802.11 Wireless Standards

Wireless N is a common name for computer hardware that supports 802.11n Wi-Fi wireless networking. Standard types of Wireless N hardware include network routers and adapters.

This article examines the pros and cons of 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and Bluetooth for WLANs.

In Wi-Fi wireless networking, dual band is the capability to transmit on the 5 GHz band of 802.11a and also the 2.4 GHz band used by 802.11b/g/n. Dual-band Wi-Fi is a feature of some wireless routers and network adapters. Some cellular phones also utilize a kind of dual band communications, separate from Wi-Fi.

802.11b and 802.11g are both popular standards for Wi-Fi home networking. Can 802.11b and 802.11g gear be mixed on a wireless network, or are they incompatible?

802.11n provides higher network bandwidth compared to other forms of wireless networking. And compared to older Wi-Fi technology, 802.11n also offers better signal range at least in some situations. Do you feel compelled to upgrade your router or other wireless equipment to Wireless-N?

802.11a is an established IEEE standard for wireless networking that improves on the performance limitations of 802.11b. 802.11a is a relatively high cost solution found in some business networks.

802.11b is an industry-standard technology for wireless communication via Ethernet. Because of its low cost and established history, 802.11b is commonly found in home networks.

802.11n is a standard for high-speed Wi-Fi networking, operating at greater than 100 Mbps. 802.11n is designed to replace all of the earlier 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11g Wi-Fi standards.

802.11 is a family of standards for wireless local area network (WLAN) networking. This page describes each of the "802.11X" standards including 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11g.