If I start using a Wifi router. Will it slow my internet down

[AritraD]

Actually i was thinking of getting a wifi router and I am pretty much a noob in these affairs. All i want to know is that whether using a wifi router will slow down my internet spped at my pc. Will it slow down even if no devices sre connected to the wifi network?

 

[zAustin]

Wifi will perform at the same speed as if you were on a wired connection, or that your ISP provides you with, and assuming your router is capable of handle those speeds. The only drawback though is signal strength, wired will experience little to no packet loss due to signal strength because the signal is contained within a cable as opposed to wireless which is susceptible to signal issues if walls or obstacles are within line of sight. And with wired or wireless, the more devices you connect, the slower your internet will get since it is distributed to everything connected to it, unless configured otherwise for QoS or something like that.

 

[AritraD]

Wifi will perform at the same speed as if you were on a wired connection, or that your ISP provides you with, and assuming your router is capable of handle those speeds. The only drawback though is signal strength, wired will experience little to no packet loss due to signal strength because the signal is contained within a cable as opposed to wireless which is susceptible to signal issues if walls or obstacles are within line of sight.

So you mean that I will not experience much of a speed drop at my pc even when a moble devicw is being used?

 

[zAustin]

If multiple devices are connected to your router or network in general, speeds will typically drop because your bandwidth is distributed equally to everything connected to your network unless otherwise configured using QoS features in your router which is a bit more complex, and also if your router even supports it.

 

[why_wolf]

In practice yes. Your Raw speed from your modem will get degraded by the WiFi signal since it is unlikely that you will have 100% signal strength 100% of the time. Also depends on what band b/g/n/ac you are connecting to as well. AC is the fastest but not all devices are capable of talking to that signal the general standard right now is N.

Does it matter? Not really unless you absolutely need a stable signal 100% of the time. In that case just keep using Ethernet cables.

You will not loss internet speed if WiFi is on but nothing is connected to it. However if there are 12 devices all connected at the same time then your internet speed or bandwidth is getting divided up by 12.

That all said the quality of the router matters. Crappy routers will do crappy things so don't be cheap and buy that $30 no name router.

 

[AritraD]

If multiple devices are connected to your router or network in general, speeds will typically drop because your bandwidth is distributed equally to everything connected to your network unless otherwise configured using QoS features in your router which is a bit more complex, and also if your router even supports it.

Sorry for disturbing you again. I plan on using only one mobile device. The mobile device wont be used by me throughout the day. So I will get the the same speed on my pc if nothing is connected to the wifi network, right?

 

[zAustin]

If nothing else on the network is connected and actively being used - wired or wireless, you will get the full potential of your network connection.