Plan B: An SMB's Guide To Making Do During The Recession

Start The Discussion | Fredric Paul | May 13, 2009 06:05 AM

bMighty's Fredric Paul presents his unique guide to affordable alternatives to the technology you really want.

Plan B: An SMB's Guide To Making Do During The Recession

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Plan A: 802.11n | Plan B: 802.11g

When it comes to Wi-Fi, 802.11n is the bomb. Even though it's not yet an official standard -- and likely won't be until December -- Draft 2 of the 802.11n proposal has already become the de facto standard for wireless local networks.

That's because 802.11n, even in draft form, offers faster speeds (150 Mbps or more in ideal conditions), better coverage and much longer range, less susceptibility to interference and congestion, improved security, backward compatibility with 802.11a/b/g networks and clients, and other benefits.

That's why many SMBs are moving to the new standard. But the fact is that 802.11n is not yet a final spec and could still change. That could mean potential compatibility problems with today's 802.11n equipment. And 802.11n costs more for everything from access points to adapters. Worse, most of the benefits of 802.11n come only when both ends of the connection use the new spec. Adding an 802.11n access point or wireless router won't do much for laptops equipped with 802.11g wireless adapters.

And the bottom line is that 802.11g works just fine for most companies. Unless your company is having Wi-Fi connectivity issues, you may be perfectly happy saving some dollars by sticking with 802.11g for a while.

Bottom Line: If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If your company is happy with 802.11g, why bother with 802.11n, especially for existing equipment? When you add new devices, though, the incremental costs may be low enough to let n creep into the equation.

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