How to Add Free Wifi Capabilities to a Xbox 360

Popular Science: "This 50-foot Ethernet cable snaking all the way through my apartment from the router in the bedroom to my Xbox 360 in the living room? That's how I used to play videogames online. The Xbox doesn't come with wireless capability built in, and I didn't want to shell out the extra $100 -- a third the price of the console itself -- for Microsoft's wireless adapter. Third-party wireless bridges cost a bit less but are still pricey. Finally, though, I found a way to ditch the giant wire with a solution that cost me only 40 bucks. If you already have a wireless network set up in your home, you can make a second, cheap router function as an Xbox adapter by replacing its firmware with free software called DD-WRT."

[Nathan Drake]

Umm,yeah...

[UltimaEnder]

Most people would already have those items, especially if you have an Xbox 360 and broadband internet....

[Nathan Drake]

But "Already have those"=/= Free.

Just saying.

[UltimaEnder]

Ya I got you, fixed it.....no worries!

[baodeus]

Nathan, you are a du*(*( as*. So are you saying PS3 don't need a wireless router? How the hell you get the wireless signal from?

[Jager]

Baod... /facepalm... Article says how to get a FREE wireless... all you need is a router, ethernet cable... wait, i thought u said FREE? no... i got to BUY that sh*t.

[Nathan Drake]

*Sigh*

Title:"How to Add Free Wifi Capabilities to a Xbox 360"
Article:"Finally, though, I found a way to ditch the giant wire with a solution that ***cost me only 40 bucks***."

http://www.thefreedictionar...
"Costing nothing"

And away Nathan Drake goes...

[UltimaEnder]

You two really are a whiny bunch, it is free if you have an old router and ethernet cable, which many people have already...thus making it free (or super cheap via ebay); either way you two are complaining about nothing, find something better to do with your time!

[Saint Sony]

Nah, you're always lurking somewhere, ready to jump in.

It may be hard to understand anything about 360 if you don't own one. Easier to bash it instead of actually trying it.

And those who reply "I did try 360, but it exploded".. I give you one LOL in front.

[Time_Is_On_My_Side]

lol, so it`s free when you bought it years ago? This is implying my TV, house, furniture, car everything I have is free. This means my XBOX 360 is free amazing, I didn`t see that it way, lol.

Now I need to put all this free stuff I bought years ago somewhere, does anyone have ideas?

[gaffyh]

You stupid fanboys, he's saying that you need ANOTHER router on top of your existing router. Seriously learn how to read the article retards.

[Time_Is_On_My_Side]

lol, when is the free part again?

[Parappa The Rappa]

Free Wifi CAPABILITIES. WHICH MEANS YOU COULD HAPPEN TO STUMBLE UPON SOME FREE WIFI. FREE AS IN, YOU DIDNT PAY FOR IT, SOMEONE ELSE IS PAYING THE BILL ON IT, ECT----ERGO, YOU ARE CAPABLE OF GAIN ACCESS TO A WIFI CONECTION THAT IS FREE(for you anyway lol).

Dont be a dipsh*t. And if you dont have an old wireless router lying around, you can buy one at goodwill for like 5 bucks. Happy New Year.

[Time_Is_On_My_Side]

lol, I'm not talking about paying bills to connect to the internet or stealing someone's unsecured router, I'm talking about the router itself. If you find an old router it isn't free because you bought it years ago, it doesn't make any sense. The age of the router doesn't determine whether the router is free or not.

Title: How to Add Free Wifi Capabilities to a Xbox 360

How is it free when it (the router) was bought years ago?

Key Word: "Router"

[Parappa The Rappa]

HOW TO ADD FREE WIFI CAPABILITIES TO THE XBOX 360...

Keyword is not ROUTER, keyword is FREE.

Basic sentence structure says, that the FREE item in question here, not it the ROUTER(which shows up nowhere in that title)---but is the WIFI. FREE WIFI is any wifi connection that you can connect to without paying money. Unfortunately, not everyone has awesome neighbors that will let you mooch off their WIFI connection for free. BUT since its it CAPABLE of grabbing FREE WIFI, it now has free wifi CAPABILITIES.

The router was not mentioned as being free. Infact if you READ THE ARTICLE, you'll see he says "old router" in his title. As for Ultima, he said "free if you have an old router". The software to mod the router cost nothing. Tell me where theres something wrong with that? Your house costs money, but if someone told you they could show you how to paint your house for FREE---are you telling me you would sit around and b*tch about how its NOT FREE because you need to buy a house if you dont already own one? Seriously?

