Transmission Speeds
Figure 2.2 shows some comparative throughput speeds for most of the wireless standards I've discussed in this chapter.
Figure 2.2. Comparative speeds of wireless standards.
In order to keep the comparison real-world, I've included estimated actual throughput for 802.11b as well as its theoretical maximum.
For purposes of reference, and to help you see that Wi-Fi is unlikely to slow you down much, I've included the throughput you can expect from a 10BASE-T Ethernet network in the figure (this is the kind of wired network you are most likely to find in your home or office, although many wired networks are based on the faster 100BASE-T standard).
You should take away these points from Figure 2.2:
802.11b Wi-Fi is a little slower in the real world than a wired network, but more than adequate for small office and home networks.
Wi-Fi is getting faster and better all the time.
