What is Wireless? Definition and Features

The term Wireless refers to many things, but generally in our mind, it is used to refer to the transfer of data over a network without the use of wires. This is a very broad subject and there is no single term that can be used to sum it all up. Instead, it is essential to understand each type of Wireless Technology and the services that they provide for a clear understanding. The most common type of Wireless Technology is the Wireless LAN, which allows you to establish a Local Area Network (LAN). It also allows you to extend this network into the Local Area Networks (LANs) of your workplace and beyond.

The second most common type of Wireless Technology is the Bluetooth technology, which uses the Bluetooth specification for its operation. This means that both radio frequency based and infrared Light Emitting Diode (LED) based transmission modes are available. Bluetooth devices are typically used for mobile communication but the Bluetooth headset is also widely used for computer networking. In fact, the recent generation of mobile phones includes a built-in Bluetooth chip.

Another important class of Wireless Technology is the WAN, which refers to the Internet protocol which is widely used for voice and data communications over the local area network. The Internet connection can either be a Wide Area Network (WAN) or a Local Area Network (LAN). The advantage of using WAN is that it has wider bandwidth and higher data transfer rates; however, it is much slower than the LAN. A Wide Area Network has several nodes with every node having an Internet connection, whereas a Local Area Network has only one node.

There are two main types of Wireless Technology – the Software and the Hardware. While Software based protocols are mostly implemented inside the electronic hardware, the Hardware based protocols are often used for creating a wireless infrastructure. In addition, some WLAN devices include software such as wireless card software, wireless router software, access point software and utilities etc. Based on the type of wireless technology installed, the features vary from model to model.

One example of a very popular wireless technology is Bluetooth. Bluetooth is a short for the Bluetooth Low Energy technology and is a low power, efficient and fast form of wireless connectivity. Most popular wireless phones in the market today are Bluetooth enabled and most laptops come bundled with Bluetooth support. As Bluetooth is being widely used for various applications, there are several manufacturers who have developed a vast array of Bluetooth capable devices which include, wireless card, Wi-Fi enabled mobile phones, WiMax cards, Bluetooth headset and Bluetooth dongle.

Another popular kind of wireless technology is the WAP. The WAP (wireless application protocol) is another protocol that enables the transmission of information over short distances at very high speeds. It is capable of transmitting large volumes of data at relatively low bandwidths. Currently, there are more than twenty different WAP groups which are all going through major enhancements and improvements. These groups are the WPA (wired access), Wi-Fi (WiFi) and the Mobitex (Mobi) families.

Also Read: What is Bandwidth? Definition and Uses