seems to be no problem for the device.

Overall, I'm very happy with it. Even if it lasts only a few months, the inexpensive price tag makes it easy to just get a replacement down the road (I'm thinking of getting another one as a backup), and with the easy setup under both operating systems I use, as well as the strong connectivity, I can highly recommend it.

UPDATE: Just ran Linux Mint 18 (Mate) live from disc, and the adapter works like a charm under that, too: plug and play, no software or driver installation needed.
Willing to be convinced
November 12, 2015
It seems to have a high error rate resulting in poor speed and reliability. Unfortunately, the errors sometimes cause my browser to freeze or the graphics to become useless.
I think I'll get the better quality adapter. It's not quite as compact but the extra cost will probably be worth it.
I'm about 25 ft from my router but this adapter only has 3 of 5 bars. The internal adapter on another laptop has 5 bars from the same location.
UPDATE:
I have been in contact with the manufacturer and was told that it is in fact a short distance wireless adapter. Their representative helped me troubleshoot the problem and it just doesn't have the range. It's okay for some places, just not my home where the router is downstairs, the other side of a wall.
After spending some time with them troubleshooting the problem we have agreed to upgrade to a more powerful model. I hope that works better.
Works great, reasonable price.
July 23, 2014
Works great after you figure out how to install. Little frustrating at first to get to work properly with Windows 7. Kept losing connection and would not connect after it work up. However this is how to fix.

BEFORE plugging the device into your computer, download the latest driver and install the driver ONLY. REBOOT. Plug in the device and it will set it up correctly. If you plug in the device first then install the driver you will be frustrated.

Did get instant customer support when I emailed them.
12%
Nice WIFI adapter for desktops
December 19, 2016
Purchased this for my wife's PC running Windows 10. Works fine. Easier to install than the AC 3100 model. Recommend you download the driver from their website rather than the included version and do it before you install it!My wife has a X99 system with an Asus motherboard and a 5820k CPU. Good data rate for gaming, no problems during WoW.
Fast, but don't attach antennas directly to the card!
March 28, 2016
So I hope this helps someone, as I've had a heck of a time troubleshooting some problems. First off this card is powerful, which in the end is the funny bit...it's almost too powerful.I built a new machine with an Asus Maximus VIII Hero board, and paired the adapter with a nighthawk ac1900 modem and router. Fast.Drivers are a bit of a pain but are stable on Windows 10, I ended up using broadcom's wifi drivers as a bunch of sources had them the most up to date for support of this card.Now the reason I knocked a star. Anytime I tried to install the card, the computer would lock up, freeze, or the GPU would artifact and crash. Weird. Turns out, the antennas that I had put directly on the card(instead of the proprietary dock) were creating interference...Long story short, after I moved the antennas a bit away from the computer I got a ping of 8, and speeds posted above what I'm paying for; about 180mbits down(don't tell Comcast)
Awesome Adapter
February 29, 2016
Installation very easy, connected to PCI-E x16. Driver comes in a disk, but i opted to download to make sure to get the right OS for windows 10. At first I thought I had a faulty unit as the connection was unstable and terrible, but after much unneeded research, I found that the antenna extender stand was the problem. So after connecting the antennas directly to the adapter it has worked like a charm on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz.4 stars because the extender is practically useless, but still good adapter.
Strong adapter
January 26, 2016
Had a computer behind a metal wall that was having issue picking up a router that was well within normal reach but the Trendnet adapter wasn't doing the job. Popped this guy in and the problems were solved. The only reason I am not going a full five stars is that the cabling for extending the antenna is about 2 feet shorter than I think it should be. I feel like it should be long enough to go from computer on floor to the top of the desk area with a little bit of travel for placement. It barely makes it to the top of the desk. Not major but this seems like a very thoughtful design so I expect things like that throughout the design.
Ok for Linux
December 18, 2015
Been using the product for the second day. My main concern was to get it working under Linux, especially that old as Ubuntu 14.04 LTS. To my delight it worked straight out of the box with the stock 3.x kernel. Problems started when I installed the kernel 4.2, the module refused to load and also to compile. First I had to install GCC 4.9 and make it system default, second had to find bcmwl-kernel-source on Github. The available packages included the fix for 4.x kernel but it just didn't work. I ended up compiling the latest source code myself (which was easier than it sounds). Kicked off one star for not perfect support under Linux.On the bright side, once the right drivers were installed, the wifi connection is at its best. Just make sure you have a good 802.11ac wifi router/hotspot and that the signal is good.
Seems like a great card HOWEVER
November 9, 2015
Seems like a great card HOWEVER!!!!! Even using the newest Win 10 64 drivers this card will NOT connect properly to the 5Ghz band. It says LIMITED CONNECTION. So it connects but no internet. I switch to 2.4Ghz and it works fine, just far far slower then my internet connection. Contacted Asus so we will see.*****EDIT*****I have now tried the older 2.0.8.8 utility from the Asus website and it now works great with Windows 10 64bit on the 5Ghz band. For some reason the newer 2.1.0.8 utility that says its for Windows 10 does NOT work. Working great now!

