The Dlink DWA-552 card is exactly what you need if you want to put wireless in your desktop computer. The trident looking antenna array provides pretty decent signaling. But the setup can be a little tricky with newer N routers.
The trickiness in the setup isn’t because the card. It’s an issue with some newer dual channel wireless routers, like the one I have. The card initially registered 54Mbps connection throughput. I wasn’t going to put up with that. That’s because there are many modes I could use to send optimal throughput to different channels. Once I found that out, it was just a matter of changing a setting and we were off.
I looked at the throughput and it reports 300Mbps. Now we’re talking. One of the issues I ran into, however, was signal strength. I think that’s because the antenna array sits in the back of the computer. Some models, like Linksys, have the antenna array on cables that connect to the actual antennas on the desk top. That would help with the signal issue where my computer is located. The easier solution for me was patching a line to my upstairs living room. This allowed me to place the router in a central position.
Because of the signaling issue, I have to give this hardware a 4 star rating.
Update: The signal issue continued to be a big issue for me, because of this, I am redoing the rating to a 2. Drop outs and interference were regular occurrences with the router in the next room.
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D-link has an optional antenna trio that cables over to the card on the back of the PC for those for whom the included antennas don’t do the job. It’s the D-Link ANT24-0230 which is made for 2.4Ghz operation that the DWA-552 operates on.