This is an article excerpt from our Summer 2020 newsletter. The full newsletter contains other relevant articles, Huxley happenings, contact information and more! Click here to download a PDF of the newsletter

Ever Wondered How Wi-Fi Works?

You probably use Wi-Fi every day to connect your devices to the internet. But how much do you actually know about this technology?

Wi-Fi networks transmit data over the air with the help of radio waves, similarly to traditional radio. Wi-Fi radio waves typically have a frequency of 2.4 gigahertz or 5.8 gigahertz. These frequency bands carry multiple Wi-Fi channels, with a multitude of networks using them.

Downloading a file from the internet over a Wi-Fi network requires your router to first receive the data via the broadband internet connection and then convert it to radio waves. These radio waves are then emitted by the router into the surrounding area and the device that initially requested a download receives the radio signal. It decodes the signal and fetches the data.

The introduction of the Wi-Fi standard revolutionized the way people accessed the internet by allowing devices within a particular area to connect to the internet (and each other) without being physically connected by a cable.
Because information is transferred using wireless transmitters and radio signals, physical proximity to the Wi-Fi router is necessary for a good connection. But once connected, people
can move around freely with their devices without losing their connection to the internet.

While Wi-Fi offers convenience, it can also present security concerns. Wi-Fi routers are designed to allow all Wi-Fi enabled devices that are “in range” to connect, which is not always desirable — especially if someone wants to use your Wi-Fi network to piggy-back on your internet service. For this reason, you should make sure your home Wi-Fi network is password-protected so that only authorized users can connect to it. Furthermore, when you access someone else’s Wi-Fi network, the owner of that network can potentially see all the information you’re sending and receiving, including user names and passwords.

If you’d like us to set up and maintain your home’s Wi-Fi network, call 515-597-2281 and ask about our Managed Wi-Fi service.