Networking Gurus -- 4 computers - better via Wifi or use LAN bridge

Hi there

seems difficult to find a decent answer to this - but say you have 4 laptop users on your local LAN - is it better for throughput to just let them use wifi cards in their computers or connect the 4 computers to a fast router used as an ethernet-->wifi bridge.

The Bridge method seems to give more throughput - obviously people transferring several GB sized files over this type of arrangement will kill it but this happens very rarely.

The advantage of the Bridge also allows the computers that can't handle 5GHZ wifi to be connected to the router using 5GHZ and a router is generally full duplex while wifi cards --certainly the cheaper end of the market are generally half duplex.

Full blown LAN is obviously the best but I can't run loads of 1Gib/s Lan cable all over the place.

very difficult to get any serious info on this without going up into the hideously expensive world of Enterprise gear used by large server farms etc.

Cheers
jimbo

Hi jimbo45,
In a 1Gbps LAN the transfer speed will be 125MB/s, in full-duplex , both ends will achieve that speed.
When sending from LAN to WLAN, the speed will be cut down by the RTS/CTS protocol and both ends will have the speed that WLAN allows. WLAN 866Mbps will allow a max of 72MB/s.

Regarding the Bridge, Bridging means that you putting 2 or more IP Segments together, so you allow LAN and WLAN to communicate between them, without that it would not be possible to send files from 1 PC in LAN and to another on WLAN.
Bridging does not mean that the information is being sendet simultaneously in both Channels at the same time. That would be called "Channel Bundling" and so far I know it was possible with certain Phone Lines, putting Channel A together with Channel B was doubling speed.
So, regarding costs and speed, LAN has advantage over WLAN.