Wi-Fi is a technology for connecting wirelessly to a network using radio signals. That is, WiFi conducts wireless transmission information (down with annoying wires and cables tangled underfoot). The technology itself was created in 1991 in the Netherlands. The logo of the company is the emblem.

It can be seen in areas where wireless networks are active. Initially, it was created for cash register systems, but after a while the creators realized the full benefits of their offspring, and Wi-Fi was allowed to the masses. Do not rack your brains over how to decipher the name Wi-Fi, it was created to attract the attention of the consumer from Hi-Fi, based on a pun.

Today, Wi-Fi is one of the most commonly used Internet connections. So, to begin with, we will figure out how Wi-Fi works, who needs it and why, and also talk about free Wi-Fi, which is provided in many entertainment establishments to attract customers. Important! If you don’t have internet at home, then you can use Wi-Fi only if your neighbors have not password-protected their access. That is, Wi-Fi without paid and connected Internet does not work! Scheme WiFi networks contains an access point and as many clients as it wants to connect to this access point.

Let's see how this system works.

Access point contains a radio module

performing the function of receiving and transmitting data. Exactly the same module must be installed in your computer

or other mobile device. As a result, the access point provides you with a connection between the provider and.

The wireless technology itself is ideal for access over short distances, when high speeds are required, the speed in Wi-Fi reaches 54 Mbps. The distance you can use your Wi-Fi depends on the power the router you are using. The signal transmission distance can reach 400 meters. Access Point and Router

or wireless router (Wireless Router) are the main types of devices.

How to use WiFi

So, you have connected the Internet, the next step is to buy a router that supports Wi-Fi. Having set up a wireless network, you can see several connections, do not be alarmed, it is quite possible that your neighbors have not set a password for their access and, as a result, you can use this if you do not have unlimited Internet. In order not to repeat their mistakes, it is necessary to set a password for your wifi,

because the more people connect to it, the less speed you will have.

It was already mentioned earlier that some establishments, to attract visitors, install free Wi-Fi, it will be enough for you to come to such an establishment with your mobile phone or laptop, connect to the network and immerse yourself in the vast expanses of the Internet. Usually these establishments have a badge.

However, it should be noted that the speed of the Internet in such establishments is not too high. To connect to someone else's network, just click on the network icon located on the right side of the taskbar,

and select the appropriate network, the connection will be made automatically.

Pros of Wi-Fi

So, we list the benefits of Wi-Fi:

Firstly, it allows various mobile devices (phones, smartphones, laptops, tablets, e-books, and more) to access the network.

Secondly, at the time of data transmission, radiation from WiFi devices, a hundred times less than from a cell phone (so don't worry about the effects of waves on your health).

Thirdly, absolutely all equipment that has Wi-Fi is compatible (and this is a big plus, since you no longer have to look for a variety of wires, cables, jumpers and adapters in order to reset any information).

Fourth, it significantly reduces the cost of network expansion due to the absence of cable (and your Internet is no longer afraid of pets who love to feast on wires so much).

It only remains for me to wish you fruitful communication, work and entertainment thanks to Wi-Fi, because the absence of wires and the mobility of your laptop is a great achievement. It is worth keeping up with the times and being constantly connected thanks to Wi-Fi.

The router is a small adapter, which consists of a case, network adapter and antennas. Some modern devices have a built-in antenna. The device consists of a case and a board that is responsible for converting a wired signal into a wireless one. The router can also act as a splitter for a wired connection (router). Thus, several computers can be connected to the router (up to 4 on average) and all of them can use one wired connection to the internet. The most expensive and advanced models of routers also support USB technologies for the ability to work with data storage devices and convert the signal from USB 3G modems, which can be useful in an office environment. Some routers can be used as file servers to store and share files over an internet connection.

Router standards

Routers differ among themselves in the number of supported standards and implemented functions. To date, most modern devices support work in the 802.11n standard, which is the most advanced and high-speed today. However, there are still models that work in already outdated 802.11b and 802.11g networks, which, unlike 802.11n, have a lower data transfer rate and radio signal coverage area.

Price

You can buy a router at any computer store or electronics supermarket. Try to buy devices from well-known network equipment manufacturers (for example, D-Link, TP Link, ASUS, Zyxel, etc.). The initial price for an ordinary router can start from $15 for the most simple models, which are suitable for home use or small office applications. Depending on the requirements for the device, its cost will also increase. As a rule, the key characteristic when buying a router is the coverage area, which is determined by the presence of amplifiers in the antenna and the number of additional antennas that will provide a wider signal broadcast. Some devices have the ability to work in VPN client mode.

