Are you thinking of replacing your Wireless G router with one that is a Wireless N router? In this article, we’ll examine the advantages in performance that come with Wireless N over Wireless G. We’ll also talk about additional features available with numerous Wireless N routers which you might find interesting and beneficial.
Speed And Range
The two major advantages of Wireless G are speed and distance. The standard Wireless G router tops out at around 54Mbps. This is a lot faster than the B standard, which was capped at 11Mbps, but not as quick as the N router. Wireless N routers reach speeds of up to 300Mbps. It’s nearly six times faster than the G router. Wireless N’s range is two times that of a G router Wi-Fi Site survey.
The question is whether you really require all this additional performance? In the case of just one or two users connected to your network any time, and they only browse the internet and print a few documents the answer isn’t really. If you’re playing games or performing many downloads Wireless G speeds can get quite a bit sluggish. If you stream HD video across your home, wireless G router can soon become a stumbling block.
Usage Considerations
Another factor to take into consideration is the number of users are expected to connect to your home wireless network simultaneously. Two or three people on an wireless G network isn’t a huge problem. If you’re able to have three or four users on the network at once, things could stop extremely quickly.
Wireless N routers use a combination of multiple antennas to boost signal strength and extend the range. This is known as MIMO or Multiple Input Multiple Output. If you mix MIMO with Wireless N’s speed and range, 3 or 4 people will have enough capacity and range to browse easily, download and print.
Additional performance is possible by using routers made for gamers and for HD videos. These routers are equipped with high speed processors as well as additional memory that is specifically designed to handle the toughest games as well as stream HD video. Join one of these top-performing routers with your XBox, PlayStation or Bluray player to enjoy the intense gaming experience as well as HD streaming from any room at home.
More Wireless N Features
Another unique characteristic that is unique to Wireless N is it can operate on a less busy frequency band than the wireless G. The Wireless G’s 2.4GHZ frequency band is shared by wireless phones as well as baby monitors garage door openers, and various other routers that use wireless technology. This could create interference issues that are difficult to identify. Wireless N operates on the 5GHZ frequency range, which has a higher degree of “wide open” then the 2.4GHZ band. The majority of dual-band wireless routers make use of this feature, allowing users to operate both networks simultaneously at simultaneously. One is on the 5GHZ band and the one is on the 2.4GHZ band. This will ensure that your streaming and gaming activities aren’t interfering with your normal emails and surfing the web.
Another great feature that several N routers have is a built-in USB port. The USB port is able to enable the contents of the majority of memory sticks as well as USB hard drives accessible to all devices on their wireless networks. Certain routers improve this feature by having an integrated media server that lets you stream music and video to all of your computers.
Disadvantages
After you’ve mastered all the advantages of getting an Wireless N router the only worry you might have is the cost. The good thing is that prices are dropping dramatically. Each time a manufacturer updates an item, the model preceding it is reduced in cost. This is great news for people who don’t have to buy all the “latest and greatest” version of every product that is released to the market. There are now excellent N routers that cost a little less than the typical G router. Another consideration is compatibility. Although N is compatible backwards with G, it loses speeds and advantages from N, unless your adapters are upgraded to N.