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ZyXEL WPA-1000 Wireless Projector Adaptor

31 Jul 2007

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			<h2 class="header-green">First Looks: ZyXEL WPA-1000 Wireless Projector Adaptor</h2>
		<span class="byline">Reviewed by Seow Tein Hee on Tuesday, 31 Jul 2007</span>
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		 		<h2 class="page-title">The End of the Line</h2>
		 		<h3 class="page_title">The End of the Line</h3>
<p>Undeniably, wireless connectivity has become an integral part of our everyday lives. Thus, it came as no surprise when ZyXEL sent us their first wireless projector adaptor, the WPA-1000. Though ZyXEL can't lay claims to being the first to provide wireless projection solutions, the WPA-1000 differs from existing offerings by offering quick and seamless changeover from one presenter to the next.</p>
<p class="rtecenter"><img width="700" height="525" alt="" src="/files/images/XEL_WPA-1000_Wireless_Projector_Adaptor_Main.jpg" /></p>
<h4 class="page_sub_title">Send Invisibly, Receive Visibly</h4>
<p class="rteleft">The advantage of wireless connectivity is an immediate elimination of cables, and the WPA-1000 delivers this via the common 802.11b/g specification. It differs from say, Epson's range of wireless projectors by being an external peripheral that grants wireless connectivity when connected to a projector that didn't come with wireless connectivity originally. To that purpose, the WPA-1000 uses a common 15-pin VGA connector to interface with projectors, which means installation is easy.</p>
<p class="rteleft">Obviously, transmission quality is the main concern now that video data is transmitted wirelessly. For PowerPoint presentations, the data streaming bandwidth of the WPA-1000 was found to be just sufficient for text slides. Playback of animation and embedded videos on the other hand, was too choppy, clear indication that the WPA-1000 is still not quite up to the task of full-fledge multimedia presentations. This shortcoming is all the more glaring given the fact that presentations these days have long past the old days of plain text and still images.</p>
<h4 class="page_sub_title">Lossless and Secure Transmission</h4>
<p class="rteleft">The upshot is that the WPA-1000 is very easy to setup. Getting it to connect to Wi-Fi enabled PCs or notebooks is a very simple process of making a few clicks on the bundled utility. It's a good thing ZyXEL made the utility directly downloadable from the adaptor when it's connected to your PC; installation time is greatly reduced. Alternatively, it can also be installed from the software CD.</p>
<p class="rteleft">WLAN configuration however, is a bit more challenging, requiring us to perform a quick software update before a connection can be established.</p>
<p class="rteleft">However, even after the update, the WLAN connection we had was not entirely stable; evident by occasional drops whereby our test notebooks, Windows XP and Vista respectively, would simply be disconnected automatically. What's encouraging though is that the WPA-1000 has not one but two security layers to prevent unauthorized broadcast. The first is your commonplace WEP that provides up to 128-bit protection (26 characters) and the other is a 4-digit randomized login code that is shown each time the WPA-1000 is fired up for use.</p>
<p class="rteleft">Useful its wireless transmission may be, the convenience the WPA-1000 brings is, unfortunately, its weakness as well. Unlike conventional wired connection to a projector whereby Internet can still be accessed via wireless connection simultaneously, anyone using the WPA-1000 will have no such benefit. It's an either-or situation: wireless projection or wireless Internet connection. Despite this, it is still arguably the lesser of two evils when compared to a cluttered environment of wires and cumbersome switchover between multiple presenters.</p>
<h4 class="page_sub_title">The Verdict</h4>
<p class="rteleft">In all reality, the wireless projector market is a small one, with big league players such as NEC, Newsoft and Mitsubishi taking up much of the market share. At the end of the day, the ZyXEL WPA-1000 at S$375 does have several qualities to warrant a consideration from you. From Vista support to ease of installation from its well designed utility, it can be seen that ZyXEL had given much thought to the WPA-1000. The wireless convenience it brings is unquestionable, but you might want to consider your options if your presentations often include embedded audio and video clips.</p>
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ZyXEL WPA-1000 Wireless Projector Adaptor

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