The speed of modern routers, when providing ideal conditions, cannot exceed 600 Mbps, however, in the conditions of modern wired networks, the use of routers that give speeds above 150 Mbps is justified, because most often a speed of 600 Mbps cannot be achieved due to limitations of both the radio signal and wired networks of modern Russian providers.

High technology has become part of everyday life. Wireless Internet, which previously could only be dreamed of, is today banal and familiar. Rarely does anyone have questions about how a wireless connection works or how the abbreviation Wi-Fi stands for and what it means.

Routers, routers, access points, repeaters - how difficult it all is, and if you look even deeper into the characteristics of these devices, purpose, settings, then there is generally a dark forest 🙂 I think many will agree with me. And those who independently bought and configured these devices know firsthand what I have to introduce. On our site you can find many articles on setting up different routers, some certain functions, Wi-Fi networks, etc. I write about these routers and routers all the time, but not many people know what they are, what these devices are for, and how they differ.

In this article, we will try to figure out what a router is and how it differs from a router. I will try to write as simply as possible. Therefore, if you understand these devices, you are unlikely to find something new for yourself.

Router: what is this device and how does it work?

We all know that this is such a small box, usually with antennas (or one), which allows us to connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi.

Briefly and simply, router, is a device that distributes the Internet between devices connected to it. By network cable (computers, TVs, etc.), or via Wi-Fi (smartphones, tablets, laptops).

Or like this: the router combines all devices into local network (in which they can exchange files or play games) with internet access (if internet is connected and configured).

And let the experts forgive me, who will definitely spit on my explanation (especially on the word "distributes"), but I think it's much easier to understand what kind of device it is.

A little more. We have Internet at home, as a rule, this is:

• ethernet- a regular network cable that is immediately connected to network card computer or laptop.
• ADSL– when the telephone line is connected to the modem (often with the option WiFi sharing, essentially a modem with a router function, or vice versa), and from the modem to the computer via a network cable.
• Or, internet via 3G/4G USB modem- this is when we simply connect our modem to the USB connector of the computer and use the Internet. For example: .

These are the three main and most popular ways to connect to the Internet. All these connections have one big disadvantage: you cannot connect several devices to the Internet at once and you cannot connect devices via Wi-Fi. Since we have either one cable or one modem.

That's what Wi-Fi routers are for. They can distribute the Internet to many devices. Both cable and wireless network WiFi.

How the router works:

The points:

• We connect the cable to the router, which was laid in our house by the Internet provider (or cable from ADSL modem). If you have ADSL Internet (via a telephone cable) and do not have a separate modem, then you can buy a Wi-Fi router with a built-in modem. To which you can immediately connect a telephone cable. And if you have Internet via a USB modem, then we connect the modem to the router. But in this case, you need a special one.
• We configure the router to work with your provider, or modem (ADSL, or USB). It is best to do this according to the instructions that are written specifically for your device. You can search for such an article on our website in the section "Configuring the router". Also, you need to set a name for your Wi-Fi network, set a password for the network.
• We connect to the router all the devices on which you want to use the Internet. Usually, the router is installed by those who want to use the Internet via Wi-Fi on their mobile devices. Therefore, we connect our phones, tablets, laptops, TVs, etc. to our Wi-Fi network. And those devices that cannot connect wirelessly (usually, these are stationary computers), you can connect to the Internet via a network cable (LAN) . As a rule, there are 4 LAN connectors on the router, which means that 4 devices can be connected via cable.
  And if you don't want to bother with cables for desktop computer, then you can buy for it and connect it wirelessly.

It turns out that the router simply establishes an Internet connection and shares it between all devices connected to it. This is his task.

How is a router different from a router?

If you read this article from the very beginning, you may have noticed that I wrote either a router or a router. Yes, it's the same device. They are absolutely indistinguishable and there is no difference between them.

Just a router (router) is in English. And in Russian this word is translated as a router. That's all. And so it will be right. When I write articles, I use both names.

I hope that I was able to answer the question posed in the title of this article. If you can somehow supplement the article, you can write to me in the comments, I will be grateful.

Recently, the question has become more and more relevant: “What is a WiFi router and why is it needed?” imagine life modern man without wireless networks it is difficult, and without such a router it is impossible to implement them. Therefore, to begin with, let's find out what kind of device it is, and figure out how to work with it.

