ᐅ Are Ethernet ports still relevant today? Wi-Fi and wireless connections are the future!
Created on: 29 Jan 2020 21:06
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Bauherr am L
Hello fellow cable enthusiasts and Wi-Fi addicts,
I already confessed in the SAT discussion that I consider coax outlets and satellite dishes completely outdated since entertainment is streamed nowadays, and I’m not planning to include them in our new build (more on that in the SAT discussion). But that’s not what this is about.
Right now, I’m trying to smartly distribute LAN duplex Cat 6a and Cat7 cable outlets throughout the rooms (1st floor: 2 kids’ rooms, kids’ bathroom, master bedroom, dressing room, master bathroom, hallway; 2nd floor: open living/dining/kitchen area, hallway, entrance area, guest restroom).
On one hand, I feel like none of the rooms really fit the outlets perfectly, like: “the desk could go here…” But what if the TV ends up in that corner instead?
On the other hand, I’m looking at our current devices and very few still have LAN ports: MacBooks, iPhones, tablets, or devices that have LAN options but mostly connect via Wi-Fi anyway, like Sonos, printers, TVs.
So the question arises whether LAN ports in rooms are still that important today. I’m not talking about the Wi-Fi access points, which of course should be connected via LAN in a convenient location, or special cases like PoE cameras and door intercoms. I’m mainly referring to the LAN outlets in individual rooms. Most end devices are mobile anyway, and the outlets will be in the wrong place 99% of the time.
I read (yes, I spent some time researching this) that the cost of LAN outlets is negligible. Well, if I install duplex outlets in all those questionable locations, the cost for switches and everything else adds up to a nice chunk.
I would be interested in your opinion on this. Since I am straightforwardly skipping any traditional TV (in our case only satellite would be possible) and the corresponding connections, wouldn’t it be consistent to also counteract the outlet overload regarding LAN?
Looking forward to your comments, thanks!
I already confessed in the SAT discussion that I consider coax outlets and satellite dishes completely outdated since entertainment is streamed nowadays, and I’m not planning to include them in our new build (more on that in the SAT discussion). But that’s not what this is about.
Right now, I’m trying to smartly distribute LAN duplex Cat 6a and Cat7 cable outlets throughout the rooms (1st floor: 2 kids’ rooms, kids’ bathroom, master bedroom, dressing room, master bathroom, hallway; 2nd floor: open living/dining/kitchen area, hallway, entrance area, guest restroom).
On one hand, I feel like none of the rooms really fit the outlets perfectly, like: “the desk could go here…” But what if the TV ends up in that corner instead?
On the other hand, I’m looking at our current devices and very few still have LAN ports: MacBooks, iPhones, tablets, or devices that have LAN options but mostly connect via Wi-Fi anyway, like Sonos, printers, TVs.
So the question arises whether LAN ports in rooms are still that important today. I’m not talking about the Wi-Fi access points, which of course should be connected via LAN in a convenient location, or special cases like PoE cameras and door intercoms. I’m mainly referring to the LAN outlets in individual rooms. Most end devices are mobile anyway, and the outlets will be in the wrong place 99% of the time.
I read (yes, I spent some time researching this) that the cost of LAN outlets is negligible. Well, if I install duplex outlets in all those questionable locations, the cost for switches and everything else adds up to a nice chunk.
I would be interested in your opinion on this. Since I am straightforwardly skipping any traditional TV (in our case only satellite would be possible) and the corresponding connections, wouldn’t it be consistent to also counteract the outlet overload regarding LAN?
Looking forward to your comments, thanks!
Strahleman schrieb:
Despite using an access point, the connection quality is still quite inconsistent—especially when the Fire TV is streaming. There are also irregular connection drops, and typically, the printer disconnects from the Wi-Fi just when you need it. We don’t want to deal with this kind of situation in our house anymore.As much as Wi-Fi has its drawbacks, there is another issue: wrong frequency band, poor positioning, outdated Wi-Fi standard, etc. A proper setup handles this easily; up to now, I have never encountered the term “getting kicked off the Wi-Fi” in practice.
Grantlhaua schrieb:
These things aren’t so expensive that you have to think twice about them.That’s exactly right. I still don’t understand the whole debate. Throwing money out the window? A proper wired LAN is cheaper than the facade paint.
