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Ethernet or Wireless? (Stupid Question Alert)

Hello.there

Hello.there

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Oct 12, 2007
730
1
Couch
Hi everyone, here's another question that might just reveal that I don't know much about anything much :eek:

I've got wireless broadband in my home, the router/modem thingie is hooked up downstairs. When my iMac finally arrives next week it will be upstairs.

Would it be better to move my router/modem thingie upstairs so that I can hook the iMac up to it with (??) an ethernet cable? If I simply used the wireless option and left it downstairs would there be a big difference in the connection speed?

Again, sorry for the dumb questions - I promise, in a month or two I'll be an expert :confused:
 
not true. internet connections and network connections are like current running over resistors: the bigger the pipe, the more % of the max that will flow through it. your ethernet will be faster.
 
Yeah, especially with uploads, a direct ethernet connection will be noticeably faster. However, if all you're using it for is web/email and you're not downloading huge files, airport is plenty fast.
 
runplaysleeprun said:
Ethernet = 100 Mbs/s, wifi= 56 Mbs/s. Your internet connection = probably in the 2-10 range. You should notice no real difference.
Click to expand...

You will never get 54Mbit over a wireless connection though due to overheads - generally the absolute maximum is about half that.

My internet connection is 20Mbit, and I do notice a difference between connecting through wireless and wired networks. With wireless I can download at about 1.5MB/sec, but with wired I can hit about 2.2MB/sec. This is with 80-90% signal strength.
 
Wireless

I would suggest Wireless. While it may be a Hair Slower then Eathernet most people won't notice it and having the ability to move you Computer Around is a big plus. Unless you have a home Intranet with multible Computers I would say go with wireless. The Eathernet speeds will only be noticeable if you are transfering huge files back and forth systems.
 
seanneko said:
My internet connection is 20Mbit, and I do notice a difference between connecting through wireless and wired networks. With wireless I can download at about 1.5MB/sec, but with wired I can hit about 2.2MB/sec. This is with 80-90% signal strength.
Click to expand...

You have a 20mbit connection at home? I'm jealous! :p

For most people, yeah, the difference is going to appear when you do intranet transfers -- copying files from one computer to another over ethernet is substantially faster....
 
It depends on what you are going to do.
I would suggest using your Ethernet connection if you plan on playing online games, such as WarCraft 3, or other games that require constant and stable connections.
As suggested above, if you get online to only read your E-mails, or browse MacRumors Forums, then wireless should be a better choice.
 
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