Wireless USB port????

Does anyone know if there is some type of wireless USB transceiver device in existence? My CEO (I love starting stories like that) has his computer located in a region that is not easily accessible from his desk. It's actually about 3 feet away in a cabinet, while his monitor, wireless mouse and keyboard are set up on his desk. The monitor cable is actually run under the floor, then up again through the bottom of the cabinet. he doesn't like to look at wires

Anyway, anytime I add a peripheral device to his desktop I have to run the line into the grommet in his desk, then into the floor, then go down to the 17th floor (which is another company BTW) go through their ceiling, then back up to 18 to pull the line to his computer in the cabinet. If there was some type of wireless USB hub around that would be great, but I can't find anything on google about one.

If anyone has seen anything like it please let me know. I think the company on 17 is getting annoyed with me standing on their desks.

best I could find for ya....maybe this is what you need?

www.newegg.com...

Features: Gives desktop-computer users the freedom to place their USB devices anywhere in the room without running long cables Laptop users gain the freedom to roam wirelessly with their laptops around the room while still maintaining access to their stationary USB devices


Only works on XP SP2, but something is out there, so it is possible you could do more research and find exactly what you need.

[edit on 8-7-2007 by RandomThought]

Can't use bluetooth devices?.

Anyway, you'd only have to run one USB cable if it comes to that, you could put a regular hub on the desk.

[edit on 7/8/2007 by djohnsto77]

Random Thought.... that was a perfect thought. That's exactly what I'm looking for. Thanks

dj,

Bluetooth devices are fine, but not everything that needs to connect is bluetooth. For example. He has one of these


It's cool but the iPod dock needs to be plugged into a USB port. It didn't matter before because he synced his iPod to his home PC. But now he's got a new iPhone, and needs to sync that with his work computer. And I don't believe it's bluetooth. You know what, maybe the iphone is bluetooth, but the dock itself isn't.

I know about such a device. It's a USB 2.0 HUB. There's a sender device with antenna which you connect to a USB-port on the pc. You get a 54 MBit wireless connection (with WEP encryption) to a 4-port HUB that can be placed up to 30 meters away. Up to 14 USB devices (incl. HUBs) can be connected through this system. And this is a pure hardware solution, so no drivers are necessary of course. However, I don't have a link and I don't know the brand. But it is out there... somewhere...

I found something...


Gefen: News and Reviews

Wireless USB Extender

Gefen's Wireless USB Extender enables full access to hi- and low-speed USB peripherals from up to 20 meters in distance. Keyboards, scanners, printers, hard drives, and digital cameras can all remain connected to the computer with no connection cables required. Distances up to 10 meters are guaranteed through one wall. Computer access is immediate with data transfer rates up to 400 Mbps. Pictures can be downloaded, documents printed, and computer data accessed instantly from any USB device. Based on ultra-wideband wireless technology from Wisair that operates in the 3.5 GHz range, the Gefen Wireless USB Extender operates through a small sender dongle that connects to the computer's USB port, and a four-port USB hub positioned at the remote location. The hub is plug and play in application, requiring a simple connection of up to four USB devices for instant access.

Edit to add:

Wireless USB 2.0 Extender

Wireless USB 2.0 Extender (4-port) (Pre-Order)

[edit on 2007/7/8 by Hellmutt]

I would be extremely cautious using this device if your environment has anything they want kept secret. I didn't see WEP in the product features list but no one in their right mind would use WEP in a production or enterprise setup.

brill

I know that a version with wep exists. But I don't know the brand.

Originally posted by Hellmutt
I know that a version with wep exists. But I don't know the brand.

Avoid it then. WEP is useless.

brill

A safer solution would be a similar device that uses a Cat 5 cable to connect to the remote hub. Not wireless, but only one cable

Originally posted by brill
I would be extremely cautious using this device if your environment has anything they want kept secret. I didn't see WEP in the product features list but no one in their right mind would use WEP in a production or enterprise setup.

brill

The Belkin wireless hub doesn't use WEP encryption. It simply has a USB transmitter and receiver. I think that's what I'm going to go with.

Personally I'd suggest forgetting about wireless and just run one cable and hook it up to a usb hub on his desk. Why? Less to go troubleshoot and more secure.

I've implemented the wireless hub, and it's fairly secure. It doesn't have a very long range, but it's better than running a cable under the floor to the floor below us. Aside from that, there isn't much on the side of USB devices that we need to worry about security for. Maybe a keyboard and mouse. A flash drive maybe.