With a little more generous budget you can get a PC computer that will be perfect for both music production and other media applications or even for video games. A powerful PC desktop can become the center of your musical production but also can be your center of entertainment. LED or LCD: It’s The Back Lighting. Technically speaking, an LED TV is also an LCD TV, as the screen on both is a liquid crystal display. An LCD display has two layers of glass that are. The one you build with the intel cpu and the 250 GPU is much better. It's still a weak pc though and would only be good for maybe medium settings in that game. A DAC is a Digital to Analog Converter. Anything that conveys sound from your PC to your ears will usually have at least two DACs, one for the left, one for the right.
The world is going wireless. The lack of clutter and the convenience of being able to connect to the Internet almost anywhere means Wi-Fi is the first choice for anyone who is looking to go online. The emergence of the Internet of Things means that soon we’ll have dozens of devices in our homes all connected to the internet, and all wirelessly.
Does that mean it’s all over for Ethernet? Or does the good old-fashioned Ethernet cable connectionEverything You Need to Know About Ethernet CablesEverything You Need to Know About Ethernet CablesRead More still have a place in the modern tech world? Let’s take a look.
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Ethernet vs. Wi-Fi: The Key Differences
Up until a few years ago, the choice between Ethernet and Wi-Fi was pretty straightforward.
Ethernet was much faster but because it requires cabling, you were extremely limited in where you could place your computer in relation to your router. And once you chose a spot, you couldn’t move.
Wi-Fi, on the other hand, was somewhat slower but had the convenience of being able to be used within, say, 150 feet of the router, and Wi-Fi hotspots could be found in a large number of places.
That was the choice: speed versus convenience. As a result, they would often be seen as complementary, rather than opposing, technologies. With some of the changes in the last few years, it’s no longer quite so clear cut.
Speed
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When Wi-Fi first moved into the mainstream, it was mostly based on the 802.11g standard. This offered maximum theoretical speeds of 54Mbps (megabits per second), and far less in practice.
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It was satisfactory for Internet access on mobile devices, but fell well short of the performance offered by Ethernet, which can produce speeds anywhere from 100Mbps to 1000Mbps and beyond.
The latest Wi-Fi standard is 802.11acEverything You Need To Know About AC RoutersEverything You Need To Know About AC RoutersWhile wireless standards lack a logical progression in terms of letters, the technology under the hood is notable, and with each new release we get one step closer to painless connectivity.Read More and it offers theoretical speeds of up to 3200Mbps (and practical speeds of around half that).
This outpaces most typical home broadband connections by some margin. Assuming you have the hardware to support this standard (you need it in both your router and all your computers) it means the broadband speed is now the bottleneck, not the Wi-Fi speed.
The major benefit of Ethernet is now gone.
Reliability
All speeds are theoretical, however.
A fixed Ethernet connection is likely to be fast, stable and deliver consistent speeds. It’s something you’ll notice the benefit of if you download large files or stream lots of HD video.
Wi-Fi is susceptible to countless environmental factors. Radio waves can be blocked by walls and floors. Other wireless devices can interfere with the signal, including things you wouldn’t think of like microwaves and cordless phones, as well as nearby routers using the same channel. Even the atmosphere can cause problems.
The result is inconsistent performance. As you move around your home, you can see the strength of your Wi-Fi network connection fall and rise, affecting speed accordingly. You may even have blackspots in your home where the Wi-Fi signal doesn’t reach at all.
You can minimize this by ensuring your router is placed in the optimum position8 Tips to Effectively Boost Your Wireless Router Signal8 Tips to Effectively Boost Your Wireless Router SignalIf your wireless router's signal doesn't seem to reach very far, or if your signal keeps dropping for some weird reason, here are a few things you can do that might fix it.Read More in your home, but it’s unlikely that you will ever achieve the same levels of stable performance that you will get from Ethernet.
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Security
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Security is the other big factor when comparing Wi-Fi and Ethernet. Here, there’s really no comparison.