Three Star Reviews:

5%
Other computers and laptops on the network have better connection, especially on the 5g band
February 20, 2017
Purchased this item December of 2014. It served it's purpose well for about 2 years, but has been dropping connection more and more frequently as of now (FEB 2017). My router is a dual band 2.4GHz/5GHz. Other computers and laptops on the network have better connection, especially on the 5g band. That being said, 2 years of good use at this price (and continued use at about 90% uptime) WAS a good deal in 2014, but now I would say that you're much better off buying 600Mbps dual band 802.11ac wifi adapter, now that they cost around $20.
OK
April 8, 2016
Don't even have to install software (Windows 10 32 bit) . Purchased this for a friends old laptop.

Update: I just purchased another one of these for my laptop (Windows 7 64 bit) - Installed driver only; works without a hitch.

Update: It kinda fizzled out after about 4 months; somewhat disappointed. There are other "dongles" on the market for the same or lesser price that are flush to the USB port, and, as a result, will not twist and bend.
Slow speeds on Windows 10, easily 5+ stars if used on Windows 7
March 5, 2016
This worked great on Windows 7, but has been giving me grief on Windows 10. I of course suspected drivers, and did a full uninstall-reinstall from the Panda Wireless website- it hasn't seemed to help.

The issue is that throughput speeds are sometimes significantly slower then they should be. I test with my cell phone while sitting at my desk and the connection is running full speed, so it doesn't seem to be a networking issue. Windows 10 often reports poor signal, which is strange because the router/switch is a mere 10 feet away. This same problem did not happen on Windows 7, the connection and speed were always rock solid.

I admitted defeat on Windows 10 in place upset, and just did a clean install. Most of my other issues were resolved (it was, after all, a very well used installation of Windows 7, needed a good clean wipe anyways). However, the problem with the device is still there.

I would gladly rate this 5 stars if I found out the issue was not the device, but rather something on my computer or network. However, I fear it's a driver issue, and will await an updated driver for Windows 10.
Wireless adapter works in Windows 10 but instructions for installation severely lacking.
September 13, 2015
I ordered this USB wireless adapter because my previous Linksys AE1200 USB adapter would not work with Windows 10. If you have recently upgraded from XP, Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8.x then this adapter may be just what you need. Be aware however that installation is not for the faint of heart. It is promoted as a simple plug and play device. It most certainly is not. It comes with a mini CD with a PDF file describing the installation for everything but Windows 10. Windows 10 is unique and requires some modest expertise in translation from all the other operating systems. Several emails to the company were promptly answered but they offered only generic replies and referred me to the installation disk. I already looked at the installation disk and had difficulty figuring out what I must do for my particular desktop machine. After several days of pondering, I tackled it again and finally was able to install the driver using the Windows installation utility. I was not at all clear that the drivers on the disc were the most current so images of my driver version under device managers was sent to the tech support department at their request but they failed to acknowledge receipt nor proceed with the directions. Fortunately, I knew that my machine was capable of using this adapter and simply needed directions for getting the drivers matched with my Windows 10 operating system. In summary:
Pros: very sturdy and professional looking USB adapter. Packaging was professional. Mini CD was provided along with a Windows utility installer and a PDF file manual.

