The Relative Benefits of Wired and Wireless Connections

In the not-all-that-distant past, connectivity required an actual, physical connection between two endpoints. As a result, a wired connection was the only option for businesses to access online materials and resources. This leaves businesses with a choice to make: is a wired connection better for my operations, or should I implement wireless connectivity?

Let’s compare some of the relative strengths and weaknesses of wired and wireless connections to see what we can learn.

The Benefits of a Hardwired Connection

Speed

Make no mistake—when comparing the two, wired connections are far faster than a wireless one. With the advantage both in terms of transferring data within your network as well as to the Internet, an Ethernet connection is clearly the more efficient means of doing so.

Stability

As the cable literally needs to come unplugged (or another part of your infrastructure needs to fail) in order for you to lose a wired connection, it is also safe to say that they are also far more stable than a wireless connection is, which means that devices using a wired connection have more consistent speeds with the reduced risk of external influence.

Security

This one may be a bit of a no-brainer, but a direct connection between two network points is going to be more secure than wireless signals broadcast through the air, ready for anyone to potentially intercept them.

The Benefits of a Wireless Connection

Mobility

When using a Wi-Fi connection, there are no wires connecting a user in one place. While this may be an obvious point, the practical benefits of implementing this can make a great difference in the workplace, enabling productivity and collaboration from effectively anywhere. With the right workstation, your employee could conceivably work from their desk, a conference room, or even the break room, if circumstances demanded it.

Scope

Wireless Internet also enables your team to work from a wider variety of devices, a big help in today’s increasingly mobilized business environment. Wi-Fi can also be used to enable those external to your business to access the Internet on their own devices, so public-facing businesses often make this a perk for their clients.

Convenience

Let’s face it—when you don’t need to be tied to a network port, accessing the Internet is far more convenient than the alternative. Not only are there fewer cables to deal with, on-the-go work is much more possible… and as a result, communication and collaboration are naturally benefitted by their increased accessibility.

A Hybrid Approach May Offer Maximum Benefits

Of course, there is nothing that says that a business can’t embrace both means of connectivity to get the most out of its network’s capabilities. In doing so, you could conceivably cancel out the weaknesses that either option presents with the advantages of the other. With any heavy lifting managed by the wired connections, your employees could mingle and collaborate with relative freedom over Wi-Fi.

It really depends on your business’ particular use case, and the makeup of your office.

SCW can help you with your business’ IT, from your connectivity to the components you’re connecting. Reach out to us to learn more about what we can do by calling (509) 534-1530.