Alfa Wi-Fi going cheap

[bobgarrett]

The unit would not connect to some wifi services and the range seemed no better than my laptop wifi. I queried with Alfa why I could not connect to some services and from the serial number they decided it was a counterfeit unit.

 

[bobgarrett]

Nice tip, thanks. Got mine today. Tested on FreeBSD (urtw device) and OS X[1]. Range is pretty good even with the included antenna. Chipset is RTL8187L + RTL8225U (so it's not a fake).

[1] Mac OS X driver is a bit hard to find: http://lnx2mac.blogspot.co.uk/p/realtekrtl81xx-osx-driver.html

My unit declared as counterfeit by Alfa also says it has the RTL8187L chip set.

 

[Yngmar]

I've had a quick Google and found this: http://en.data-alliance.net/alfa-counterfeit-beware/

I bought mine from the eBay listing in the OP and mine has the hologram sticker on the unit which behaves as described (and it also has good range). To clear this up, I've just contacted Alfa about it:

Can you please confirm whether my Alfa AWUS036H with serial number INC021342004029 is genuine? I have bought it from this listing on eBay UK: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/281490078047

Thanks for your time,
Ingmar

 

[bobgarrett]

I've had a quick Google and found this: http://en.data-alliance.net/alfa-counterfeit-beware/

I bought mine from the eBay listing in the OP and mine has the hologram sticker on the unit which behaves as described (and it also has good range). To clear this up, I've just contacted Alfa about it:

Mine has the hologram too. I will be interested in their reply to you.

 

[Yngmar]

Mine has the hologram too. I will be interested in their reply to you.

Well, after confirming MAC address and serial number, their very brief reply was:

It is Fake

Please send back to your seller

ALFA tech support

So I've contacted the seller for a refund. I'm curious what they have to say, but am not getting my hopes up. Any source for a confirmed genuine one?

 

[JumbleDuck]

Well, after confirming MAC address and serial number, their very brief reply was:
So I've contacted the seller for a refund. I'm curious what they have to say, but am not getting my hopes up.

I have just had the same reply and have send the same request with the same expectation. Incidentally, I note that the seller return address is

Liu change
Futian District, Ha Nishimura 127 501 ,
Shenzhen City , Guangdong Province , 518000

 

[nigelmercier]

Sorry if anyone ended up with a "fake", but mine works just fine. I tested them before posting. I suspect they are made by the ghost shift.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Sorry if anyone ended up with a "fake", but mine works just fine. I tested them before posting. I suspect they are made by the ghost shift.

Mine works OK, but the seller has agreed to a return so it's on its way back.

 

[nigelmercier]

Just a heads-up on this; I've heard back from Alfa, Crucial Wi-Fi are their distributor:

http://www.crucialwifi.co.uk/
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Crucial-WiFi
http://uk.ebid.net/users/CrucialWiFi
http://www.amazon.co.uk/shops/A12RVLVZJGQBA0

Mine works fine, but I've decided to buy another one from the Crucial Wi-Fi eBay store eBay anyway, with the directional antenna: http://r.ebay.com/iBwsuH

 

[affinite]

Just a heads-up on this; I've heard back from Alfa, Crucial Wi-Fi are their distributor:

http://www.crucialwifi.co.uk/
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Crucial-WiFi
http://uk.ebid.net/users/CrucialWiFi
http://www.amazon.co.uk/shops/A12RVLVZJGQBA0

Mine works fine, but I've decided to buy another one from the Crucial Wi-Fi eBay store eBay anyway, with the directional antenna: http://r.ebay.com/iBwsuH

Nigel
Im thinking of buying one of these also but I see they are recommended for indoor use.
I typically only want to use it infrequently to point at, and boost the signal too/from an Access point in a Marina or a harbour cafe so Im happy enough to pull the device out and set it up when required, but would the Alfa outdoor/marine antenna be of any advantage other than permanent mounting ?
REgards
Steve

 

[Cantata]

Mine works OK, but the seller has agreed to a return so it's on its way back.

I bought one. Although it looked/felt as though it was working, it didn't make a jot of difference to signal strength or to number of networks visible, so I presumed it was not working. Hologram and details suggested that it was genuine but I didn't check with Alfa. The ebay seller did give me a refund on the purchase price but I had the devil's own job getting them to refund my return postage. All in all, not a happy purchase.

 

[nigelmercier]

... Although it looked/felt as though it was working, it didn't make a jot of difference to signal strength or to number of networks visible...

That seems bizarre, you did remember to switch to the Alfa adaptor? Like I said, they worked perfectly for me, both Windows and Linux.

 

[Cantata]

Yup, 'twas a dud one. I was offered a replacement but decided just to get a refund.

 

[VicMallows]

but I see they are recommended for indoor use.

A decent polythene bag has always worked well enough for me. The 'tube' type you reference could be a bit neater but I would still want to 'waterproof' it ... and also maybe whatever antenna you chose.

 

[JumbleDuck]

I bought one. Although it looked/felt as though it was working, it didn't make a jot of difference to signal strength or to number of networks visible, so I presumed it was not working. Hologram and details suggested that it was genuine but I didn't check with Alfa. The ebay seller did give me a refund on the purchase price but I had the devil's own job getting them to refund my return postage. All in all, not a happy purchase.

I have had my money back for the adaptor, but not the postage, yet.

 

[JumbleDuck]

I have had my money back for the adaptor, but not the postage, yet.

Update. Never did get the money back. Had various silly messages from them saying they couldn't understand my email address, which is a perfectly normal name@organisation.org.uk one. Gave it up as a bad job.

On the bright side, the adapter was returned to me today as they hadn't bothered to collect it from the post office, so I have acquired a working if dubious system for about three quid.

 

[VicMallows]

so I have acquired a working if dubious system for about three quid.

Since it works, not sure what your problem was to start with. (ethical issue?). Anyway, you've ended up with a bargain:encouragement:

 

[JumbleDuck]

Since it works, not sure what your problem was to start with.

Well, I don't know how well it works. All I have tried it on was a connection to my home router, which was approximately two feet away at the time. Others have reported no better than standard wifi performance and failures after short periods of use, so I won't be using it with any great optimism.

 

[Yngmar]

I've got my money back after some language barrier issues. I've also popped it open before sending it back so I could compare it to this original (and different fake): http://highsec.es/2013/08/original-alfa-awus036h-and-fake-alfa-awus036h/

Based on that and on how well it worked, I'd say it was a good fake - unlike the fake on that page above, mine did use the RTL8187L chip (or at least a chip with those letters printed on it) and it did get better range than standard wifi. But it didn't have the shielding and who knows what else. And it was stuffed full of lies! ;-)

Here's a picture of the innards of my fake Alfa AWUS036H: http://cl.ly/image/3o0o171T0e2a/alfa_fake.JPG

 

[Cardo]

Mrs finally brought mine over from the UK. The box is hilariously fake, with Arabic writing, a Turkish flag and alfa.com as a URL on it. Haven't tried the adapter itself, but I'm sure it'll be a giggle.