PCI vs USB Which is Faster?

[Matrix316]

hi,
i have XFX nForce 790i Ultra Motherboard,Is there a difference between PCI wireless cards and USB wireless cards,i was wondering if a PCI card (with the same specs) will be any faster. Any recommendations and suggestions are appreciated.

[Killen]

PCI 1.0 (most card standards) run @ a 133Mbps peak transfer rate. USB 1.0 runs @ 12Mbps peak transfer rate and USB 2.0 has a 480Mbps peak transfer rate at 'High-speed' mode.

CPU speed will not make a difference in transfer rates, but rather in how fast it is able to compute the data it receives from the particular PCI or USB device.

Hope this answers your questions

[Rawko]

hi,
I wouldn't say USB are less reliable. Both have some issues.USB don't have as good a range generally but if you have a couple of thin walls they are ok. The advantage is having a nice long usb cable so you can position it exactly right. Usually up high. And pointed at the WAP. USB also take more cpu load to run. Although modern pc cpu tend not to be stressed. Must have a USB 2.0 slot to get the speed.

[Fabian]

I always get better signal using pci cards external USB adapters signal is weak after 100ft and depends on how many walls too.
I am using a pci belkin g card in an old pc running Ubuntu 8.10and i get a good signal strenght 56%.I already tried couple of USB adapters(Netgear,Linksys)but I get like 24% and less so get pci.

[Maxforu]

USB 2.0: 480 Mbps = 60 MB/s max.

PCI: Based on this, it's 133MB/s. Originally, it was just 32MB/s, but it's much faster than USB 2.0 can be.

Nevertheless, USB may be the best option as you'd be able to put your Wireless hub in a high place where it can receive a stronger signal.