The data on an Ethernet network can only be accessed by devices physically attached to the network. These devices, including the laptop at one end and router at the other, need firewalls to protect them, but there’s way the data itself can be intercepted on the network.
With Wi-Fi, the data is in the air. If you’re using an open network (such as in a coffee shop) then all the data you send and receive can be intercepted, including personal information and login details.
Most Wi-Fi networks are secured, so your data is encrypted. But the strength of the encryption depends on the security method you are using. Most routers offer a range of security modes.
WEP is the least secure and should be avoided whenever possible; WPA2-PSK is the most secureWPA2, WEP, and Friends: What's the Best Way to Encrypt Your Wi-Fi?WPA2, WEP, and Friends: What's the Best Way to Encrypt Your Wi-Fi?When setting up wireless encryption on your router, you'll come across a variety of confusing terms -- WPA2, WPA, WEP, WPA-Personal, and WPA-Enterprise.Read More and is the preferred option. Find out how to check your Wi-Fi security typeWEP, WPA, or WPA2: How to Tell What Security Type Your Wi-Fi IsWEP, WPA, or WPA2: How to Tell What Security Type Your Wi-Fi IsIs your wireless router as secure as you think? Here's how to find out which security protocol type your Wi-Fi router is.Read More if you’re not sure.
For added security, you should also change the default Wi-Fi username and passwordHow to Find and Change Your Wi-Fi Password on Windows 10How to Find and Change Your Wi-Fi Password on Windows 10Need to find or change your Wi-Fi password? Here's how to change and locate your Wi-Fi password on a Windows computer.Read More for the admin panel on your wireless router. The default settings can be easily found online, and can give someone access to your network without you knowing.
Making the Right Choice: Ethernet vs. Wi-Fi
So, when should you choose Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi?
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For day to day use, a properly sited and configured Wi-Fi router won’t give you noticeably worse performance than Ethernet.
You can even test this yourself. Go to speedtest.net and test your Internet speed using Wi-Fi then Ethernet (make sure you switch Wi-Fi off before doing the second test) and compare the results.
If you’re a serious gamer and your console or PC does not get a consistently fast connection then you will benefit from a wired connection. You can use a powerline adapter to avoid having to install masses of cabling around your home, although these don’t tend to deliver the quoted speeds.
Similarly, if you upload or download very large files, or if you simply have a large number of devices on your network, you may notice significant improvements from sticking with the wired solution.
And, of course, you don’t have to choose one or the other. Wireless routers have Ethernet ports on them, so you can decide on a device by device basis whether to go wired or not.
If you prefer to use Wi-Fi on your Mac but are having trouble connecting to itMac Won't Connect to Wi-Fi? 9 Steps to Get Back OnlineMac Won't Connect to Wi-Fi? 9 Steps to Get Back OnlineIf your Mac won't connect to Wi-Fi, don't fret. Here's a troubleshooting guide to fix internet connection problems on macOS.Read More, follow this guide to get back online.
Image credits: Router via Sean MacEntee, Wi-Fi hotspot via woodleywonderworks, Connected laptop via Shayak Sen, Cat5 cable via nrkbeta, Ethernet cables via David Davies
Explore more about: Computer Networks, Ethernet, LAN, Wi-Fi.
WiFi on most everything except our new LG 65' OLED 4K TV. If you go with your ethernet connection, make sure you get a good quality CAT 6 cable too. Although sometimes when I switch to wireless on the TV using the 5g connection it's pretty darn good...
There is no date on this article. I believe it is very outdated. I can get 800-900 Mbps on my Macbook when hardwired and less than 300 on wifi. Maybe we need to upgrade our routers?
I have both wi-fi and an ethernet cable. I have the router for other house members to be able to use my internet service. However I want ethernet to power my computer because it is much faster. When I boot up my system most of the time it connects to the internet with the ethernet cable. But sometimes it connects via the wi-fi. How can I get the computer to always use the ethernet connection?