What it is?

First of all, let's decide on a WiFi router. This is a network device that allows you to transfer data. And both with the help of wires, and without them. In most cases, it is equipped with four conventional ports for connection. Separately, an antenna is installed to work with WiFi. Such a constructive solution allows you to easily organize a small local room at home or in a small office. It will be a little more difficult in the conditions of a large company, but, as practice shows, even here, with a competent approach, there will be no problems. Some more advanced devices allow you to connect flash drives for storing information and a 3G modem in case there is no data transfer over the wires.

Setting up

After receiving an answer to that, the router, we will deal with its configuration. It consists of two stages: connecting and setting the necessary parameters. On the first of them, the following manipulations are performed:

• We connect the incoming twisted pair from the provider.
• We install the power supply into the outlet, and the wire from it into the corresponding socket of the router.
• With the wire that comes with the kit, we connect a personal computer to one of the 4 ports.

Setting the required parameters consists of the following:

• We turn on the router with the button on the back and wait for it to finish loading.
• Run any of installed browsers on a personal computer and enter the address: "192.168.1.1". Then press "Enter".
• At the next stage, you need to enter two parameters - login and password. This information is in the user manual. For example, if you need a D-link, then you need to enter "admin" in each of them.
• Go to the "Wireless networks" section. We select the protection method "WPA2", set the name of the connection and the password to access it. We save the changes. In this case, the router will have to reboot.

In most cases, the manipulations carried out are enough to organize using a router. Next, turn off the personal computer, if necessary, and proceed to the next step - connecting devices. It can be tablets, smartphones, personal computers, TVs or satellite receivers.

Connecting

Regardless of which WiFi router is used, the connection setup algorithm on each such device is the same. First, turn on the wireless network adapter. Then the scan is done available connections. Then the one whose name was set in the previous step is selected. If protection is set, you will need to enter a password. After that, access to network resources received.

Results

As part of this material, an answer was given to what WiFi routers are, why it is needed. This is a device that allows you to easily organize a small local area network. Most often it is used at home or in small offices. Setting it up is not difficult. Connect to it - even more so. Therefore, this is a simple and reliable solution for those who want to make an Internet connection at minimal cost.

WiFi is modern technology wireless connection of computers, laptops and smartphones to one network and connecting them to the Internet. You can read more about Wi-Fi, how to set it up on your computer, in the article.

How Wi-Fi works

The wireless connection of computers to the Internet occurs through the use of radio waves and, according to the principle of operation, does not differ from the operation of radio stations, cell phones and television receivers. The only significant difference with Wi-Fi is the use of higher frequencies than those used in radio communications and television broadcasts (2.4 GHz or 5 GHz). Working at such frequencies allows you to transmit large amounts of information.

To implement wireless Internet access, you need a router (router) with a built-in module for receiving and transmitting radio signals and a similar module built into a computer or laptop. The router is connected to the Internet via a network cable through any provider. The digital signal from the Internet is transmitted via cable to the router, where it is converted into radio waves. The router sends a radio signal to the computer's receiving module, which converts it back to digital. Similarly, a digital signal from a laptop is encoded by the transmission module into a radio signal, transmitted "over the air" to the router, converted there into digital and sent to the worldwide network.

How does a Wi-Fi router work

Routers are capable of transmitting a signal from the Internet to more than one device. This allows one network cable to access the Internet immediately from a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, etc. The coverage area of ​​modern routers is 50-100 meters (in the absence of obstacles). This allows a person to move freely around the apartment with mobile device without losing connection with the World Wide Web.

The router's memory contains a routing table that stores the paths to all connected devices. The bandwidth of the Internet access channel provided by the provider is also distributed among all mobile and stationary devices. It should be noted that a Wi-Fi connection through a router is convenient for social networking or Skype, viewing Email, internet surfing. A network connection is more suitable for online viewing of voluminous videos or downloading files.

How does Wi-Fi work on a laptop

Most modern laptops are equipped with a built-in module for receiving and transmitting radio signals that supports a Wi-Fi connection to the Internet. These devices usually have a Wi-Fi logo sticker. Networking equipment for wireless connections is produced by many companies using different technical solutions. However, the presence of the Wi-Fi logo tells consumers that manufacturers are using single standard communication, and devices from different companies will be mutually compatible, that is, they will be able to work with each other on the same network.