Virtual reality used to be something that only existed in science
fiction stories. Today virtual reality is becoming our primary reality.
We watch movies online, shop online, socialize online, date online,
work online, go to school online... really, there isn't much we don't do
online. And, let's face it; it's so much more convenient that way. We
can do virtually anything we want on the internet and, thanks to data
services and Wi-Fi, we can connect to the internet from virtually
anywhere. It might be hard to imagine, but there was once a time when
everyone had to connect to the internet... with wires. Now that we can
wirelessly connect to the internet, it's hard to think of a reason why
someone would want to use cables and wires to get online.
Or is it? Is there still a place for cables in our modern internet community? That is a good question, and it has a good answer.
It's true that wired technology is old. Ethernet was born back in the days of Walkmans, VHS, MC Hammer pants, and stone washed jeans. Thankfully, our technology and fashion have improved. Well... at least our technology has. Ethernet has now had about 30 years to get better, and it has become a pretty awesome way to get online. That might be hard to believe, so let's look at why Ethernet is still going strong even with wireless getting all the hype.
Speed
We are part of an impatient culture. We don't want to give up precious seconds of our lives waiting for a page to load or some program to download. And why should we? I remember waiting hours to download a 20 MB (or smaller) file using dial up. Those were dark days. Modern Ethernet offers speeds of up to 1 Gbps. That's around three times the speed of the fastest Wi-Fi connections out there, even under ideal circumstances. 802.11n can ideally achieve speeds of around 300Mbps (there are 1000 Mb in one Gb), but there is often a disparity between theoretical and practical Wi-Fi performance. That disparity comes because of interference, physical obstructions that block line of sight, distance from the router, and network protocol overhead. Using Ethernet cable eliminates these issues.
Reliability
Wireless networks are prone to a variety of connection issues, particularly if you try to access the network at the edge of its wireless range. It's also not uncommon for the router to crash and need to be reset. Wired networks, on the other hand, hardly ever go down unless the power goes out in the entire building.
Setting up the network and connecting to it
I'm sure everyone has had issues trying to connect to a wireless network. And when (not if, when) you have an issue, it's nigh impossible to troubleshoot. And that is when you are just trying to connect to a network, trying to set one up can cause all sorts of headaches, especially with constantly changing standards for network encryption.
Security
That brings us to the last, and arguably the most important aspect that makes wired networks great: security. Let's face it, wireless networks aren't very safe. That's why we have to keep changing encryption standards. Even when companies and schools pay exorbitant fees to secure their wireless networks up to high heaven, they can still get hacked, and the average person's security doesn't come anywhere close to the standards of those institutions. Why is that a problem? Well remember we do almost everything online, which means we have tons of personal information out there for the taking.
In any neighborhood, a reasonably skilled hacker could easily get into five or more networks using only a laptop with a wireless connection. A wired network is completely contained. That means you have to physically connect to the network in order to access the information. The only other method of access involves very expensive methods that you probably won't have to worry about unless you get on the wrong side of a national spy agency.
Bottom Line
So does that mean Wi-Fi is horrible? Absolutely not, I actually love it. Unless you want to be trailing an Ethernet cable behind you everywhere you go, which would be impractical to say the least, there are still plenty of good uses for Wi-Fi. That said, Ethernet still has a lot to offer. Greater security, speed, reliability, and ease of use all make Ethernet something to seriously consider for any home or office.
Or is it? Is there still a place for cables in our modern internet community? That is a good question, and it has a good answer.
It's true that wired technology is old. Ethernet was born back in the days of Walkmans, VHS, MC Hammer pants, and stone washed jeans. Thankfully, our technology and fashion have improved. Well... at least our technology has. Ethernet has now had about 30 years to get better, and it has become a pretty awesome way to get online. That might be hard to believe, so let's look at why Ethernet is still going strong even with wireless getting all the hype.
Speed
We are part of an impatient culture. We don't want to give up precious seconds of our lives waiting for a page to load or some program to download. And why should we? I remember waiting hours to download a 20 MB (or smaller) file using dial up. Those were dark days. Modern Ethernet offers speeds of up to 1 Gbps. That's around three times the speed of the fastest Wi-Fi connections out there, even under ideal circumstances. 802.11n can ideally achieve speeds of around 300Mbps (there are 1000 Mb in one Gb), but there is often a disparity between theoretical and practical Wi-Fi performance. That disparity comes because of interference, physical obstructions that block line of sight, distance from the router, and network protocol overhead. Using Ethernet cable eliminates these issues.
Reliability
Wireless networks are prone to a variety of connection issues, particularly if you try to access the network at the edge of its wireless range. It's also not uncommon for the router to crash and need to be reset. Wired networks, on the other hand, hardly ever go down unless the power goes out in the entire building.
Setting up the network and connecting to it
I'm sure everyone has had issues trying to connect to a wireless network. And when (not if, when) you have an issue, it's nigh impossible to troubleshoot. And that is when you are just trying to connect to a network, trying to set one up can cause all sorts of headaches, especially with constantly changing standards for network encryption.
Security
That brings us to the last, and arguably the most important aspect that makes wired networks great: security. Let's face it, wireless networks aren't very safe. That's why we have to keep changing encryption standards. Even when companies and schools pay exorbitant fees to secure their wireless networks up to high heaven, they can still get hacked, and the average person's security doesn't come anywhere close to the standards of those institutions. Why is that a problem? Well remember we do almost everything online, which means we have tons of personal information out there for the taking.
In any neighborhood, a reasonably skilled hacker could easily get into five or more networks using only a laptop with a wireless connection. A wired network is completely contained. That means you have to physically connect to the network in order to access the information. The only other method of access involves very expensive methods that you probably won't have to worry about unless you get on the wrong side of a national spy agency.
Bottom Line
So does that mean Wi-Fi is horrible? Absolutely not, I actually love it. Unless you want to be trailing an Ethernet cable behind you everywhere you go, which would be impractical to say the least, there are still plenty of good uses for Wi-Fi. That said, Ethernet still has a lot to offer. Greater security, speed, reliability, and ease of use all make Ethernet something to seriously consider for any home or office.
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