What properties that affect the range, speed and features should a consumer be looking out for?

  • RvTV95XBeo@sh.itjust.works
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    1 year ago

    Most motherboards come with relatively decent wifi on board but cards are an option if necessary. In terms of specs I usually just look for something that supports the latest WiFi spec (ax).

    If you’re going to be a long distance from the wireless router then you probably want to find one with an external antenna that you can position to your liking.

    The biggest thing (in my experience) to watch out for is driver compatibility - check the reviews to make sure users with your operating system aren’t complaining about frequent disconnects or other driver related issues.

    And remember, unless you’ve got some serious equipment, you’re probably never going to fully utilize the 3+Gb speeds many modern cards boast.

    • Still@programming.dev
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      1 year ago

      I’m kinda glad they switched to numbering wifi specs but now they added the e to 6e for the new one

  • PeterPoopshit@sh.itjust.works
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    1 year ago

    I check to see if it has 5ghz and 2.4ghz. Maybe check advertised mpbs since higher is better although a wifi card actually reaching speeds of 300mbps is laughable and I’ve never once seen it.

    • pastermil@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      That 300mbps has to come from both sides, and that’s assuming there’s no interference at all (which is impossible for us mortals, btw).

  • BigDanishGuy@sh.itjust.works
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    1 year ago

    Depends on the use case it’s being purchased for. All laptops and most motherboards come with usable wifi for ordinary use, so it’ll be a special case, like greater power or driver support for monitor mode.

    But if we’re talking a consumer oriented purchase, then a working driver included in the OS is high on my list. More than once have I had to help people get a wifi driver downloaded to a phone and then transfered the driver with USB. Which itself can be a handful as most third party cables are only for charging. I reckon that it wouldn’t cost a lot to put 64MB flash memory on a wifi dongle, but I have yet to see it… Anyway that’s a bit of a rant, but you definitely want a way to get the driver.

    Other than that? What everyone else has said about standards, speeds, and whatnot.

  • ArrogantAnalyst@feddit.de
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    1 year ago

    If possible I’d try to get an Intel based chip like the AX200 or AX210. It’s not like a decade ago where every guy in IT knew the sentence „Nobody got ever fired for buying Intel“ - but when it comes to WiFi stuff I still find them more reliable then other solutions like Realtek.