Wi-Fi is another one of those terms that people toss around without much thought to if people know what it is, or what it does. Essentially it is just the common name for the way computers and other devices converse with one another in a wireless manner, or connect with the Internet.
While Wi-Fi is the common term, what you are actually using is variations of the modulation for wireless communications using the 802.11 standard. This technology has now been included in items such as computers, handheld video games, game consoles, PDAs, phones, media players and more, all of them with the intention of letting you get on to the Internet from more convenient locations, and without the restriction of wires.
Thus far the technology has had three official iterations released to the public:
802.11a – Released in 1999, running in the 5 GHz range, this standard didn’t run long due to the lousy ranges the devices got.
802.11b – Also released in 1999, this version ran in the 2.4 GHz range, and traded speed for distance. Due to the range, this was the first standard to catch on with the public.
802.11g – Still in the 2.4 GHz range, this version came out in 2003 and really helped the concept take off with the public.
802.11n – While 802.11n devices have been released, these are not yet a finalized standard. Once done, this will be the fastest yet, with the same approximate range as b and g.
The problem with 2.4 GHz is that this is the same bandwidth that most cordless phones, microwaves and Bluetooth operate on, so you can see signal problems with conflicting signals. This is why you have seen a lot of cordless phones advertising they now operate in the 5.8 GHz range as it reduces the interference with your wireless Internet connections.
Amongst the biggest benefits of the technology is the number of restaurants, coffee shops, hotels and more that are offering free Wi-Fi to their customers. While cities have attempted to offer free Wi-Fi across their entire population, unfortunately most of these initiatives end in failure, so that is why it is always handy to look for businesses offering free Wi-Fi, or some other systems we will discuss in the future.
