Total newbie to this...

Hi all. I really need some help here. I have been reading alot lately and it all has me confused. Im in the process of looking at notebooks and have a few questions about going wireless. What exactly do I need? I know about a router. Think I have that figured out. Im still usuing dial up. I know, Im still learning about broadband. What about B,G or N?? Should I wait to buy till something new comes along? I know you all get tired of these questions but I would really appreciate any info you can give me. Thank you in advance.

Blake

This is the system I was trying to get yesterday but failed. Is this any good??
Inspiron 8600 P-M 715 1.5
WSXGA+
512 1 Dimm
128 Radeon
40 Gig HD
CD rom/DVD rom
Intel Pro Wireless 2200

 

Don't forget 11'A', the 5.8 Ghz standard.

First PC = Vic-20, 8" 128KB Home-Brew Floppy Drive ... Current Rig = eMachines m6805 ... Quantum Leap?

 

The quick version is that it depends on what you intend to do with it.

B - The original wifi standard. This is slower than the others, but if you are using your network connection to surf the web, then this is faster than your cable or DSL modem so you don't need to pay for extra speed as you won't be able to take advantage of it. This is also what is available at all those coffee shops and airport hotspots you keep hearing about. When they wire 2000 locations, they care about price and standardization so this is what they use.

G - This is faster than B and backwards compatible, so you get the best of both worlds. The catch it, that it is a bit more expensive (though that premium has come down considerably). If all you are going to do is surf the web, you don't need the extra speed but it might come in handy transferring files between the laptop and a desktop machine. Right now, G is probably what most people buy as the best "bang for the buck" solution.

N - This is brand new (in fact, thew standards are not even finalized yet so the products that are beginning to appear are really pre-N and there's no way to be sure they will conform to the eventual standard) and therefore these will cost the most and potentially will have the most problems. But if you like living on the cutting edge and don't mind paying for it, this is it. It will be faster than the others and should get a bit more distance but I wouldn't recommend buying these anytime soon unless you are the tinkering type and you just want an expensive new toy to play with.

 

It wasn't included in the original list, but what the heck...

A - completely incompatible with the wifi standard and much more expensive than the far more common B or G. It is difficult to even find A equipment since it is essentially a dead standard. While there are a few reasons why people might want to consider A, for most people it isn't even an option worth considering. Basically, if you are not an expert with a very specific and unusual need (ie. if you are reading this looking for info), then this is 99.999% likely to not be the right answer for you.

Some of the historical threads go into all of this in far more detail. For anyone who is interested, just do a little digging.