[Cicinho]

How to add free wireless for the small price of $40, yeah that works. I will stick with my ethernet.

[solidt12]

Not free, even if you have a router, you still need to buy a second router to get this to work. It will cost you about $45.00 and you have to plug the router into the wall losing a power outlet and the mobility/convenience of the usb adapter that Microsoft sells. Other than that it works fine. I have this setup but I was able to find a linksys router dirt cheap used. $20.00

[Rob0g0rilla]

How many people have a second router sitting around?

Still a whole lot cheaper then paying 100 bucks for a wifi adapter.

[Oner]

Does anyone else see the amount of BS Spin that is being said around here? Taken directly from the article
.
.
.
.
"DIY Wireless for Your Xbox

Time: 30 minutes
Cost: ***$15-$50***

1. Before ***buying*** a router for this project, check dd-wrt.com to make sure the specific model is supported..."

End quote.

FFS how is it when I title a news headline that makes things CLEARER to understand it gets edited but this BS stays and hits 1000+ degrees?!?!?

ABSOLUTE SERIOUS DAMNED BS

[mikeslemonade]

Really? Do you think xbox non-PS3 owners can count money? I mean they did buy a xbox in the first place thinking it was cheaper than PS3. PS3 is free online so that means i have saved more money than the average 360 owner(also plays online and most of the early adopters do play xbox live gold) who bought the premium system at launch for $400. The word "free" obviously means something different to the average non-PS3 owner.

[Time_Is_On_My_Side]

"If you already have a wireless network set up in your home, you can make a second, cheap router function as an Xbox adapter by replacing its firmware with free software called DD-WRT."

- Doug Cantor (Author)

Maybe I should message someone who's literate, sorry.

[pixelsword]

...They only cost $400 bucks.

[Parappa The Rappa]

Where inlies the problem?

The software is free. He never said the router would be, not even if you already have one(cause you NEED a second one).

Maybe I should message some one that isnt a complete J@ck@ss.

[power of Green]

360 owners that take online gaming serious use Wi-Fi?

LOWL

LMAO

How do super haters get maxed out with bubbles?

[Sean Ryno]

Serious gamers on any console or even PC would not use wireless internet connection for a few very simple reasons, which I'll allow someone else to specify.

[AliC]

Wireless connections are fine for gaming if you take the time and money to buy proper equipment.

[Ridrick]

Wire or wireless. There is no differece.

Your internet pipe will always be bottleneck.

[Jazz4108]

You forget that the ps3 base are idiots!

[BRACHATTACK]

XBOX IS BAD.

[earwax]

So is your breath

[Batzi]

but he's right.

[ForROME]

The fact there is no wifi built in is a freaking joke its a 11 dollar part to add, MS next revesion they should throw this is in and be done with it, now you might say well MS should need to do this they are making money on the machine yada yada, ok then go the opposite route price your freaking adapter at a comparable price lets say 49.99 would still be a much better option, bad enough MS charges 149 for a 120 gig HD, WOW even when I type that I am shocked

[Sean Ryno]

It's a shame you aren't the President of Microsoft, think of all the money that you wouldn't make. It's business dude. People like money.

Also, Microsoft loses money selling their consoles or "machines", they make up for the loss with game sales. This has been the same since xbox1.

[LinuxGuru]

No, they make up for the loss with grossly-overpriced proprietary accessories AND game sales.

[Jazz4108]

Why would they, wireless gameing is the reason for so much Lag. If you dont believe me, Look up on the internet and any professional will tell you that for gaming, wireless is not recomended.

[Shadow Man]

I use a 10ft ethernet cable.

[Aclay]

You could add Free Wifi capabilities to a 360 for a Home Wireless Network by using this method, but that's about it. You couldn't go to an area that had Free Wifi and pick up a bunch of different signals and connect by just using this method alone.

But still, there isn't any reason why the 360 shouldn't have built in Wifi... I mean, the Wii has it for gods sake.

[Time_Is_On_My_Side]

It's simple "money" Microsoft took things like that out because that allows them to have a console for $199.99. The console appears cheaper but you get what you pay for. The reality is that it will cost you more in the long run than paying more upfront cheaper in the long run.

[Jazz4108]

Yeah like your going to lug that big a$$ Grill around town, hopeing to find a wireless signal and a TV. idiots.

[nurdeens]

dosent the ps3 has free wi-fi?

[GameOn]

When you buy a PS3, all you pay for is da mighty BluRay.

[Bladestar]

No it's not free... People still have to pay for blu-ray and wifi whether they like it or not... does $400 sounds free to you?

