When we hear the word WiFi the vast majority know what we're talking about a specific method used to connect to the Internet, but not many know the story behind this term and much less the details of the different standards that exist, knowing these different standards can help choose the one that best meets our needs.
WiFi Standards Types
All the standards were created by an organization known as the WiFi Alliance which is composed of several companies interested in promoting a common standard Internet connections.
IEEE 802.11 - Established in 1997, was the first and now he is dead, supported a maximum connection speed of 2 megabits per second, too slow for most applications, this standard not been used for over a decade and is not compatible with current devices.
IEEE 802.11a - Created in 1999, this version works on the frequency of 5 GHz hoping for less interference with devices such as cordless phones that use the 2.4 GHz maximum connection speed is 54 megabits per second. The scope is quite limited because objects can easily block the frequency of 5 GHz
IEEE 802.11b - It was also created in 1999, but using the 2.4 GHz frequency, the maximum connection speed is 11 megabits per second, this standard was responsible for the popularity of WiFi will increase.
IEEE 802.11g - It was created in 2003 using the 2.4 GHz band but with a maximum speed of 54 megabits per second, this standard was widely adopted and even still used to date because the speed is still adequate for most applications, not forgetting which is cheaper.
IEEE 802.11n - Is the latest standard, released in 2009, operates in both 2.4 and 5 GHz bands and a top speed of 600 megabits.
Incompatibility Issues
While two devices use the same standard obviously should not have problems connecting, problems occur when trying to connect two devices with different standards, something that happens very often.
The 802.11a standard is not compatible with 802.11b or 802.11g, both of which use only the 2.4GHz band and 802.11a uses the 5 GHz band, however, is fully compatible with 802.11n.
802.11b and 802.11g standards can communicate with each other without problems as with 802.11n, but are incompatible with 802.11a.
Finally 802.11n is wild because it can communicate with all previous standards, excluding the deceased 802.11.
