Wireless router w/ support for USB printer?

G

g3joel

Registered
I currently have a B&W G3 on a cable internet connection. My mum will be buying a new 800 MHz iBook w/ Airport card mid January, so I've been doing a bit of research into broadband routers with wireless capability.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a good quality wireless broadband router? I've heard the Cisco's are good... Basically, the features I'm looking for are as follows:

1) Good signal strength/range (the exterior and interior walls in our house are all brick so signal strength needs to be optimum)

2) WEP support. Just basic encryption, nothing fancy

3) A USB port to connect our DeskJet printer to so that mum can print wirelessly. Right now it's hooked up to the B&W G3 in my room, but that would mean that it would have to be switched on just so she could print from the iBook (is this even an option in any of the routers on the market ?)

Thanks in advance guys.
 
You can set up your machine as an Airport base station. That means that you need an airport card and your computer and printer must be on in order for Mom to use it at her convenience.

Maxgate and Macsense make routers that use an ethernet hub. You could check to see if the Deskjet has an ethernet port or you can get an adaptor for it. Farllon makes those.
 
Really?? I didn't know you could do that with a plain old inkjet printer and a USB -> Ethernet adaptor. Will OS X be able to print to it as normal if it's plugged directly into the router?

I read that Maxgate have gone out of business, but the wireless router Macsense sells looks okay.
 
I do believe you need to set the printer up in the Network section of the Print center. You also need the driver installed on your mom's machine.
 
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