Why would extender cause a problem with power being received Buy a tablet
Just installed a wireless card in my desktop to see if it fixes a problem I've been having since doing a clean Windows 7 install about a year ago (right when MS was trying to force Win10). My onboard Ethernet and two other Ethernet cards (two Realtek and one Intel based) consistently drop the connection every 11 hours, almost like clockwork. I've turned off all power saving functions and even done a second clean install and it still does the same. Nothing restores the connection short of a reboot. No other device in the house, either wireless or Ethernet has this issue so I've resorted to a wireless adapter to see if that fixes it. Personally, starting to believe deliberate sabotage by MS to try to force people to Win10.
Do you need wifi for your Ethernet connection to work?
This is absolutely not true. Ethernet has been there way before WiFi was even born.
my mom said you need wifi to make your Ethernet connection work. Is this true?
I wanted to connect my android box to the router via Ethernet cable and have the firesticks connected via wifi but I don't seem to be able to do this. Is it possible for you to mix and match between wifi and Ethernet for your devices at the same time ?
I am having some issues with my wired via wireless connection. Here is my connection setup. I have verizon fios modem/router and I'm connected upstairs to a wireless router that has the ip address giving turned off. This way I thought the connection would be faster upstairs. Turns out I am wrong. I'm showing a faster download speed than upload speed when I am connected hardwire and slower download and faster upload speed when connected wireless. Furthermore my wireless is much faster than the hardwire connection. Is this normal since it actully could be closer although on a different floor. The data line after connecting upstairs is roughly 100 feet. Does anyone have any advice to speed up the upstairs computer. The one further from the downstairs router works fine. (I have 2 computers upstairs) Any work around.
I get about 11.84 download when both wireless and wired are connected. And about 15 with just wireless connected. About 9 dl speed when just wired connection is on.
Any help or education would help. ThxI have a question: My PC is on ethernet and my brother's PS3 is on wifi. I Often notice that when he is playing his games my ping is very inconsistent. Would putting his console on ethernet improve my own connection?
I have the whole study and house wired on ethernet and the connection is far superior than the tablet and phones through a wifi connection, ethernet for me all the way
Hello! I just got a Roku for watching Netflix and I noticed I went over my data allowance for my internet provider, which had not happened before, usually I don't even use half of the allowed data. I'd like to know if using an Ethernet cable still consumes wifi data. What can I do, to reduce my data consumption, besides not streaming of course. Thank you
get router and count the data movement. something like that
damn we need a smart router, the foolproof one
Hi, I have a Roku as well and ran into the same problem.
The only difference between ethernet and wifi is that ethernet is cabled and wifi is wireless.
You don't use WiFi data, you use internet, and WiFi and Ethernet (cabled) are just forms of accessing that internet.
Thus, it would not make a difference, you'd just get faster speeds and less buffering generally.
I would recommend upgrading your plan to unlimited internet usage and this would solve your problem and allow you to download as many things as you want, although at an increased price.
This seems to be a good time to start the debate over whether WiFi is Ethernet....This article seems to make a differentiation between then and yet some references indicate that WiFi is simply wireless Ethernet.
It seems to make sense to me that since WiFi transfers data using frames/packets (802.3 protocol), then it too is Ethernet using a different medium/speed...
Anyone have different thoughts on this?
Thanks
Yes i also believe that wifi can have many issues due to its interruptions in the air, with lots of enormous stuffs.. So i better recommend ethernet cable for proper streaming and downloading larger files as compared to wifi...
Don't forget about the encryption overhead on wifi. When every packet has to be encrypted and then decrypted on the fly, it can affect performance, especially for large file transfers and fat video streams. In the past I've tried copying 50GB of data from one wifi client to another and had it run very slow or fail repeatedly. Hook up a Cat5 and the transfer flies. And that's with quality 802.11n equipment too. Long running HD video streams suffer on encrypted wifi as well, like from a Tivo to a Tivo Mini. Tivo only supports that as a wired connection, but I tried it with a wifi bridge (802.11n 400mbps) and it consistently crapped out during sustained use (it would make the bridge very hot too). Give it a 100mbps ethernet link and it's happy as a pig in $h*t. The wifi works great for just about everything else, just not Tivo or massive wifi to wifi transfers.
