Why wire a home for networking and internet?

With Today’s Plethora of Wireless Devices and Antennas, why would Anyone Want to Spend Money on Wiring their Home or Business?

On the surface, it may seem like a no brainer. Toss a wireless router on your modem and you’re home free. Unfortunately, things are a bit more complicated than that. Wireless has a limited range from its point of origin that loses strength the further you are from the source. Much like a flashlights light dissipates the further it travels outward. Wireless signals are also effected by building materials, appliances, furniture as well as other electronic devices. Even your neighbors wireless signal could degrade your wireless quality.

So why not Add More Wireless Antennas?

If you are still trying to avoid wiring anything you are going to use some form of repeater or extender. Even in a perfect world, most consumer units are going to lose speed due to the way they are designed. Basically, your computer would ask for a web page from the repeater which then has to ask the router. The router then provides the information back to the repeater which in turn gives it to your computer. This doubles the amount of work and generally halves the actual speed. Better “prosumer” or enterprise grade units will have an additional antenna specifically for communicating to the router while you communicate with the normal antenna. This helps greatly reduce the speed loss as it can handle the streams independently instead of taking turns.

What About Wiring the Additional Antennas?

This is going to be the best course of action for your wireless desires. Multiple wireless antennas that are properly configured will provide you with a more robust and stable networking experience. However, even the best wireless networks can succumb to interference. Everything may be well as you stream the latest episode of your favorite show until someone microwaves some popcorn. Or maybe you decide that you want to hang a mirror on the wall that is directly between you and the antenna and now you have slow speeds surfing the internet. Wireless is about convenience; the unfortunate issue is that it is not as fast nor as stable as hardwired connections.

So, what is the Best Path?

A mixture of hardwired antennas to provide coverage to your mobile devices while having physical wiring run to your stationary devices. Even items such as your AppleTV or Roku are better off using a physical connection than wireless for the stability. Even an extremely well designed wireless system can have external factors diminish or interrupt your wireless system from time to time. You will just have to remember that while wireless is getting better as time moves along, there are still going to be less than perfect situations that will affect your wireless system.