Why A Wireless Network Is Better Than A Wired Network

If you are designing a network for a school or for any place that has a high volume of users, it is best to focus on installing a wireless network rather than installing a wired network. Wireless networks provide a lot more benefits and advantages than wired ones. While wired networks provide superior speeds, they are time consuming to install and more costly to replace and upgrade (if your area is large and harder to maintain).

We're not saying that you should totally forgo wired networks, which are preferable in more manageable areas. Without further ado, here are the reasons why wireless networks are better than wired networks, in this technologically advanced century!

Flexibility and freedom

We are living in a fast paced environment. We are in constant motion. With the prevalence of wireless devices and tablets, we constantly move around and bring the wireless devices with us. A wireless network, as the name suggests, does not require the user to be stationed and restricted to be tied to a wire.

Users and office staff can move around with their tablets and laptops while still being connected to the network. No time is wasted having to reconnect and connect to the network again! It offers users the freedom to move around and as we know, time is money. A wireless network promotes higher efficiency in staff as no time is wasted on having to reconnect with the network again.

A wired network however, requires the user to be tied to the station the wire is located at. If the user has to move to another place in the department, he has to disconnect himself from the network and then reconnect again. This decreases efficiency.

Installation and upgrading

The initial plan of a wired network in an office may be limited to fifty wired network points. If the office hires a hundred staff, it means that the other fifty staff will not have an internet connection! Relaying and adding network points are time consuming, expensive and troublesome as it involves laying new cables and testing them.

On the other hand, these fifty new users can easily join an office’s wireless network. These users do not have to fight for network points; they can share the wireless network! Upgrading the network is also easy and clean, in a sense that all the upgrading is done behind the scenes and will not disturb the user’s workplace. No cables have to be relayed in the office area and this is certainly more efficient and less time consuming than upgrading a wired network.

Overall cost

Laying a wired network is costly. Wired cables are expensive and the more wired network points you have, the more complex the network topology will be. On the other hand, a wireless network is, overall, a cheaper solution than a wired one with regards to both installing and upgrading the network. Upgrading a wireless network is as simple as buying new equipment and replacing the modems, routers, switches and access points. However, upgrading a wired network involves tearing up existing wired cables, relaying them and creating new wired points, all of which cost more money than a wireless network.