Today it is almost obvious to choose whether to connect to the internet with an ethernet cable that goes from the router to the computer or whether to take advantage of the wireless Wifi connection. Wifi is, of course, more convenient and convenient than Ethernet cables, which by the way cannot be attached to smartphones and tablets.
However, if we talk about desktop or portable PCs, the use of Ethernet cables still has some advantages and, more precisely, it allows to have a faster network in the transmission of data, with less latency and zero risk of interference .
But how much faster is the Ethernet cable than wifi "> Differences between Ethernet, CAT5 and CAT6 cables and which ones to use)
The difference in speed between the two modes of transmission on the network lies only in the passage of data, from one device or PC to another, within the same network.
So if you copy or transfer a lot of data and files from one computer to another every day, it would be significantly faster with cables rather than using Wifi.
Connecting to the Internet has nothing to do with transferring files within a wired LAN is much faster than a wireless network.
You can verify this difference by doing some LAN network speed tests, maybe even just transferring a big file between two PCs, once using the Wi-Fi connection and once connected to an Ethernet cable.
If you do the ADSL internet speed test, however, you should not see any difference between wifi and cable.
The real bottleneck is rather the Internet connection.
Virtually no internet provider, especially in Italy, allows you to load the internet so quickly thus making the difference in speed between ethernet and wifi irrelevant .
If, therefore, there is no real difference in speed, the cable internet connection is still better in quality, that is, for less latency or delay in data transmission.
latency is an important factor in the quality of a network connection especially for those who play online.
In multiplayer games it is indicated by ping, which means the delay time in which we see what others are doing, in real time.
When the connection is poor, you risk losing every game game because you don't see the opponent's blows and movements.
We talked about this technical topic by explaining some tricks to have a faster connection and less network latency by reducing Ping.
If it is true therefore that for an Ethernet connection the latency will always be lower than the Wifi connection, this is a difference that only affects those who play online and not those who surf the internet to read sites, download or watch streaming videos.
In summary, with Wi-Fi, there is a bit more of a delay when signals travel back and forth between a Wi-Fi device (such as a PC) and the wireless router.
You can verify this small delay by running the PING command on the router's IP address, once using a wifi connection and the other with the ethernet connection.
Finally , regarding the interferences of Wifi that affect the speed of the internet, these exist and are a problem.
We have already seen, in the guide on how to avoid interference on wifi from neighbors' networks .
For example, if streaming videos have slow buffering, there may be interference on the wifi.
Basically, the interference of a wireless network is more if you live in a networked environment and if you use a router that goes to 2.4 GhZ (and not to 5GhZ).
Ethernet cables can also suffer from signal degradation, but only if they are old and if they are more than 10 or 20 meters long.
Wifi, on the other hand, can be disturbed, as well as by nearby networks, by other devices that use the Wi-Fi frequency spectrum.
In conclusion, Wifi is now indispensable in the home, to connect one or more PCs and even tablets and every smartphone to the internet, even those of friends who come to visit us.
The Wifi is also clean, in the sense that it does not need cables to be laid on the edges of every room in the house or, as it once was, to pull cables from one floor to another even through the walls.
However, if you have the possibility to connect to the internet via an Ethernet cable because the PC is close to the router, then it may be worthwhile, not only to avoid interference and latency problems, but also because, in the end, the cable is more secure. .
After all, the Wifi network can always be penetrated from the outside, especially if you do not configure the router properly.
A wired Ethernet network cannot be violated by outsiders at all, unless they connect with a cable to the router, which is impossible in other people's homes.
Someone could say that ethernet connection is better also because wifi is dangerous for health.
However, we have already talked about this and you can carefully read the article on the reasons why Wifi is not dangerous for us and for children to understand that we do not have to worry about wifi radiation.
