Connect your laptop without Ethernet port to the Internet

No Ethernet port on your Windows laptop or MacBook? You’re not alone.

Laptop computers are trending toward thinner models that do not include an RJ45 Ethernet port. If you rely on Wi-Fi day-to-day, you may not notice the change. But in situations where Wi-Fi is weak or unavailable, you can count on an Ethernet cable adapter to get the connection you need.

As laptop users run more browser-based applications and store more files in the cloud, they require less local storage space. This, combined with smaller and more efficient processors, means laptops can afford to be thinner and lighter without sacrificing performance.

When laptop manufacturers shrink their products to facilitate more portability, some connectivity features may not “make the cut.” These often include the laptop Ethernet port since it is, quite literally, thicker than the device.

Again, even if you typically use a wireless Internet connection, consider some scenarios where an Ethernet connection might be missed:

• Wi-Fi is weak—You are in your customer’s conference room, ready to wrap up your sales presentation with a web-based demo. Unfortunately, your content is trickling down at 5 Mbps over your client’s weak conference room Wi-Fi network.
• Security requirements—Your boss decides Wi-Fi is available for customers or guests only, but employees on the internal network must connect via Ethernet to protect sensitive data.
• Signal range—You and your laptop are all set up at a trade show, but your booth is too far from the nearest Wireless Access Point (WAP) to get a good signal.

Plug the adapter into your laptop’s USB port and use a Cat5e/6 Ethernet patch cable to connect the RJ45 end to the network.

Ethernet cable adapters

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