Compaq Presario M2000 manual Wireless Devices Select Models Only

Wireless (Select Models Only)

802.11Wireless Devices

(Select Models Only)

With an 802.11 wireless device, you can access a wireless local area network (commonly referred to as wireless network, wireless LAN, or WLAN), which is composed of other computers and accessories linked by a wireless router or a wireless access point.

■A large-scale WLAN, such as a corporate or public WLAN, typically uses wireless access points that can handle a large number of computers and accessories and can separate critical network functions.

■A home or small office WLAN typically uses a wireless router, which enables several wireless and wired computers to share an Internet connection, a printer, and files without additional pieces of hardware or software. The terms wireless access point and wireless router are often used interchangeably.

There are 3 popular implementations of 802.11 wireless devices:

■802.11b

■802.11b/g

■802.11a/b/g

Computers with 802.11 wireless devices may support 1 or more of 3 industry standards:

■802.11b, the first popular standard, supports data rates of up to 11 Mbps and operates at a frequency of 2.4 GHz.

■802.11g supports data rates of up to 54 Mbps and operates at a frequency of 2.4 GHz. An 802.11g WLAN device is backward compatible with 802.11b devices, so they can operate on the same network.

■802.11a supports data rates of up to 54 Mbps and operates at a frequency of 5 GHz. 802.11a is not compatible with 802.11b and 802.11g.

For information on identifying the type of wireless device in your computer, refer to “Identifying an 802.11 Wireless Device.”

Hardware and Software Guide 5–3