Cons: device is not plug-and-play as advertised. Installation of the drivers cannot be accomplished by simply asking the computer to retrieve drivers from the mini CD. Directions for Windows 10 are not included on the disc. You have to guess what operating system works best for you. Since most of us will have recently upgraded from a previous Windows operating system to the latest Windows 10 or have just purchased a new laptop or desktop that is in need of a wireless adapter for one reason or another, such installation directions should be front and center on the PDF file.
That's why I would like to buy an external USB wireless adapter
August 31, 2015
received your product on time.
I received this product on time. I bought it based on user's review.
I plugged it to my desktop (just upgraded to Windows 10). This desktop use an on-board wireless card. The signal is weak (1 bar). That's why I would like to buy an external USB wireless adapter. After installing the driver and utility, scanning the signals, it can find my neighbor signals, but not mine. After rebooting a few times, and scan a few times, it get my signal (by luck). The signal is strong (96%). However, if I reboot the machine, the the connection disappear. It took me an effort to rescan signal to get the signal again.
When I get the connection, I have problem with the web page retrieval (E.g. yahoo.com). It takes 5 times longer to retrieve yahoo.com page comparing with my internal onboard wireless. This is very frustrating.
I don't know if this problem is related to Windows 10 or something else.
7%
Major windows 10 issues
February 24, 2017
Major driver issues with windows 10, be prepared to downgrade multiple versions to get it to not drop connection.
Hardware works fine. Has compatibility issues with Windows 10 - The ...
October 25, 2016
Hardware works fine. Has compatibility issues with Windows 10 - The newest drivers cause BSODS. Other than the frustration from that, it works perfectly fine with an older driver and gives me 0.5 Gbps speed even though my computer is located in the worst possible location.
A royal pain for Windows 10 Anniversary Update users
October 11, 2016
This was a great product. The aesthetics remain amazing but the function has fallen by the wayside. It is ridiculously annoying after startup with the inability to hold a 5GHZ connection. Sometimes it is good at startup, other times it losses radio functionality and the radio needs to be turned on and off, or the NIC has to be disabled re-enabled, or the device needs to be unplugged and plugged back in which can repeat multiple times until it stabilizes. What changed? Windows 10 Anniversary Update. Before the update it worked perfectly and Microsoft and Asus are pointing fingers at one another which oddly enough I have been through this before and neither side addressed the issue. If you don't have Windows 10 Anniversary Update, rarely reboot, or you don't sue the 5GHZ band (2.4 works perfectly) then your gold, this product will work well. Otherwise your SOL until Asus addresses the issue.
Coil Whine
November 26, 2015
It's a good card, the only issue is the coil whine I'm getting when it's actually in use. I've re-seated/tried different ports, uninstalled/reinstalled drivers. Nothing seems to keep it from making the noise.Would recommend if you use headphones most of the time though!
works great, mostly... kinda
October 23, 2015
great signal reception and real easy to install and setup, BUT ever since installing it my computer will randomly freeze, no matter how many or how few programs are running at the same time it will just freeze the entire system whenever it feels like, no forewarning or symptoms of an issue or anything. I love Asus and their products, I got this to go with my Asus MoBo thinking they were designed for compatibility but seems I was unlucky enough to be forced into a bug I just can't fix no matter the updated or rolled back drivers or anything else. But while it works, it does great... so hopefully an update will fix it eventually.
now there is an annoying scratching sound similar to PSU coil whine coming from ...
October 11, 2015
I have been enjoying a stable and high speed connection for a little over a week now. However... now there is an annoying scratching sound similar to PSU coil whine coming from the card. I've confirmed that it's from the card by disabling the adapter which stops the noise.I'm sending it back and getting a replacement in the hopes that perhaps some of them don't do this. However what research I did online seems to indicate a design issue.

Two Star Reviews:

4%
Worked fine while it worked...
December 12, 2015
...but it crapped out after fewer than 6 months. I bought this for my children's old desktop PC so they could connect wirelessly to the home network. It worked great for several months, the speed was fine and the connection pretty steady. However, it stopped working completely and without warning about 5 months in. Bought them a new PC that had a wireless adapter built-in. Much better.
Slower than I'd hoped
May 26, 2015
Of course this is an inexpensive item, but I spent twice as much as necessary to get 300 Mbps. This adapter is about half the speed of my cell phone's adapter and considerably less than than half the speed of the 150 Mbps built-in adapter of the laptop I bought it for. I tried both the Panda driver and the built in Windows driver.

