what is a better wireless card?

Question

pcmcia 802.11g
pcmcia 802.11b

Answer 1

you should get an 802.11g card as it will automatically revert to 'b' if needed, while getting the benefits of 'g' when they are available.

802.11b delivers about 5-6Mbps of capacity (manufacturers often talk about 11Mbps - that is the raw rate not the usable rate)
802.11g delivers about 20Mbps of capacity so it is faster (manufacturers often talk about 54Mbps - that is the raw rate not the usable rate)

an 802.11g card is automatically backwards compatible to the older 802.11b - if your access point or a hotspot is 802.11b an 802.11g card will connect and talk to it - albeit at the slower rate of 802.11b. 802.11b has more range, but a 'g' card will down speed to get that better range as appropriate on a dynamic basis.

many cards today are 802.11a/b/g ('a' communicates at 5GHz and b/g are at 2.4GHz). there is a newer standard called 802.11n - but it is not finalised - so it is not worth buying today if you want to use Wi-Fi hotspots as they don't support it.

Answer 2

802.11g is faster but 802.11b is more universal, though that is rapidly changing. Best of both worlds is to get a card that does both. Most cards do.

Answer 3

If you're thinking of getting a wireless card, try the Linksys with Speedbooster. I have it on my laptop and I'm thrilled with its ease of use and installation.

Answer 4

Look for something new, Linksys maybe, with 10/100 or 100/1000 and a,b,g.

Answer 5

IEEE 802.11b is sure slower, but to me, personally, 6.5 Mbit/s is fast enough.
You see, 802.11b has a little bigger range, but slower speed. 802.11 g is faster, but has a smaller range.

Answer 6

The g is a newer technology and therefore better

Answer 7

802.11g is much faster.