[power of Green]

Sony is paying for Wifi ;)

[psycho360]

@gameon

Unless you buy it as a BD player which 90% of the people buy it for.

[yamamoto114]

The reason why PS3 is more expensive is because they include everything standard (Wi-Fi, hard drive, online service, wireless controllers). That way they would only have one or two simple and complete configurations, but then they don't provide customers with much choice, and manufacturing the whole thing is expensive.

The 360 includes a lot fewer things in the box and instead sells everything separately as accessories if you need it. Because of this, manufacturing the 360 itself is cheap, but the accessories tend to be expensive because they need to be manufactured and packaged separately. However, people can pick and choose the things they need; not everyone wants or needs Wi-Fi, a hard drive, online service, or wireless controllers.

At the end of the day, they're just two different marketing strategies, both with their ups and downs. The one that's better depends on the customer that's buying.

[evilmonkey501]

and built in wireless and a hard drive and a cell computer and a wireless controller and the ability to recharge your controller from the system......you really do get what you pay for.

[Anon1974]

But the 360 elite is the same price as the PS3, is it not? If you buy a PS3 over the 360 elite you're getting both the Blu-Ray and wi-fi (and the online play) for free as opposed to if you bought the 360 elite and had to pay extra for all those features - except for Blu-Ray which simply isn't an option for the 360. So you're getting Blu-ray and wireless for free by comparison.

Edit: Wait. I saw an Elite for $350. So if you buy a PS3 the wi-fi is free, online is free but the blu-ray seems to cost you an extra 50 bucks. Still, blu-ray for 50 bucks...that seems like a helluva deal to me.

[LinuxGuru]

There's a lot of stupidity between 6.1 and 6.4.

[GameOn]

Don't forget 6.8 .

[LinuxGuru]

No, you see, you can't reply with that, because you pay for a lot more than just Blu-ray when you buy a PS3.

It's a shame you chose to make a boneheaded and totally incorrect statement like that, when all it obviously was, was anti-PS3 fanboy drivel.

I called that statement out for what it really was: stupidity.

Now go away and pretend to be smart and cool somewhere else.

[GameOn]

Relax man. I was being ridiculous in reply to the ridiculous post above me at 6. Yet you didn't notice the "stupidity" in that comment.

[ASSASSYN 36o]

Or just connect your 360 to your laptop for wireless on a bridged connection. But then again a wired connection is best for gaming.

[Lord Vader]

Exactly. Ive gone wirelss b4 for my 360, & my connection for MP isnt as good, so i went back to wired for best connection.

My PS3 doesnt matter b/c i play very few MP games on it.

[Software_Lover]

Wireless is a nice feature, but I dont like it. Never have never will. i wired my home for that reason. I did use wireless once on my ps3 for a quick update when I had it in another room. But other than that, I dont use it at all.

[gnothe1]

come on sony guys, you constantly bash MS for having accessories, but I bet you same people loved buying multi taps,network adapters an the many accessories that the Ps2 had. its amazing how short people memories are!! selling those things separate the PS2 became the most successful system EVER. now look at the Wii, that thing has all kinds of crap accessories an its on pace to do what the PS2 did.

[NipGrip]

Comparing last gen with this gen? How about comparing the PS3 to the 360, champ?

- ANY laptop harddrive
- ANY bluetooth keyboard/headset

Open standards vs overpriced proprietary junk. Get it yet?

[TIKUP]

Yes its true i got a 360 for xmas and realised it dosnt have a wireless adapter bulit in!!!!!! But my beloved ps3 does and so does wii.......wtf microsoft and then we have to pay £60 for the adapter, i couold go buy anew game for £40 but im still getting the overpriced adapter, well i have to dont i

[Dpa]

Um yeah im really gonna install a router in my room which needs its own DC adaptor, a lan cable running to the router and it flashes all night.

I thought this also takes up half your wireless traffic because the routers are paired with each other so any data is proccesed by both of them.

[AuToFiRE]

"All you need is a router, ethernet cable, and a few minutes of spare time!"

people didnt know you could do this? i did this with my PS2...

[Nikkelz]

instead of bashing the guy thank him because he's helping us out

from your boy nikkz
to that boy ultima ender
thank you for making gaming a little less cluttered.

peace and game on

[evilmonkey501]

I'll try it out on the old router I have in my basement...this is actually the reason I'm only online with my ps3...thanks:)

[Kwertie]

I did this with my Xbox some months ago. The most rewarding part is knowing that you did MS out of a sale of the grossly overpriced wireless adaptor. Here in the UK it costs around £60, where a normal PC version would cost about £15-20. The router you need is a WRT54GL. Make sure it's the GL and not the G. Linksys have reduced the memory in the G series, but then again the mini version might fit.