UPDATE: With the latest driver from the Panda website and a tweak or two from their support, the Panda is now slightly faster than the built-in adapter. I suppose that's pretty good because the very helpful Panda support technician said that the built-in adapter has a big antenna.
but not nearly the improvement necessary to be satisfied with my purchase
April 30, 2015
I am using Windows 8.1, and while it does say it is plug and play I still downloaded and installed the drivers before I plugged it in, based on suggestions from other Amazon reviewers. This resulted in it detecting and setting up my wifi without any hassle. However, I am getting network speeds of about 35 mbps on my home network, trying to transfer files from my NAS in the next room, ~12 feet away with a strong signal.

I bought this to avoid resorting to needing to walk back and forth with a flash drive all the time, but I was expecting performance at or near the 300 mbps claim and I am not getting anywhere near it. I originally plugged it into a USB 2.0 port and saw improvement when I switched to a USB 3.0 port, but not nearly the improvement necessary to be satisfied with my purchase. I have used a TP-Link 300mbps USB adapter in the past and it performed to my expectations, I should have spent the few extra bucks and gone with them instead.
Should be easy plug and play, but it is a headache to deal with and install. Look for a better alternative.
February 4, 2015
I had high opes for this product but I am disappointed in it's performance and the annoyance trying to get it working. First off, the micro cd with the drivers on it will not even go into my pc because I have a tower with a vertical drive. the disc falls out before I can close the door and I fear it would get stuck in there anyway. I tried leaning my drive on it's side and it still did not work. I do not know how I am supposed to download the drivers to get this thing to work online, when I cannot get online in the first place because I can't get the drivers from the disc either.

When I first plugged this item in, it worked for a few days seemingly fine. I turned my PC off for a few days, turned it on, and now it is not working. Nothing I have tried is working. I used an old wi-fi adapter I had (which still works) to download the drivers on the official website and I installed it, didn't work. Restarted and it still didn't work. I don't know what else to do and it would be nice if they would send you a normal sized cd-rom which works in all dvd drives out there. the mini cd is rarely used, cheap and not ideal for all users. Disappointing and I will look for another adapter elsewhere because this isn't the answer.
Not completely bad, but not terribly good, either.
August 27, 2014
I can't go too deep into the ins-and-outs of different USB adapters. I purchased this adapter as an afterthought with my desktop PC and I've already put out for a wireless card. I've always been able to connect to our home router on the other side of the house with every device I've ever owned, from my laptop to my game consoles to my handhelds, but this adapter barely manages a passable connection with my main modem's wi-fi and wouldn't achieve more than a Limited (no internet access) connection to the Belkin router at the same range (this being the normally-superior connection option). I finally found a workaround in a program called a Virtual Router--by running this off of my laptop, I was able to use my laptop's wi-fi as a secondary router, basically bridging the wireless connection: my laptop's superior adapter picks it up, and then re-transmits the signal at a range the Panda has no trouble using it from.

So the primary weakness appears to be range, but I'd also like to mention that the Panda runs pretty dang hot, most particularly when extended downloads are in play. At one point I set it to download a Steam game and went to sleep; when I woke up I found the game had only partially downloaded and the adapter was registering as an unrecognized USB device, presumably a heat-induced malfunction.

As a budget wireless adapter for limited connectivity time--say if you want to use it at the coffee shop or in college class for lightweight wi-fi--it's not a totally bad option. One thing I noticed was that I got better performance out of the Panda after going into Device Manager, selecting "uninstall" on the Panda USB drive, and then putting in the installation mini-CD and installing the drivers from there (and ONLY the drivers--Windows 8.1 comes with more than sufficient wireless internet management, and I've heard the Panda software isn't very good).

For a desktop or for more connection-intensive activities such as long downloads or video livestreaming, I would definitely recommend something a little more "hardcore."

