Wireless networking standards
Settling on a standard is one of the most important decisions you'll make while putting together your network. The standard you choose influences everything, including the speed, the features, the reach, and the cost of your network. Making sense out of the alphabet soup of wireless technologies can be daunting, but here's a quick guide to what you need to know.
Networking standards:
802.11n |
802.11g |
HomePlug |
Bluetooth |
Ethernet |
802.11b |
802.11a
Network standards at a glance
| Networking standards | Speed (up to) | Range | Frequency and interference risk | Hot-spot access | Power drain | Cost |
|---|
| 802.11n (popular) |
300Mbps or more |
250 feet or more |
2.4GHz; 5GHz; moderate |
Excellent |
Low |
Moderate to high |
| 802.11b (Obsolete) |
11Mbps |
150 feet |
2.4GHz; high |
Poor |
Moderate |
Low |
| 802.11a (Obsolete) |
54Mbps |
100 feet |
5GHz: low |
Poor |
High |
High |
| 802.11g (Popular) |
54Mbps |
150 feet |
2.4GHz; high |
Excellent |
Moderate |
Moderate |
| Bluetooth |
700Kbps |
30 feet |
2.4GHz; high |
N/A |
Low |
Moderate |
802.11n: The standard that's not here yet
The yet-to-be finalized 802.11n standard (also known as Wireless-N)is based on MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) technology, which takes advantage of multiple data streams. Nonetheless, this standard is getting more and more popular, especially since the WiFi Alliance rolled out a WiFi Certified program in 2000. The certification guarantees that all certified wireless products from different vendors work well with one another. Most of the major networking vendors offer routers and adapters based on Draft 2.0 of the spec, which requires interoperability among vendors, adherence to the latest security schemes, and backward compatibility with previous generations of Wi-Fi equipment (802.11b and 802.11g, for example). Wireless-N is now available in both 2.4Ghz frequency and 5Ghz frequency, dual-band routers can offer signal in these two bands, some can even do that simultaneously.
Thought the 802.11n has not yet been finalized, 802.11n-class hardware is still getting more and more popular and might eventually replace the 802.11g soon. you can buy them with confident and the prices have come down significantly. You can easily find a Wireless-N router for less than $100. It's getting so affordable that we don't see why you shouldn't get one. Our testing has shown that while 802.11n is indeed faster than older wireless standards, it's still not quite as fast as its rated speed of 300Mbps, however, this is normal. If you have many connected systems, intend to stream HD video with other concurrent network activity, or if you need to provide wireless access over a wide area, then 802.11n is definitely a must-have.
D-Link DGL-4500 GamerLounge Xtreme N Gaming Router
802.11n facts
• Much better range, throughput, and speed than 802.11g
products
• Backward compatible with 802.11a/b/g products
• Greater resistance to interference, especially in 5Ghz band.
802.11g
The 802.11g standard is currently the most popular Wi-Fi standard for hotspot and mobile devices such as smartphone. However it's being replaced slowly by Wireless-N. 802.11g is the successor to 802.11b, but it is backward-compatible with 802.11b as well. The two standards operate at the same frequency (2.4GHz). With the theoretical throughput of 54Mbps, 802.11g delivers four times the throughput of 802.11b. 802.11g used to be the de facto home network standard for a few years till Wireless-N came a long. As it's been widely adopted, the price of 802.11g products has fallen significantly, making it a cost-effective choice for public hotspots. Compared to Wireless-N standard, the downsides to 802.11g include much lower throughput speed, shorter range and the fact that it is much more prone to interference. Example of home devices that would interfere with the 802.11g standard include cordless phones, baby monitors, microwave ovens, and Bluetooth radios.
Asus WL-700gE Storage Router
802.11g facts
• Better range than that of 802.11a products
• Much faster than 802.11b products
• Low cost
• Subject to interference from other 2.4GHz devices
• Only three nonoverlapping channels
HomePlug
Power-line gear may be the best-kept secret in home networking. Though overshadowed by Wi-Fi, power-line networking (also known by the Powerline Alliance's name of HomePlug) is a good solution either as an alternative to wireless or as a way to extend a wireless network to the far reaches of a home. Power-line devices use your home's electrical wiring to connect a digital network. The two HomePlug standards are 1.0 and AV. HomePlug AV is the more recent of the two and addresses quality of service issues that are important for transmitting high-def video content. HomePlug adapters are fast enough for streaming audio-video content and online gaming, not to mention e-mail and Web surfing; we recently clocked several vendors' offerings at over 30Mbps of actual sustained speed (the theoretical speed could get to 200Mbps). The power-line solution is also a great way of connecting wireless access points in a large house or building. Keep in mind that this solution isn't cheap: each adapter costs roughly $100, and you'll need at least 2 to start.
