What is the performance of a (802.11b) wireless LAN?
The nominal bandwidth for the 802.11b is 11 Mbps. In reality, wireless protocol (half duplex communication based on CSMA/CA) requires a lot of data exchange between the users and the base stations in order to establish if the channel is idle and transmission is possible. This fact reduces real network throughput, that cannot exceed of ~5 Mbps. Some tests have been done with Alvarion wireless equipment (i.e. base stations and PCMCAs) in order to prove the real bandwidth capacity of wireless. It has been found that in a situation of optimal conditions (only one base station without any external interference), the maximum throughput which can be reached is ~4 Mbps. Similar results have been presented in an article by Paul-Andre Rumley and Robert Ritter from EPFL after their study about wireless features and limits.