As a side note, don't be too dazzled by that 300-megabits-per-second connectivity. First of all, that is not the same as a megaBYTE (which would be written all in capital letters: MBps as opposed to Mbps). Second of all, that only applies to the connection to your router. Make sure to check what sort of connection you can achieve in your desired network before putting out for a higher-end or higher-performing adapter. It might be handy as a "just in case" but if you're not capable of achieving the best connection to your router in the first place, getting an adapter that can achieve a higher connection mostly amounts to untapped potential in the end. Just a thing to keep in mind if you're shopping for cheap, efficient hardware rather than top-of-the-line stuff. Always be conscious of your needs versus the hardware's capabilities.
6%
You're better than this ASUS....
May 5, 2016
Well first of all let me start by saying I'm an ASUS fanboy, especially when it comes to motherboards. That being said I'm pretty disappointing with this.I purchased an ASUS AC Nighthawk router and this to avoid running Cat6 through my attic. I have 100Mbps down and 15 Mbps up. That being said I can max out my speed and even exceed speed on an Ethernet line (ty ISP!) On a wireless A/C connection 10 feet from my router? Not even 50Mbps. YES it is plugged into USB 3.0 so I should be good up to 480Mbps there. I almost run faster on my old N connection. The only thing that should limit me is my connection speed and i know my ISP is solid!)Not to mention the EMI shielding is HORRIBLE (i.e. non-existent) on this thing. The thing is so electrically noisy its unreal. I have speakers about a foot away on my desk that pick up the noise every time I start a decent size download or upload.Lesson learned: Run Ethernet, and USB wifi adapters are crap. DON'T PROMISE PERFORMANCE YOU CAN"T MEET ASUS! (Yes I realize the theoretical max isn't possible because of tcp/udp overhead, but <50% of my connection bandwidth......)Lastly....No microwaves were on during this test, and I was on an unoccupied wifi channel: no 5ghtz neighbors :D
Meh
February 3, 2016
Does not work well with the windows. Constantly does not auto connect to my saved home network that has full signal strength. No advanced options to calibrate, or even a simple connect automatically check box.
Only lasted a year
January 21, 2016
This Adapter solved a mega problem I had with a Netgear adapter after I upgraded to Windows 10(please don't do it yet, learn from me). Netgear would intermittently cut out and not work until I rebooted. I'm a computer guy....and updates, changing settings etc wouldn't work. Got the Asus and it worked from day one with my Netgear router. All is good again.Update Jan 2017: Adapter hardware died. One year of use. $100 for one year? Not a good deal
Slow connection.
December 5, 2015
I was never able to connect above 405 Mbps. Could be an issue with Windows 10, the ASUS utility never appeared to be installed. I contacted ASUS support and received a response within 24 hours. I followed their suggestion to uninstall restart and reinstall the ASUS utility/driver. This made not difference and ASUS support has not provided further suggestions. Instead I got the typical, how was your support experience as the last follow up email. I did try some of the advanced configuration adjustment suggested by another reviewer. Those changes were need to get up to 405 Mbps.For comparison I have a Intel 7260 2x2 card in my HTPC, it connects at ~800 Mbps (according to Windows). File transfers from my HTPC to my NAS average 60 MB/s which is about the max speed I'd expect. With the ASUS PCE-AC68 on my desktop I was getting ~10 MB/s. The two machines are in different locations, but there PCE-AC68 is 30% closer to the router and has one less wall to penetrate (not that I'd expect that to make much difference. Changing the antenna position did not help, moving the router as close as 3' also did not help.
Needs windows 10 driver
September 21, 2015
There still isn't a windows 10 driver for this product. I may have to return this product soon, because it is completely unusable at the moment. Asus markets their products towards gamers, but don't have up to date drivers so we can actually use there products. I was not impressed with customer service and am not impressed with there support page for this product which states it is compatible with windows 10 even though it clearly is not.Update: 2/25/2016I still am unable to use this on my windows 10 computer. When I install the new windows 10 drivers for the pce-ac68 the computer freezes whenever I restart the computer and I'm forced to do a system restore. This product has been a huge waist of time and I have not been able to get any help from Asus support.
The card itself is awesome. The software thats bundled in with the cards ...
August 27, 2014
I bought this product based on the numerous positive reviews, and as very dissapointed.Not in the physical hardware, though. The card itself is awesome. The software thats bundled in with the cards drivers however nearly drove me insane. Somehow the software wrapper ASUS created to display the cards functions and available networks conflicted with the clean Windos 8.1 install i had on a brand new computer. It basically caused the network card to get into an infinite Connecting-Initializing-Not Connected loop with ANY wireless network you tried to join. Any channel, any level of encryption, and frequency.So essentially the bundled software you can't opt out of nuked itself and made the card worthless.It took me 5 frustrating hours to figure out that this program is the cause, and unfortunately i have yet to figure out how to uninstall the program without deleting the drivers as well. My only 'quick fix' for the probem is to go into task manager after startup and kill the program there. It doesn't show up under Services or Startup that i can find, so it cant be disabled there, and its got an annoying administrator lock on it that prevents you from deleting it. It doesn't even give you the option to delete as administrator.If you have an MSI LGA 1150 z97 Gaming 5 board or something close to it (that uses the same audio chipset) avoid this wireless adaptor.

