The Conceptronic 11n Wireless ADSL2+ Modem and Router measures 20x15x2.5cm with cables inserted and black in colour. The front has eight small LED’s (hopefully green) and the right side a push button that I will go into detail about in a little while. The left side the top and base have nothing. This leaves the back.

Now all the networks – Orange, O2, 3, T-mobile, Vodafone and Virgin - offer high-speed ‘3G’ internet access, allowing you to get online at decent speeds so you can browse the web and access email on the move. Even better, you can skip the phone entirely and pick up an affordable mobile broadband deal. What a mobile broadband package does is allow you to connect to the internet using a mobile phone network, but without having to use a phone.

So when a modem/router suggests that you need no knowledge to attach a new unit I took this with a large pinch of salt. Insert the CD and it autostarts. A number of questions are asked – and answered – by the information already held within the PC. A range of tests are conducted – by the unit – and then it reboots itself. Done, no questions at all. However the one proviso is that your PC was live and then this scenario is correct.

When setting up a home network you do need to consider which connectivity method is most appropriate for your particular circumstances.  If the though of laying cables from system to system located in various rooms does not appeal and your environment is not conducive to wireless connectivity or you are worried about security issues then a third alternative might appeal.

Broadband hubs, or routers, are traditionally fairly drab units designed with function in mind. Originally these devices would have been stuffed away in a corner or behind the sofa - out of sight. Integrating wireless into such a device has always caused conflict between utilitarian design and the need to place the hub somewhere in the open to get the best wireless signal.

There are many devices around now that allow you to share a broadband Internet connection with computers and other devices in your home or small business. The LinkSys WRT54G3G adds to the standard broadband connection the ability to slot in a wireless 3G data card. The device can effectively connect your local home/business network to both a wire broadband connection via Ethernet and/or to a 3G mobile network using 3G/UMTS data card (standard PC-card format).

Each of the two plugs is 10x7x4cm when inserted into a 13amp plug socket. The actual power socket is at the bottom of the unit so you could have problems if there is limited clearance above the plug. In fact you need to add 3cm to the 10cm height for the supplied 1.8metre Ethernet cable. So you actually need 9cm of clearance above the socket.

Until recently my connection was ADSL and then I decided that the NTL/Virgin offer was worth the swap. You get a small box with a coaxial connection in and then a single Ethernet connector to go to a PC so the change to look at the ZyXEL Cable Modem was ideal. You may already have and this was used to help with that. However at that stage the Wireless aerial and USB stick that come with this Router had yet to leave the box. Then the in so Wireless was required and this provided it.

Despite the ready availability of power cables to every point of every house, running data over an environment that was designed to carry high voltage and high power was never going to be easy.

The ZyXEL Homeplug PLA400 comes in a pack of two (other numbers are available) and what looks like a small router is at the end of standard 13amp power lead. Plug one of these into your router and the 13amp lead into a wall socket.

La Fontera and Hawkings Antenna Email is one of those services that we take for granted - almost everyone uses it. On the road though if you want to access email you either have to find an Internet Cafe or pay an exorbitant fee for the privilege, either using a WiFi hot spot or (slowly) via your mobile phone.

When you have influence it is always best to go straight to the top.  This was the approach adopted by BT when presenting new products to the press recently.  Where better to site this occasion but at the top of the BT Tower with its fast lifts taking you to the top and down again. Naturally, being BT, new phones were high on the agenda of new products.

In my house there is a constant fight ensuing between various items of computer equipment and living space.  I hate to admit it but it is often the former that wins the day in these battles.  Sometimes, though, a compromise can be reached as in the case of a KVM (Keyboard, Video and Mouse) solution.

While wireless is generally accepted as the preferred option for home networking, it is not always the most suitable method for some users.  A wireless network may remove the need for unsightly wires between devices and be relatively easy to set up in the ideal environment but complications can get in the way.  Often thick walls and metal mesh encased in structures will interfere with wireless signals and cause communication problems.

As prices of computer systems continue to fall while specifications increase, the temptation grows for users to upgrade their computing capability with a new purchase.  The problem can then arise as to what to do with the old system.  If you do not wish to get rid of an old friend and space considerations are an issue, then you might like to consider a KVM (Keyboard, Video, and Mouse) solution.

The original promise made with the introduction of the USB technology was that you would be able to daisy-chain up to 127 devices from a single port.  During the many years that have passed since the launch of this technology and features such as "plug and play" (sometimes referred to as "plug and pray"), I have yet to see any USB products that enable you to daisy-chain other devices.

Unlike the , reviewed recently, or the similar offering from Solwise, the NETGEAR WGXB102 product is not a standalone alternative for a wireless network.  Although it does make use of the standard home mains electricity loop as its conduit, this particular piece of kit acts as an extender facility to an existing wireless network.

The first is GPS connection for navigation and the second has been solved by this NETGEAR® MIMO router. I have used with only limited success several modem/routers from various companies. Getting them to talk to the Internet is easy, getting the notebook to talk to the Internet without security is easy, with security is trickier, the hardest part is getting the notebook to talk to other PC's on the network and visa versa.

As Broadband and the take-up of networking expands into the small office and home user market, so there is a need for kit that will provide the necessary features with greater ease-of-use and perhaps having a touch of style about it. This is an area in which NETGEAR feels its products have the necessary combination of performance and distinctive appearance to make them stand out from the pack.