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Wireless has become a common term in the world of networking these days. Everything seems to have gone wireless whether it’s your computer, your cellular phone or your laptop. But with all this excitement over wireless there remain some people who ponder whether or not wireless is really that much better than the wired networks that have been around for years.

 

At its simplest the difference between a wireless network and a wired one is, well, the presence or absence of any cables. Wired networks use Ethernet cables and network adaptors to allow computers to be connected to one another. Computers can connect to each other directly or to a network through hubs, switches or routers.

 

The important factor is that cables need to run from each computer to the adaptor or to the other computers on the network. Setting up this infrastructure can be time-consuming and difficult since it usually a good idea to let the wires run through walls or roofs rather than underfoot. Advantageously the cables and hubs, routers or switches don’t cost all that much, making a wired local area network (LAN) relatively inexpensive to set up.

 

Additionally these cables and adaptors have been around for quite some time. Technology has come a long way in making hubs and switches reliable while cables have evolved at an amazing speed to offer reliable and speedy data transfer rates of up to 100 Mbps with Fast Ethernet technology. These cables can get damaged though, so it’s a good idea to keep an eye on them from time to time to ensure they are still working at their optimum.

 

Wireless networks, on the other hand, tend to follow one of three Wi-Fi communication standards: 802.11b, 802.11a and 802.11g. The first is the most common standard used by most wireless LANS (WLANS), the second is usually used by businesses while the third is a combination of the two. For most home users, 802.11b is the best choice.

 

Most wireless networks work requires a central wireless device called the access point. This access point needs to be centrally located so wireless signals can easily reach it. Despite the wide range of most wireless adaptors (up to 30 m or more in some cases), walls and outside interference can degrade the signal. Additionally each computer that is to be part of the network requires a wireless network adaptor card to pick up the wireless signals.

 

All this equipment is relatively more expensive than the Ethernet equipment required for a network of the same size. Even though prices are coming down now that wireless networks are becoming more prevalent, one can still expect to pay more to set up a wireless network than a wired one.

 

It should be mentioned also that wireless networks are susceptible to interference. Distance from the access point and other wave producing appliances (like microwaves, radios, cordless phones, etc.) can affect the signal quality of the wireless network. Security is also an issue as nearly anyone can gain access to a wireless network that hasn’t been properly secured.

 

With wireless networks you are also looking at slightly lower data transfer speeds. Even the high end equipment can only boast about 50 Mbps versus the 100 Mbps offered by Fast Ethernet.

 

So which is better? Well, it all depends on your needs. While wireless networks certainly seem to pale in comparison to traditional wired networks they more than make up for it in convenience. It seems that though wireless networks are seeing more use the chances are that the near future will likely show combination of both wired and wireless networks in the home and office.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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