Lived experience:
32 network outlets throughout the house. Wi-Fi as well.
16 of those outlets are in constant use. Another 7 are used occasionally. The rest are either not yet in operation (kids are preschool age) or still covered behind plaster. Plus, there are 8 devices almost always connected via Wi-Fi. No gamers. Still, I’m glad to have the wired LAN because it gives me access everywhere with the necessary speeds and bandwidth.
Every room has at least one double outlet. It hardly cost anything.
And when neighbors come into play—good luck with the Wi-Fi! In one direction, I have almost no data throughput because the neighbor has set up "their network," so we interfere with each other.
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Bauherr am L30 Jan 2020 09:30It’s not about the money for me. This argument is also silly—you hear it all the time in home construction (“it’s only 1% of the total building cost”), but that’s comparing apples and oranges. Ten times 1% can quickly add up to 50,000 or more in today’s house building, and you still need the facade paint along with 1,000 LAN duplex outlets.
The discussion is a technological one. Just because something is cheap or almost free doesn’t mean I would install TAE sockets anymore. Having is great, but the sensible(?) thing is to have what’s actually useful. You should have what you use or need, and maybe a little reserve here and there. But a LAN socket orgy seems questionable nowadays, at least to me.
I started out that way myself—taking the floor plan, placing furniture, and distributing LAN duplex outlets. When I saw 3 or more in every room, I began to question the point. Hence the discussion.
@Mycraft: What is connected to the 16 permanently occupied outlets in your setup? This is a genuine question.
The discussion is a technological one. Just because something is cheap or almost free doesn’t mean I would install TAE sockets anymore. Having is great, but the sensible(?) thing is to have what’s actually useful. You should have what you use or need, and maybe a little reserve here and there. But a LAN socket orgy seems questionable nowadays, at least to me.
I started out that way myself—taking the floor plan, placing furniture, and distributing LAN duplex outlets. When I saw 3 or more in every room, I began to question the point. Hence the discussion.
@Mycraft: What is connected to the 16 permanently occupied outlets in your setup? This is a genuine question.
S
Strahleman30 Jan 2020 09:34opalau schrieb:
As much as Wi-Fi has its drawbacks, there is another issue. Wrong frequency band, poor placement, outdated Wi-Fi standards, etc. A proper setup handles this easily; I have never personally encountered the term “getting kicked off Wi-Fi” in practice. The limitations are more related to the building itself. Reinforced concrete ceilings, only repeaters (since access points are not possible due to missing cabling), long distances between devices. It doesn’t happen every day, but occasionally the restrictions become noticeable. With this experience, I would definitely plan for wired LAN today.
I believe the discussion is also influenced by the (false) perception that Wi-Fi technology is advancing rapidly. This is a misconception.
Current high Wi-Fi bandwidths (>1 Gbit/s) mainly rely on using the 5 GHz band and aggregating more and more channels. The 5 GHz band at worst only reaches up to the next solid wall. Channel aggregation heavily burdens the available frequency spectrum, causing neighboring Wi-Fi networks to increasingly interfere with each other, turning theoretical bandwidths into disappointing real-world speeds.
The same applies to the much-praised 5G! The perception created by mainstream media about what this technology is capable of is unfortunately highly distorted.
Use cables for everything that is stationary and regularly requires higher bandwidth or low latency. For everything else, Wi-Fi is fine. Avoiding cables in new builds is simply short-sighted and a false economy.
Current high Wi-Fi bandwidths (>1 Gbit/s) mainly rely on using the 5 GHz band and aggregating more and more channels. The 5 GHz band at worst only reaches up to the next solid wall. Channel aggregation heavily burdens the available frequency spectrum, causing neighboring Wi-Fi networks to increasingly interfere with each other, turning theoretical bandwidths into disappointing real-world speeds.
The same applies to the much-praised 5G! The perception created by mainstream media about what this technology is capable of is unfortunately highly distorted.
Use cables for everything that is stationary and regularly requires higher bandwidth or low latency. For everything else, Wi-Fi is fine. Avoiding cables in new builds is simply short-sighted and a false economy.
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