One Star Reviews:

10%
sorry, maybe this will work on some other computer.
October 25, 2016
I am using this device on a new Jaguar board. I updated the drivers from your site for Windows 10, and the device will not work. when I click on the software, the OS will restart and then hangs.
Unable not work at high downloading speed for a long period.
September 26, 2016
It got hot and no longer recognized by the PC (running WIN 10) every time the downloading speed went beyond ~3MB/s for a short period of time(~15mins). I had to restart the PC to make it work again. Works fine during normal web browsing sessions I tried two of them, both had the same symptom.
Died within a month.
June 25, 2016
Honest review.

I usually do not write reviews on products, unless it is extremely good or extremely bad.

Unfortunately in this case this device proved to last for 22 days which prompted me to write a review. Had it lasted for at least 3 months, I would have thought it to be worth the money for what it's worth and not write a review at all.
It worked great for about 2 weeks. Then it started randomly shutting off on its own until it completely died. I've tried plugging it in to multiple USB ports, and do keep in mind that I am very familiar with networking. This device also has a habit to corrupt its driver on some USB ports, which you have to then use a different one.

When it worked it worked great, maybe this was just a bad pick in the straw. However, I will listen to my instincts again stay and way from non-mainstream brands. It will save you much more money in the long run. I'll be sticking to my regular investments of great quality but expensive products.
Not a good product.
April 7, 2016
There is nothing plug and play about this. Wasn't easy to set up. After I did get it set up, I removed it from the usb slot to place it into a more accessible ubs slot. Had to reenter the wifi SSID which should have been previously saved either to the device or to the computer. Finally, after having the device work for a few minutes it completely failed to work.
Won't work reliably with Win XP Pro
February 6, 2016
I can't recommend this product for use with Win XP. I downloaded and installed the most recent drivers was not able to get any connection in XP Pro SP3. So, I tried installing it in an old PC running a copy of XP that had all XP updates to the support cutoff and found it worked intermittently for a while and then stopped making a connection altogether . I didn't try it on other OS's. After a day and a half of fiddling with it, I returned it for a refund. When a device like this is designed to work on virtually all OS's of the last 15 years, its bound to have problems.
13%
I have know this brand to be good in the past looking for compensation
February 26, 2017
Started dropping signal causing major rubber banding in games such as counter strike. I have know this brand to be good in the past looking for compensation... will let you know how it works out.
I've tried all the recommendations that the Asus customer service people have recommended on here to all the same people having
April 18, 2016
Wish I could give this thing 0 stars. It worked for 2 months then one morning I went to turn on my pc and it had a BSOD and wouldn't boot no matter how many times I restarted. I ended up narrowing it down to this wireless adapter and when I pulled it out my computer went back to normal. I've tried all the recommendations that the Asus customer service people have recommended on here to all the same people having the same problem. No matter how many times I try different slots or Windows/Asus drivers this card will lock up my computer. I wouldn't recommend wasting this much money on something that doesn't work... I'm going to try and get a refund or atleast a new card that might actually work...Pc Specs: Asus Z170 Maximus VIII,16gb Corsair Vengence LPX, Intel 5600k, EVGA 980TI Hybrid, Samsung SSD, Corsair RM850
So excited ... then so disappointed
January 22, 2016
Got this card today and installed immediately after work. I'm a big Asus fan so I was very excited about this card. Installed the card into the 2.0 PCIe slot. Installed drivers from the disk. My system could see the card and gave the device is working properly message. Unfortunately the utility installed from the included disk kept saying to insert the card. Tried uninstalling drivers from the disk, downloaded updated drivers from the support site and tried installing those too. Tried re-inserting the card. Called the support number on the included Need-Help card and waited through some pretty terrible and garbled hold music. Explained my steps to the support guy that finally answered. His answer was these cards are plug-and-play and I should return it as defective. (I did not verbalize my thoughts after he said that) My first time calling them so not sure if its normal not to even try any other troubleshooting steps. Got tired of wasting my time trying to troubleshoot this further, especially when Asus support threw in the towel so fast. Hopefully the replacement doesn't have the same issue, because I would really like this to work.
