Omicron Consulting 1500 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19102 Which Wireless Standard is best for...

Omicron Consulting1500 Market StreetPhiladelphia, PA 19102

Which Wireless Standard is best for you?

802.11a802.11b802.11g

Presented by:David F. SollVice PresidentAdvanced [email protected]


David F. [email protected]

TCF 2003

Agenda

IEEE 802.11Wi-Fi AlliancePractical ConsiderationsAdapter TypesIntel CentrinoWi-Fi ZonesConclusionsQuestions



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)

LAN/MAN Standards Committee (802)LAN = Local Area NetworkMAN = Metropolitan Area Networks

802 is sub-divided into working groupsUse a decimal point to designate working group



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11Active (Still in development) 802 Working Groups

802.1 High Level Interface (HILI) Working Group802.3 CSMA/CD Working Group802.11 Wireless LAN (WLAN) Working Group802.15 Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) Working Group802.16 Broadband Wireless Access (BBWA) Working Group802.17 Resilient Packet Ring (RPR)802.18 Radio Regulatory Technical Advisory Group802.19 Coexistence Technical Advisory Group802.20 Mobile Wireless Access Working Group



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11aApproved as a standard September 199954 MB5 GHz band



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11bApproved as a standard September 1999Updates to standard approved in October 200111 MB2.4 GHz band



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11dApproved as a standard June 2001Provide options for wireless access where 802.11a or 802.11b were not legal

Some countries do not allow consumer transmissions on the bands allocated for 802.11



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11eNot yet an approved standardQuality of Service (QOS) protocols for 802.11Designed to provide QOS required for:

VoiceVideoMedia Stream Distribution



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11FNot yet an approved standardTrial-Use Recommended Practice for Multi-Vendor Access Point Interoperability



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11gNot yet an approved standardFinal acceptance is expected in June 2003Develop higher speeds for 802.11b54 MB2.4 GHz band



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11hAmendment to 802.11aTo add indoor and outdoor channel selection for 5GHz license exempt bands in EuropeTo enhance channel energy measurement and reporting mechanisms to improve spectrum and transmit power management

Enables regulatory acceptance in some countries



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11iNot yet an approved standardEnhance Security for 802.11 communicationsThis is not WEP, but is more complex and more secure



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11jObtain Japanese regulatory approvalAdditionally operate in newly available Japanese 4.9 GHz and 5 GHz bands.



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

802.11kRadio Resource Measurement of Wireless LANsProvide measurements and other information in order to manage 802.11 services from an external source



TCF 2003

IEEE 802.11

The Bottom Line:802.11a

54 MB theoretical transfer rate5 GHz Band

802.11b11 MB theoretical transfer rate2.4 GHz Band

802.11g54 MB theoretical transfer rate2.4 GHz Band



TCF 2003

Wi-Fi Alliance

Nonprofit International AssociationFormed in 1999Certifies interoperability of wireless Local Area Network products based on IEEE 802.11176 member companies611 products have received Wi-Fi certificationBegan certification March 2000



TCF 2003

Wi-Fi Alliance

Will not certify un-approved standards ie: 802.11gAnnounced that testing of 802.11g is expected to start in July

Web site of all certified equipment:http://www.weca.net



TCF 2003

Practical Considerations

Popularity802.11b is the most popular by far

It was the first out of the gate

802.11a does not show signs of catching up with 802.11b

Tends to be a little more expensive than 802.11b

802.11g may replace 802.11b as the most popular someday, but not yet

Costs should be comparable to 802.11b



TCF 2003


Speed802.11a is a clear winner in the speed categoryEven though 802.11a and 802.11g are both rated at 54 MB theoretical, 802.11a out performs 802.11g consistently in actual tests



TCF 2003


DistanceThe higher the frequency, the more difficult it is to penetrate objects (ie: walls)2.4 GHz is likely to travel further through walls than 5 GHz

802.11b and 802.11g use 2.4 GHz802.11a uses 5 GHz

802.11a uses speed throttling to improve distance

The further away (the weaker the signal), the slower the data throughput



TCF 2003


Interference802.11b and 802.11g use the same 2.4 GHz band as:

Cordless telephonesBluetooth

802.11a uses 5 GHzSome new cordless phones now use 5 GHz



TCF 2003


Interference (cont’d.)802.11a has 19 channels

All channels are non-overlapping

802.11b has 11 channels but …Only 3 non-overlapped channels



TCF 2003


Product Availability and Price802.11b is both cheapest and most availableSome products (such as a wireless bridge) are only available in 802.11b



TCF 2003

Adapter Types

CardbusIntended for Notebook computers

PCIIntended for Desktop computersEarly PCI adapters were simply PCI to Cardbus converters and required a Cardbus adapterMost of the newer adapters for PCI are now native PCI adapters

USBWork fine for either Notebook or Desktop



TCF 2003

Adapter Types

802.11b onlySingle Band (2.4 GHz)

802.11a onlySingle Band (5 GHz)

802.11 a and bDual band (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz)Connect to either 802.11a or 802.11b

802.11gSingle Band (2.4 GHz)Typically supports 802.11b also



TCF 2003

Intel Centrino

Intel’s new brand name of a combination of chips including CPU and wireless communicationsNew CPU – Pentium-M

Not to be confused with Pentium 4-MComplete New DesignLower PowerHigher Speed

ie: Pentium-M 1.4 GHz outperformed a P4-M 2.4 GHz in one set of tests by 38%



TCF 2003

Intel Centrino

Wireless Capabilities only include 802.11bIntel claims:

802.11a support is “months” away802.11g will be available by the end of the year



TCF 2003

Wi-Fi Zones

Areas where Wi-Fi Access is providedOften called Wi-Fi hot-spotsThe Wi-Fi Alliance provides free Wi-Fi Zone registration for providershttp://www.wi-fizone.org/



TCF 2003

Wi-Fi Zones

Zones in PhiladelphiaLoews Philadelphia HotelFour Seasons HotelWyndham PhiladelphiaEmbassy Suites HotelRadisson Plaza Warwick HotelEmbassy Suites (Philadelphia Airport)



TCF 2003

Wi-Fi ZonesZones in New Jersey

Residence Inn Saddle RiverEmbassy Suites Hotel - Piscataway - SomersetEmbassy Suites Hotel - Secaucus - MeadowlandsHI-TotowaHilton Newark GatewayParsippany HiltonRadisson Inn EnglewoodSummerfield Suites Parsippany WhippanySummerfield Suites Mount LaurelSummerfield Suites Princeton

Summerfield Suites SomersetInn at Somerset HillsSunrise Suites HotelSummerfield Suites BridgewaterSierra Suites PiscatawaySomerset Marriott HotelWestin MorristownCourtyard by MarriottWyndham Newark AirportRivendell - EdisonSquare OneMorristown DeliNewark Airport



TCF 2003

Conclusions

802.11a is the speed kingHigher costDual-band cards provide 802.11b compatibilityGood if you have a local server, but the extra speed won’t help if your connection to the internet is under 2 MB (ie: cable and DSL)



TCF 2003

Conclusions

802.11b is the current leaderCheapestMost PopularMost CompatibleMost Available

More Products AvailableMore “hot-spots” available



TCF 2003

Conclusions

802.11g is a good option (after July)Most will be backward compatible with 802.11bShould see prices comparable to 802.11bHigher speed than 802.11b



TCF 2003

Questions

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Which Wireless Standard is best for you?

802.11a802.11b802.11g

Presented by:David F. SollVice PresidentAdvanced [email protected]

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/soll

Omicron Consulting 1500 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19102 Which Wireless Standard is best for...

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