# Wireless network at home? What do I need to know?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wireless-network-at-home-what-do-i-need-to-know/215388>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [November 26, 2003, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wireless-network-at-home-what-do-i-need-to-know/215388 "2003-11-26T15:16:26Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![KenGr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecc23a/32.png) [@KenGr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KenGr)\
**Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wireless-network-at-home-what-do-i-need-to-know/215388/21 "2003-11-27T01:29:20Z")

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A lot of good information here. I have a Linksys 802.11b system which works well. My understanding is that 128 bit encryption is slower than 64 bit, at least on some computers but I haven’t tested that.

For sharing internet, b is probably as good as g. However, I wish I had a g system now. I do high resolution scanning on one PC and transfer files to another. When you start to move a bunch of 10 and 20 mb files, speed does make a difference, so you need to plan ahead for potential system usage.

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**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\
**Post date:** [November 27, 2003, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wireless-network-at-home-what-do-i-need-to-know/215388/22 "2003-11-27T02:30:00Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by wet marble \*  
> \*\*802.11b has a throughput of 11mbps  
> 802.11b+ has a throughput of 22mbps  
> 802.11g has a throughput of 54mbps
> 
> For regular DSL / Cable, 802.11b has sufficient enough throughput that the bottleneck in your speed will still be your DSL / Cable modem. It’s not until you approach T1 speeds that you will start to choke your throughput.\*\*

Nitpick: Since T1 is only 1.5 Mbps, I’d say you don’t need to worry until you approach T3 speeds (45 Mbps). 😉

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