You can’t deny that we’re moving into a completely wireless world. That said, a wired connection might still outperform its wireless counterpart, and this is certainly true when it comes to internet speed and quality. As much as we enjoy Wi-Fi, a wired internet connection, also known as an Ethernet connector, is still the superior option when it comes to the technicalities. Theoretically, your Wi-Fi speed can reach up to 6.9 Gbps. In reality, however, it’ll be running at less than 1 Gbps. Comparing this to ethernet which peaks at 10 Gbps, an ethernet connection can be 10 times faster than Wi-Fi! We’ve got everything you need to know about Wi-Fi vs. Ethernet.

How Does Wi-Fi Work?

Ever wondered how your devices wirelessly connect to the internet? For something that happens instantly, there’s actually a whole lot of work that goes on in the background to wirelessly bring you the internet.

Wi-Fi stands for Wireless Fidelity, and can also be referred to as Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). Your Wi-Fi router and your device’s Wi-Fi chip use radio waves to communicate. The radio waves used for Wi-Fi are a very high frequency, and so carry a lot of information.

Firstly, your device’s Wi-Fi chip converts your data into radio waves and transmits it with an antenna. Information in this radio wave is stored as 0s and 1s. Your Wi-Fi router receives this signal, decodes it into 1s and 0s, and sends this information to the internet via a wired Ethernet connection.

This process is followed in reverse with information from the internet being delivered to your device via radio waves and the 0s and 1s decoded so you can watch your movie or open your emails.

Each 1 or 0 in the radio wave is one “bit”, or a byte. The average fixed broadband download speed in Australia currently sits at 51.61 mega bites per second (Mbps) according to the Speedtest Global Index. That means your device’s Wi-Fi chip is decoding over 56 million 0s and 1s per second. Compared to global averages, our internet speed is slow, but that’s still a whole lot of information!

How Does Ethernet Work?

Ethernet cables connect devices, routers and switches to a local area network (LAN). It uses an ethernet cable, a crossover cable and a hub. While Wi-Fi radio waves can be blocked and interfered with as they travel through the air to your device, this is not true for a wired connection. This is why Ethernet connections provide you with a better internet connection.

Types of Ethernet Cables

Not all Ethernet cables are equal. Let’s learn more about the different types of Ethernet cables.

CAT5 Ethernet Cables

Category 5, or CAT5 cables, have been the primary Ethernet connection for many years. They have recently been superseded, however, by CAT5E cables. The “E” here stands for “enhanced”.

CAT5 Ethernet cables can handle up to 100 Mbps at 100 MHz bandwidth. This is often enough for domestic use for daily tasks where speed and connection quality are of concern.

CAT6 Ethernet Cables

Category 6, or CAT6 cables are a step up from CAT5. They can reach speeds up to 10 Gbps and have a greater bandwidth capacity at 250 MHz.

A thicker cable is required for this higher performance. CAT6 is a good option where your existing internet speed is not adequate and cross-talk is a problem.

Which One is Right For You?

There are pros and cons to both Wi-Fi and Ethernet. If one was far superior in all ways over the other, the other would have been made redundant long ago.

Wi-Fi Pros

Wi-Fi is more popular in domestic settings for several reasons:

• No need for cables running across the floor from the router to a device
• Alternatively, you don’t need an electrician to install Ethernet wall outlets
• You can connect to your Wi-Fi from anywhere in your home within its range
• Cost-effective installation
• Wi-Fi speed is sufficient for most daily tasks – streaming movies, checking emails, etc.

Wi-Fi Cons

For all its benefits, Wi-Fi also comes with a number of downsides:

• Can’t connect to Wi-Fi outside of its range
• Wi-Fi speed is not as fast as Ethernet
• Latency (time taken for traffic  to go from one device to its destination) is greater with Wi-Fi connections than Ethernet connections
• If security is not set up correctly your Wi-Fi is vulnerable to hacker attacks

Ethernet Pros

Ethernet is technically superior to Wi-Fi on several fronts:

• Faster internet speeds up to 10 Gbps
• Lower latency
• Minimises cross-talk between devices in the same network
• Good data transfer quality
• More cost-effective than other connection systems

Ethernet Cons

With all the benefits of Ethernet connections, there are a variety of cons that accompany it:

• More costly installation if you use an electrician to install Ethernet outlets
• If you connect an Ethernet cable to your router and run it to your device, cables will be running across your home
• Limited to the cable length

In order to determine the best solution for your home, you will need to consider the pros and cons of Wi-Fi and Ethernet. Every home uses the internet differently and so will have a different solution.

If you ask our team, there’s a very good reason new bulbs (and LED lights in particular) are taking the market by storm.

LED lights are the future. They’re much better than old incandescent bulbs for a number of reasons. In fact, we’re certain that the vast majority of Melbourne homes will be using LEDs in the very near future.

Are you planning a renovation job in the near future? Or are you simply looking to brighten up your home?

Whatever it is you’re planning, LED lights are the way to go – here’s why you should think about making the switch!

Benefits of LED lights

“You’re pretty confident LED lights are the future – why’s that?” we hear you asking.

The answer: they’re just that good.

Traditional light bulbs use filament – in other words, a thin wire. Electrical currents run through this filament, heating the wire filament until it reaches the point where it starts glowing.

By contrast, LED (Light Emitting Diode) lights use a semiconductor to achieve the same effect.