Frequently stop working
January 3, 2016
Seems like I am the only one having this problem. Set up was fine and it got running pretty well in the first place. If I keep using the computer, the adapter would work great. However, if I leave the computer there not using the internet for a while (more than 1 hour), the adapter would stop working. The wireless icon would just disappear became a little computer icon which is the one before I install everything. What I need to do is uninstall the driver and reinstall it to get it running again. By the way, my motherboard is ASUS Z170-A. Have no idea why this is happening and probably going to return it.
Driver issues stay away.
November 8, 2015
Absolutely horrid. The driver support for this card is at it's absolute worst. I RMA'd the card, and got the same card back from Asus. The card seems to work as in recognized by windows 10. I have been back and fourth with about 4 different drivers (broadcom/windows/asus), with a slim margin of success. When it did "work" I was pulling down 6.5Mbps, and really didn't connect at all. All other driver combinations didn't work. I even refreshed my windows 10 for a fresh start but also a bust. The event viewer actually showed some serious errors happening with the driver, but I couldn't find anything on the web when I cross referenced. I love Asus as a company, I have the 68u router and the thing rips, but the thing is I can't utilize its power because this friggin card doesn't work. I would like a full refund.
Ran great for like 10 mins
November 7, 2015
Installed drivers, and installed device. Ran great for like 10 mins, but then kept cutting out the wireless. I look in the event viewer and there was a error about it trying to reset, and it would disappear from device manager. I then google'd and found many persons with this same issue, and that the "new" driver from asus that is still in beta was supposed to fix that. well, didn't. I looked at the device status in device manager when it actually showed connected and it said there was not enough resources, device not working properly. The device works great for like 5 mins then goes bad, i tested to see if it was overheating but it wasn't. I even put a fan inside jsut for it. It doesn't work with windows 10. Im using a asus v97 motherboard, running windows 10 and a 1000watt power supply, I RMA'd this thing, getting something that has 5 star rating and cleared states, designed for windows 10
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Pricing info
Old Price
Old Price
Price
Price
$13.99updated: Mar 19, 2020
$77.98updated: Mar 19, 2020
Features
Answered Questions
Answered Questions
Article Number
Article Number
4730111923313
0638458733791
Binding
Binding
Electronics
Personal Computers
Brand
Brand
Panda
Asus
Height
Height
27.6 in
330.7 in
Length
Length
216.5 in
440.9 in
Manufacturer
Manufacturer
Panda Wireless
Asus
Model
Model
PAU05
PCE-AC68
MPN
MPN
PAU05
PCE-AC68
Number of Parts
Number of Parts
PAU05
PCE-AC68
Product Group
Product Group
PC Accessory
Personal Computer
Product Type
Product Type
NETWORKING_DEVICE
NETWORKING_DEVICE
Publisher
Publisher
Panda Wireless
Asus
Quantity
Quantity
1
1
Reviews
Reviews
Score
Score
8.6
8.8
Studio
Studio
Panda Wireless
Asus
Weight
Weight
0.1 oz
4.4 oz
Width
Width
153.5 in
94.5 in
Feature
Feature

Works with any 2.4Ghz wireless g/n routers

Max. wireless connection speed: 300Mbps

Supports both infrastructure and ad-hoc modes

Multi-OS support: 32-bit and 64-bit Windows XP/ Vista/ 7/ 8/8.1/10/2008r2/2012r2, Mint 14/15/16/17/17.1, Ubuntu 12.10/13.04/13.10/14.04/14.10, Fedora 18/19/20/21, CentOS 6.4/6.5/7

Security: WEP 64/128bit, WPA, WPA2, 802.1x and 802.11i, Cisco CCS V1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 compliant

5th generation 802.11ac chipset gives you dual-band,2.4GHz/5GHz for up to super-fast 1.30Gbps

Flexible extended antenna placement helps you pinpoint the best reception in your environment.

Instant Wi-Fi upgrade for your desktop: no more messy Ethernet cables needed.

High-power design clears up dead zones with 150% greater coverage.

Custom heatsink dissipates heat for more stable and reliable non-stop operation.

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