Back during the days of dialup, connection speed was the primary concern of people signing up for Internet access. We used to have 14.4, then 28.8, then 56 Kilobits per second speeds (with the few in-between increments). Every bit of speed increase counted. But then when broadband came about, the speed hardly mattered if all one has to do was surf the Web or check emails.

But with IP distribution of multimedia content, a bit of increased speed does matter. 512 Kbps broadband is a world of difference to 256 Kbps—you can transfer files and data in half the time! However, if you take into consideration the rated speed of a wireless network, which can reach up to 54 Megabits per second at the current standards (for wireless G), then the Internet connection speed would not fare well.

This makes me think about all the hoopla generated by the “upgraded speed” equipment such as with Wireless N and other such technologies. Do we really need the speed upgrades? I mean, unless you’re transferring high bitrate videos across computers, you’re pretty well off with even a WiFi B device, unless you needed the greater range WiFi G and N are said to have.