It’s much more technical than that, but for our purposes, all you need to know is that this makes LED lights considerably better than older types of bulbs in just about every single way!

EWS perform all sorts of electrical work, including lighting upgrades.

Out of all the different types of light and bulb out there, we’ve noticed that LED lights are the most effective, hands-down.

We’re totally on board with LED lighting – and there are a couple of very good reasons why…

Save on energy

Like we mentioned above, traditional light bulbs heat a wire to the point where it starts to glow from the heat.

“Wait,” you think, “how do you make a wire glow?”

With lots and lots of electricity, of course… and that’s the big problem with traditional light bulbs right there.

Naturally, this makes traditional bulbs extremely inefficient.

Not to mention, a lot of the energy these bulbs generate isn’t even light at all, but heat – that’s a lot of electricity simply going to waste (but more on that later!)

By contrast, the semiconductors used in LED lights need considerably less electricity to light up – to the tune of 75% less power, to be exact (though some newer bulbs are even more efficient than that).

And that directly translates to lower power bills – something that we can all get behind.

LEDs are brighter

Not to mention, a lot of the energy these bulbs generate isn’t even light at all, but heat – unless you’re using your bulbs as heaters, that’s a lot of electricity simply going to waste!

Not only that, but all of the electricity they use is converted into light.

For the same amount of electricity usage, an LED light can output considerably more lumens (the unit of measurement for brightness) than a traditional bulb.

This makes them great for lighting up large rooms and areas.

Of course, there’s no rule saying that you need to replace your bulbs with LED lights that use the same amount of watts.

As we mentioned above, you can get the same amount of lighting using less electricity in the process, bringing down your expenses (as we mentioned above).

Longer lifespan

Lower energy usage isn’t the only way LED lights can help you save electricity.

The problem with relying on a wire filament is that eventually, it’s going to break. Over time they can snap, wear out or come loose, all of which can stop the electrical current needed to generate light from flowing.

By contrast, the semiconductors used in LED lights are much tougher, and thus have considerably longer lifespans. Some can last up to 50,000 hours (that’s the equivalent of being on for 24 hours a day for 5.7 years straight!)

And that in turn reduces how often you’ll have to replace your light bulbs frequently.

Flexibility

While there are many advantages to LED lights compared to traditional lights, one that doesn’t get as much attention is their flexibility.

EWS have used LED lights in all sorts of applications, ranging from industrial uses to small studio apartments.

Thanks to their brighter output, LED lights can scale up considerably higher than traditional bulbs, making them suitable for a much wider range of applications

However, that isn’t the only thing that makes LEDs so flexible and versatile.

Additionally, LED lights also come in a wider range of shapes and sizes, allowing you to use them in a much broader range of applications than traditional bulbs.

You can even find LED lights that replicate the appearance of traditional light bulbs too!

Whether it’s under-the-cabinet lighting for kitchen and countertops, to running lights along a stairwell or corridor, to Christmas lighting, LED lights are extremely versatile and safe to use for all kinds of electrical services in Melbourne.

Environmentally friendly

Hopefully by now, you understand how much more efficient LED lights are compared to traditional bulbs.

Not only does this help bring down your power bills – reducing your electricity usage is also good for the environment.

Lower power usage means less carbon emissions – remember that lighting accounts for 6% of all the world’s carbon emissions.

If every lightbulb in the world was an LED, we’d be able to cut that number by three quarters!

Every little appliance counts when improving your home’s energy-efficiency, including lighting. If the goal is to reduce your carbon footprint, LED lights are a good place to start.

Whether you are starting your own business or your workplace allows you to work from home, having an optimized home office set up can help to ensure that you remain productive and efficient, especially living in COVID times. Setting up your own home office can be challenging without the right electrical outfit, so we, at EWS, are happy to offer some home office electrical setup tips. Once you have an idea of the best way to get your home office’s electrical systems arranged, it is important to know which tasks will need to be performed by a licensed electrician, so make sure to call an electrician in your area.

Setting Up a Home Office’s Electrical Systems

Most modern offices require a fairly large number of electrical devices and systems to ensure efficiency. Some tips to consider when preparing your home office’s electrical setup include:

Provide Plenty of Electrical Outlets

Modern home offices typically include a number of electrical devices that require power sources. Computers, printers, phone chargers, fax machines, power backups, extra monitors, floor and desk lamps, extra monitors, and more are all extremely common to find in home offices, so make sure that you have plenty of sources of power throughout your office space. Even if you have an idea of how you want to set up your home office, you might find that your preferred layout changes for the sake of efficiency after a bit of time working in the office, so it is important to set up outlets throughout your home office so that you can move things around easily.

Install Power Strips and Surge Protectors

Having power strips installed throughout your home office can make it less likely that you will run out of outlets in areas where you plug in multiple devices. Surge protectors that are hardwired into your office can help to protect your sensitive electronics from power surges.

Consider Comfort

Setting up your home office to be comfortable can help boost your efficiency. It might be helpful to get your office on a separate heat system from the rest of your home, and there are many options for electric heating that offer an excellent degree of control.

Incorporate Hardwired Ethernet

Regardless of what industry you work in, having fast Internet can be extremely important. Using hardwired ethernet for your work computer can be more reliable and faster than WIFI, so consider having it hardwired into your office.

If you would like to find out more home office electrical setup tips, or to find out more about how we can help with setting up your home office through our suite of electrical services, please contact us today.