Work Without Wires

Ever notice something fishy in all those magazine spreads featuring gorgeous home offices? Where the heck are the wires? Wouldn’t it be nice if your home office could somehow look that pristine? With a few exceptions, it can, provided you incorporate all of the latest wireless technologies.

Wireless Routers
First, you’ll need a router (sometime also called as Access Point). Routers use wireless standards, such as 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11a. For maximum compatibility, look for a router that supports all three standards, such as the Linksys WRT55AG Dual-Band 2.4Ghz Wireless A+G Broadband Router
With 4-Port Switch.

802.11g and 802.11a are newer and faster than the older 802.11b wireless standard, but there is an emerging standard called 802.11n that is up to 10 to 14 times faster than 802.11g or 802.11a. Speed is important because 802.11b isn’t suitable for streaming video wirelessly, while 802.11g and 802.11a can stream DVD-quality video and transfer large folders across the network very quickly. 802.11n is fast enough to stream high-definition video and can move large files and folders in a very short time.

If you see a router labeled “pre-n,” “SpeedBoost,” or something similar, it sends and receives data at near-802.11n speeds, but only with products from the same manufacturer as the router that support identical speedboosting technology.

Wireless NICs, Bridges & Print Servers

When you want to connect a network ready device, such as a TiVo, Nintendo Wii, or laptop computer, to a wireless network, the first thing to check is whether it supports a wireless NIC. If so, save some money by going with a wireless card, such as the Netgear WG311 802.11G Wireless Desktop Card. If the device doesn’t support a wireless NIC, you’ll have to use a more expensive device called a wireless bridge, such as the Linksys WGA54G 802.11g Wireless Gaming Adapter.

Network-ready printers work with wireless bridges, but if you have a USB or parallel port printer that isn’t networkcompatible, you can still connect it wirelessly using a wireless print server such as the D-Link DPR-1260 Range-Booster G Wireless USB Multi-Function Print Server. Wireless printer servers let you put the printer anywhere your wireless network can reach.

Bluetooth
Keep an eye out for Bluetooth-enabled products such as the Palm Tungsten E2 PDA, the Canon PIXMA MP810 Photo All-In-One Printer/Copier/Scanner, and the Microsoft Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000 keyboard and mouse combo. These devices connect to a PC using a wireless network that is completely separate from the one your router creates. Bluetooth isn’t nearly as fast as the wireless home network outlined above, and the range is limited to 30 feet or less, but the technology is reliable and isn’t prone to interference from other wireless products.

You can now have a 24X7 infrastrature of wireless home network, but there’s at least one cardinal rule to keep in mind: Pay attention to the radio frequencies all of your devices use and try to avoid things that overlap (such as a cordless phones and a wireless router) to reduce cross-interference.

Links:
Linksys WRT55AG Dual-Band 2.4Ghz Wireless A+G Broadband Router

Netgear WG311 802.11G Wireless Desktop Card

Linksys WGA54G 802.11g Wireless Gaming Adapter

D-Link DPR-1260 Range-Booster G Wireless USB Multi-Function Print Server

Palm Tungsten E2 PDA

Canon PIXMA MP810 Photo All-In-One Printer/Copier/Scanner