The world runs on digital networks. Once upon a time, Ethernet-based wired networks dominated the business landscape. These days, however, WiFi and cellular technologies have enabled organizations to network wirelessly. Maybe you’ve been trying to decide whether you switch from your wired network to a wireless one, or whether your new business should start out with one or the other – or even whether you should mix the two. Let’s look at some key factors that might influence your decision.

Speed - If you’re in an industry or profession that must send large amounts of data as speedily as possible, you almost certainly want a dedicated wired network. Wireless networks can experience intermittent interference from competing signals, other electronic devices, or even simple barriers such as walls.

Organization and expandability - If you hate cable “spaghetti,” you’ll love going wireless. Wired networks just get more and more cluttered, since you have to wire up every new device you add to the network. A wireless network will look much cleaner and more organized. You can also expand your existing network much more easily when you’re not scrambling to add new routers and cables all the time.

Maintenance - The same freedom from cables that makes wireless networks so easy to put together also makes these networks easier to maintain than their wired counterparts. You’ll still need to troubleshoot and fix glitches, but those glitches will most likely be in the software instead of the hardware.

Security - You should confine your network to the wired world if you worry about security, especially if your work calls for compliance with HIPAA or other data privacy laws. Wireless networks are simply easier for bad guys (or infected devices) to penetrate.

Whichever kind of network you need, Gravity systems can provide it. Contact our Austin tech support crew today.