Best Laptop WiFi Card

Best Laptop WiFi Card – Top Wireless AC Card of 2019

You may know that the 802.11ac is the advanced and fastest way for connecting a WiFi network. Compared to the previous 802.11n Wireless standard, it can provide a lot more (gigabit) speed per second.

Yes, all the laptops come with a decent WiFi card pre-installed, and they get good reception in some cases. But, when there are walls or floors between your laptop and the Internet router, then it may suffer from the WiFi signal quality. So, if you want to boost the WiFi capabilities of your system, then you should get a good-quality or say fastest laptop WiFi card that supports your computer system. Let’s check the list of the most sought and tested wireless AC cards of the year.

Contents

1. Intel 7260.HMWG.R Wireless Half Mini Card

Get an ultimate WiFi performance on your laptop with decent speed, coverage, and capacity with the help of the dual-band wireless 7260.HMWG.R card from Intel. It supports all the standard wireless specifications and will offer smooth and secure operation. Check it with your model number if you have Lenovo or HP notebooks before purchasing.

Features of Intel 7260.HWMG.R Wireless AC Card for Laptop are:

It will provide super-fast speed, broader coverage, high-capacity, and long battery life to your system.
It has dual band 2 x 2 wireless plus Bluetooth 4.0 adapter which is combined with the Intel core 4th generation processors.
This 7260HMW NB model has the Intel smart connect technology and the WiFi hotspot assistant for a seamless connection.
The PCI express half mini card is compatible with the wireless standards like 802.11ac/n/g/a/b.
It has many positive reviews from the users who find the connection as stable and fast with the help of this WiFi card.

2. AR9462 AR5B22 Combo WiFi Bluetooth 4.0 Dual Band Mini PCI Card

With the great working on Windows and Linux laptop systems, this mini PCI-Express wireless Qualcomm module from AR is the second in my list. With its dual-band connectivity, it offers you to get the optimum speeds from either 2.4GHz or 5GHz bands. But, do check the support of your motherboard to the USB bus as this card is going Bluetooth USB bus and is not recommended for HP laptops and Lenovo ThinkPad.

Below are the useful features of this wireless card:

It is a 2T 2R mini PCI Express module with AR9642 chipset.
It supports Bluetooth 4.0 to connect your Bluetooth enabled devices to the system.
Remember that it has a horizontal interface and not the vertical interface when you attach it to your system.
It has the dimensions of 30mm by 26.8mm, so keep that in mind when you think to buy it for your laptop model.
Just install the drivers for the WiFi and Bluetooth depending on the system needs, and you will enjoy the faster wireless connectivity and signal speed compared to the old WiFi standards on your laptop.

3. Intel 3160 Dual Band Wireless Card for Laptop

This 3160 laptops wireless card supports dual bands of 2.4GHz and 5GHz to provide you super-fast speed on your WiFi network connection. It is a genuine product from Intel, but still, I advise you to check its compatibility with your laptop model before you buy it.

Characteristics of Intel 3160 Laptop WiFi Card are:

It comes with a Bluetooth 4.0 module integrated with the smart power optimizer.
You will get a transfer speed of up to 433Mbps through its 1 x 1 TX/RX streams.
With the dual band support, it is compatible with the latest 802.11 ac/n/g/b/wireless standards for optimum performance.
It works seamlessly with both the Windows and Linux Operating Systems.
Attach it into your system, and you will surely notice the signal boost in your WiFi connection compared to the old networking card.
You will get a full warranty from Intel to have a worry-free purchase of the product.

4. Killer Wireless-AC 1550 Laptop WiFi Card

From Killer Networking, you will get this dual-band wireless networking card with the compatibility to the M.2 connectors. Keep in mind that it will work only with the M.2 slot on laptops and not that on the desktop computers.

Let’s look at the features of this Laptop WiFi Card from Killer Rivet Networks:

You will get up to 1.73GBps throughput for enjoying the gaming, video playing, downloading, and web surfing without any signal interruptions.
Its Advanced Stream Detect 2.0 technology will detect and classify the priority of the traffic and delivers smooth and fast gaming experience like never before.
It works best on the M.2 slot on the Windows 10 x64 systems and not recommended to use on the Lenovo IBM ThinkPads.
With the full MU-MIMO support, you will get a 60% faster speeds and low latency compared to the other wireless networking cards.
From the Killer Control Center, you can easily and quickly manage the network traffic of your system.

5. PJCCARD 3160HMW Wireless-AC 3160 Mini PCIe WiFi Card

This dual-band wireless-AC 3160 802.11ac mini PCIe card will help you to obtain the best WiFi signal from your Internet network. It will provide a larger coverage area, high signal capacity, and longer battery life to your laptop compared to the old WiFi support on the system.

