Range as Limitation
Range as Limitation
One of the first tasks of this book has been to overcome the misperception that 802.11 is limited in range
to approximately 100 meters. The range of 802.11 is a function of power and antenna technology. In
order for 802.11 to achieve wide acceptance in residential and small office / home office (SOHO)
markets, it will have to offer a range that makes it economical for the service provider to cover American
suburbs. Achievements in power levels and directional antenna design have enabled 802.11 to facilitate
point-to-point access in excess of 20 miles. Phased array antenna technology offers the potential of a
"wireless switch" where different subscribers in a locale covered by one phased array antenna can
receive differing levels of bandwidth and service.
The next question focuses on how bandwidth is delivered to a residential subscriber if the only source of
bandwidth is the telephone company's T1 service. Developments in tiered network technologies and
802.16 offer the promise that bandwidth in excess of 100 Mbps can be distributed to subcarriers who can
then deliver service to their subscribers and microcarriers at speeds of 11 Mbps (802.11b), 20 Mbps
(802.11g), or 54 Mbps (802.11a). Wireless metro area networks (WMANs) have the potential to service
large enterprise customers and subcarriers alike. The construction of infrastructure for this model of
bandwidth distribution is far less expensive than fiber optic or other broadband schemes.
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