Linksys PLK200 PowerLine AV Ethernet Adapter Kit
HomePlug facts
• Practical throughput speeds of about 14Mbps or faster
• Moderately expensive
• Great for environments with 2.4GHz or 5GHz cordless
phones
• Guaranteed interoperability between HomePlug devices
that are based on the same specification
Bluetooth
Bluetooth offers more flexibility than Wi-Fi but on a smaller scale. Its throughput is a pokey 700Kbps, and its range is just a couple of dozen feet, but devices with a Bluetooth radio and an antenna can speak to each other with little or no preparation. Meeting attendees can immediately transfer files across a conference table using their Bluetooth-equipped notebooks, or they can send a file to a Bluetooth-equipped printer without downloading drivers. Bluetooth is fast becoming standard equipment on many cell phones, laptops, and other devices. There's even talk of putting Bluetooth into home appliances. But for all the theoretical benefits of Bluetooth, the reality is that it's currently a mess of incompatible hardware and software. Because Bluetooth operates at 2.4GHz, it is subject to the same interference problems as 802.11b and 802.11g.
The Aliph Jawbone 2 Bluetooth headset
Bluetooth facts
• Not compatible with 802.11 standards
• Slow throughput at around 700Kbps
• Short range of about 30 feet
• Interferes with other 2.4GHz devices
• Low power requirements
Ethernet
Nothing tops Ethernet for speed and reliability, and Ethernet also has the advantage of being a lot cheaper to deploy than power line or any flavor of wireless. Most computers already have Ethernet adapters built in, but unfortunately, most homes do not. Still, if you are after high bandwidth, it's worth considering pulling Ethernet cable through your home. Even if you decide not to cable your home for Ethernet, you might find that an Ethernet hub or switch is a good complement to your wireless network. In fact, almost all wireless routers come with a four-port Ethernet switch built in, some even offer Gigabit Ethernet that's 10x faster than the regular Ethernet.
Linksys EtherFast Cable/DSL Firewall Router with 4-port Switch/VPN Endpoint
Ethernet facts
• Practical throughput around 90Mbps
• Inexpensive
• Requires cabling
• Range of about 300 feet per segment
• Widespread networking standard
• Ideal for bandwidth-intensive applications
Older standards
Standalone 802.11a and 802.11b hardware has become obsolete over past years; in fact, it can be hard to find in brick-and-mortar stores, which stock mostly 802.11n and 802.11g devices. Because the newer wireless standards have become so affordable and have superior performance, we wouldn't recommend that you buy any new 802.11b or 802.11a hardware anymore, presuming you can even find any. Still, if you have any legacy wireless hardware lying around, it's worthwhile to know something about it.
802.11b
802.11b gear operates at 2.4GHz and offers a real-world throughput of around 5Mbps at close range. In a typical indoor environment, without a lot of metal, 802.11b equipment can generally maintain a solid connection up to about 150 feet. It is also fully compatible with the faster 802.11g standard. The weaknesses of 802.11b are its comparatively low throughput and the potential for interference with other gadgets that share the 2.4GHz band, such as cordless phones, security radios, and microwaves.
802.11b facts
• Better range than 802.11a products
• More than adequate throughput for broadband sharing at around 5Mbps
• Slower than 802.11a and 802.11g
• Broad compatibility
• Low cost
• Subject to interference from other 2.4GHz devices
• Only three nonoverlapping channels
802.11a
The 802.11a standard has a couple of advantages over the more prevalent 802.11g. It runs at a less populated frequency (5.15GHz to 5.35GHz), making it less prone to interference, and its practical throughput is about four times greater than that of 802.11b, typically clocking in at around 22Mbps. This gives it a lot more elbowroom than 802.11b for streaming digital audio and video or transferring large files over the network, with bandwidth left over for Internet sharing. Some manufacturers offer proprietary turbo modes that can push throughput even higher. 802.11a's downside is its shorter range. Because 802.11g and 802.11a operate at different frequencies, they can't talk directly to one another, which is why if you have an 802.11a adapter, you cannot connect to most hot spots. Another weakness is the increased power drain of the 5GHz radio, as compared to its 2.4GHz counterparts.
802.11a facts
• Great throughput at around 22Mbps or higher
• Operates at 5GHz
• Low risk of interference from other devices
• Eight nonoverlapping channels
• Higher cost than that of 802.11b and 802.11g
