Q-Waves Wireless USB AV Kit

The Q-Waves Wireless USB AV Kit connects a PC to a TV or projector, but it does so without wires. It should be able to display almost from the PC’s screen on the other device.

It uses ultra-wideband (UWB) radio technology to give a high-speed connection, but it only works over short distances (the maker claims up to 10m, but we would recommend around 3m for reliable performance). At maximum speed, it is nearly 10 times faster than standard wireless networks.

Wireless USB uses lots of clever electronic tricks to avoid interfering with other wireless devices in the home, such as conventional wireless networks, cordless phones and baby monitors.

The AV Kit comprises a pair of small USB adapters that look like USB memory keys. One plugs into the PC and the other plugs into a small base station which has both VGA and HDMI sockets and is powered by a mains adapter.

Cables for these are not supplied, though. If you use the HDMI connection, it will carry stereo audio as well but if you use the VGA socket it is necessary to connect a cable from the plug on the base station to the TV’s audio input.

It was easy to use. We just installed the software (XP, Vista and Windows 7 are supported) and plugged it all in. The TV screen then became an extension of our Windows desktop. It’s like attaching a second monitor, allowing the user to drag any program or video windows onto it using the mouse.

You can watch almost any kind of video content, even high-definition movies in full-screen mode, although Blu-ray movies do not work.

One very important limitation is that the PC does need an unobstructed view of the TV to work properly - it will not work through even the thinnest walls or barriers.

We found that with a good connection the quality was very good, although full-screen, high-resolution video was occasionally jerky, especially during slow panning shots.

We were able to watch Youtube videos streamed from a mini-notebook computer, but for full-screen TV programs or DVDs you will need a computer with at least a dual-core processor for the best results.