Let’s have a look at why this module is in this list of the fastest laptop WiFi cards:

As this version of the wireless PCIe card is universal, it can work with all the laptops. It is not recommended to use an AMD motherboard, HP machines, and IBM Lenovo Thinkpad though.
It supports all the Windows Operating Systems for a seamless WiFi connection.
A Bluetooth 4.0 with smart power optimizer will help you to connect all your Bluetooth enabled devices to your laptop.
It is compatible with the latest and fastest WiFi standards of AC/N/G/B/A at its 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands.
If you face difficulties to search the WiFi signal, then just use clear tape or adhesive plaster on the twentieth finger of the card and enjoy excellent signal reception.

6. Dell Broadcom Internet WLAN Adapter Card

This genuine Dell Broadcom WiFi mini card will help you to get constant, fast, and reliable wireless network speed on your laptop. As it is the official WiFi module, it supports almost all the Dell laptops and notebooks.

Let’s see why this official Dell WiFi Mini Adapter Card is on this list:

It comes with dual-band support and compatibility to the latest IEEE 802.11 a/g/ac/n/b/i/k wireless standards.
Whether you are playing online 4K games or streaming HD videos, it will provide an enhanced experience of multimedia content on your laptop.
With the 64-bit & 128-bit encryptions and IPv6 support, you will get a secure and dependable network connection.
It supports the Dell laptops & notebooks including Latitude XT2, XT2-XFR, 2100, E4200, E4300, E5500, E6400, E6500, Vostro 1500, Studio 15, 1535, 17, 1735, XPS 1340, etc.
You will also get support to the extensible authentication protocols (EAP) like LEAP, TLS, TTLS, MD5, PEAP, and EAP-Fast with the data transfer rates of 54Mbps.

7. Generic Wireless BCM94352Z M2 Interface WiFi Card

If you have a Lenovo laptop, then this wireless card from Generic is for you. It is specifically designed to work with the different Lenovo models for achieving optimum performance.

Features of Generic Wireless BCM94352Z Wireless Card for Laptop are:

It fits in almost all the models of Lenovo laptop including B50-70, N50-70, B40-80, B50-80, E40-80, Y40-80, Y50-70 TOUCH, Yoga 3 PRO 1370, etc.
It supports the fastest and latest 802.11AC wireless standards.
With the M.2 Interface, you can insert into the M.2 slot in your laptop.
I recommend you to contact the company through email or phone with your laptop model to check the compatibility of the wireless card.
You may find it a little bit pricey, but it is worth the money for sure.

Why a dedicated wireless card for laptop?

When you install an 802.11ac wireless card on your laptop, you are promised to get much faster and reliable speeds on your WiFi network compared to the old standards. You can notice the significant change in wireless data transfer rates, video downloading speeds, and playing online games. Yes, there are some best USB WiFi adapters available in the market which can help you to boost the wireless speeds on your laptop. But, a dedicated WiFi adapter card will help you to free up your valuable USB port on your system as well as make you worry free from losing your wireless adapter.

How to choose the best laptop WiFi card?

When you think of buying a wireless card for your laptop, then make sure to check its compatibility with the model of your system. You can dig into the forums or ask the manufacturer to find the answer. Then, check the size of the card and the slot on your system to discover whether it will fit in or not. At last, match the number of the antennas of the new card to the old one installed on your laptop. You can find it in the guidelines of the wireless card manufacturer.

Installing a WiFi card on the laptop

It is an easy and straightforward process to install a wireless card on your laptop system. Follow the steps below to do it on your own:

Unplug the system from power and remove the battery.
Open the backside of your laptop and locate the old WiFi card.
Detach the antennas of your old card (remember the position of the antenna for a perfect installation of a new wireless card).
Unscrew the pre-installed old card and remove it from your laptop.
Insert the new WiFi card, tighten its screws, and attach the antennas at right positions.
Now, close the back of your laptop, insert the battery, and power it up.
Install the required drivers as per the requirement of the new WiFi card.
That’s it. Now enjoy the faster and better wireless network connection on your laptop.

It is recommended that you check the guidelines for installing the card on the manufacturer’s website or installation guide too.

Conclusion

Use of an advanced wireless card for your laptop is a permanent replacement of the USB WiFi adapter. It will surely help you to improve the security, speed, and coverage of your network. You may feel it a little bit confusing as the wireless card, and the wireless adapter does the same thing but have a different design, placement, and operation. But, once you dig in a little, you will find that using the best available WiFi card is an excellent option to have on your laptop.

Again, I will advise you to check the compatibility of the WiFi card with your laptop model and make sure that you follow the right procedure of installing the card on the system.

If you have any doubt about this post or have any suggestion, then feel free to mention it in the comment section below. If you like the post, then please don’t forget to share it in your social accounts.