My newly constructed townhouse has Ethernet connection in all rooms, so it makes it easy to connect to the whole house network. The speeds and the connection is much faster. I only use Wifi for my mobile and when traveling if an Ethernet connection is available. If you are constructing or remodeling a home, a home network provides the best and most secure way to connect to the Internet.
I still don't trust wifi enough to do anything I consider private on them, as the article points out, the information is still out there for someone to literally pick up and walk away with. This is dangerous to your identity and thus your reputation and money. Wired connections are more secure as it makes a hacker work to get to your privacy.
Can't believe wake on lan hasn't been mentioned by the article or commenters (unless I missed something), but I use it multiple times a day, something wifi just can't being to the table
As the bottleneck is your broadband speed, the 'faster' WiFi technologies are only a benefit for devices within your home network that need to talk to each other and send large amounts of data - that might be sending a locally stored video to a TV or to backup PC to external disk. That aside the WiFi max speeds are hypothetical - despite turning up the power on my high-end WiFi router it only covers half the house. I understand that in high density housing (apartment blocks) contention for WiFi channels can cripple speeds. It can be difficult to run ethernet cabling but worth doing if possible, for more reliable speed. WiFi is most useful for portable devices like laptop, tablet & phone but if, like me, you need a second WiFi router to get full house coverage then you may find configuring them correctly is an 'interesting' task. Once you have WiFi you've introduced a big security risk which you can virtually eliminate IF you follow all best practises correctly, including changing logon ID & password and keeping up to date with manufacturers firmware upgrades.
I use a simple setup.
Powerlines for my Desktop, Xbox360 and PS3, where I want reliable solid connections, and a powerline Wifi extender and the router / modem's on Wifi for tablets, phones etc.it's not a case of either / or.
use both technologies together to create a solid network. it's not rocket science...802.11 is a last-resort connection option. Because of protocol overhead, it will never deliver data as fast as its rated; a good rule of thumb is quoted speed divided by two and then divided again among the number of active clients. If a single AP's network has multiple mobile devices and/or STBs connected, network speeds quickly become abysmal. Add to that the problems of wireless interference and relatively low range on 5GHz connections, and it really isn't all that most people assume that it will be
I use commercial-grade 802.11 hardware in my home and I still don't bother with the WLAN for anything but accessing the web on mobile devices.
Furthermore, not only wireless signal is susceptible to EMI, as you were talking about noise etc. Plus it'd be difficult for squirrels (let's say) to crunch radiowaves! Plus crosstalk is common in the case somebody twisted and crimped a cable by his/her own. What I mean is that a UTP cable can also be severely impaired by environmental factors.
Apart from that, wired connections guarantee security only in LANs, because physical access to transmission media cannot easily be obtained, and of course this is a serious advantage of wired connections over wireless.
Nevertheless, very good article!I use Ethernet to connect my TV and Xbox (the router, TV and Xbox are very close). The good thing is it reduces wireless interferences and provides more bandwidth for mobile devices and laptops.
Yup I don't want to lose 20-30% just from going wireless. You will always have wires that isn't a big deal! More people should stil use the hard wired on devices not really being moved as well.
If I have the RJ45 port on a device, I use it.
Does Skype have more problems on WiFi than ethernet?
Dragonmouth, if you have WiFi turned on at home then you lose any security benefits of ethernet. The reliability issue is still real for some people, but even so, I have 100mbps Internet and if it drops to 70 or 80...I'll be fine. If you have a 20 or less, then reliability becomes a concern.
'The major benefit of Ethernet (speed) is now gone.'
For me the major benefit of Ethernet has always been Security, not speed, and that does not look likely to change any time soon. The other important benefit of hard wire connection is reliability. So, at home, most of my devices are hard-wired. Cell phones are the only devices that are not. Unfortunately, once outside the house, I have to use WiFi.