Anyhow, it was a double win for me, because I have a colour laser printer in my room. I've hooked that up to the same router as my Xbox, so now I can print wirelessly from my laptop.

[MmaFanQc]

the title say "Add Free Wifi Capabilities to a Xbox 360"

and like 3 line under you can see "a solution that cost me only 40 bucks"

[Jazz4108]

Did you not read the article from the guy that submitted this article and said that the headline he submitted was 30-50 dollars but some jack running this site changed it, most likely to favor there "beloved/precious" console of choice.

[iNcRiMiNaTi]

since i have my 360 close to my pc, i just linked them together using an ethernet cable and have windows bridge my wireless connection

[reckoner]

I just connect my 360 to my Mac through ethernet, because they're in the same room. The Mac has wireless internet and internet sharing capabilities, so I turned that on, and it shares the internet to the 360.

http://www.tuaw.com/2007/03...

[Ldubbz]

...are you and Amnesiac the same person? The similarities are striking....A Kid?

[reckoner]

Not that I know of...the only thing I see we have in common is our music taste.

[grover]

Go to amazon and get the wireless adapter for $49.99 for the original xbox. It works just like the new one. No setting up or downloading any extra crap.

[resistance022]

i dont mind 100 bucks in fact i dont even know how to do any of that crap i just...play games

[Horny]

i had a wireless game adapter for my ps2 and I now use it or the 360.

[DevilWillCry289]

Wired its better than wireless for online gaming. Wireless will cause a lot of lag when playing online.

[MmaFanQc]

huh,... my xbox is plugged by ethernet i see lag
my ps3 is by wifi and i dont have any lag.....wtf

[OOG]

true fact is that yes direct connection with a ethernet wire is always the best bet.....especially if you plan on hosting games etc....

[Kwertie]

I don't think wireless makes a whole lot of difference does it? I did a little test. Pinging bbc.co.uk directly from my main router (within it's firmware) gives me this:

10 packets transmitted, 10 received, 0% packet loss, time 9045ms
rount-trip min/avg/max/mdev = 15.000/15.500/20.000/1.500 ms

15.5ms average ping.

Now pinging from the router that my 360 is connected to, which is in turn connected to the other via wireless gives me this:

11 packets transmitted, 11 packets received, 0% packet loss
round-trip min/avg/max = 19.201/20.874/30.708 ms

20.8ms average ping - the bad news is the max ping was 30.7, where a direct connection may have been around 20ms.

[Yomiro]

so how much is the x360 Wireless Networking Adapter? $100 plus x360 60gb $299 = 80gb PS3 value $399.

[Valkyrie83]

good article, I'm going to try this out once I get home from holiday travel!

[kavkazip]

HMMMMMMM n4g you post this article but refuse to tell the world about all the zunes that froze today and fail to tell consumers about microsofts faulty hardware they sell but encourage it , sometimes you even force it on people and make them believe its their only choice . I hope you and the other large media outlets get put on trial and charged for spreading Proporganda and lies to consumers on a

[Iceberg032]

just to get wifi!! couldn't they have just had wifi built in some of the xboxs's like the pro.

[Ldubbz]

Why use wireless for gaming anyhow? Ethernet is a faster, more stable connection for sure. Not that wireless DOESNT work, but if u have a lot of wireless connections at your house (laptops, PS3, PSP, Wii) like I do, youll notice that they can cause problems when simultaneously ran...especially with the PS3; methinks its because since it also has routing capabilities (sort of) it causes a problem every now and then. Does anyone else ever get that problem?

Whenever my roomie is playing MP on PS3, if I surf with my laptop, it screws him up sometimes; if Im on 360 thru ethernet, there is no problems. I do have a pretty new Netgear router (works WAY better than older ones you would have to powercycle everyday). Anyone else have any comments on that?

An lets not be silly folks; the PS3 does of course have ethernet as well, so there will be no whining here!!!

[ambientFLIER]

Because for a lot of people it works perfect? I've been playing on Live using WiFi on my 360 for the past two years, and I've never had any problems. My connection strength in COD4 is 4 bars 99% of the time. How's that for you?

[madpuppy]

It should have said something like "low cost wireless for Xbox360"

At least it wasn't that whole "use the wireless from your laptop" article.
It works but, who wants to use a laptop as a wireless adapter?