Cisco Certified Support Technician (CCST) NetworkingNetworking FundamentalsMedium

A small business is setting up a new wireless network and wants to use the latest Wi-Fi standard that operates in both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, supports MIMO (Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output) for better performance, and offers theoretical speeds up to 600 Mbps. Which Wi-Fi standard should they choose?

  1. A802.11b
  2. B802.11n
  3. C802.11a
  4. D802.11g
Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: B. 802.11n

802.11n (Wi-Fi 4) was the first Wi-Fi standard to operate on both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, introduce MIMO technology, and offer significantly higher theoretical throughputs (up to 600 Mbps) compared to its predecessors.

Why the other options are wrong

  • A. 802.11b operates only in the 2.4 GHz band and has very low speeds (up to 11 Mbps) without MIMO.
  • C. 802.11a operates only in the 5 GHz band and has lower speeds (up to 54 Mbps) without MIMO.
  • D. 802.11g operates only in the 2.4 GHz band and has speeds up to 54 Mbps without MIMO.

802.11n (Wi-Fi 4)

An IEEE standard for wireless local area networks, also known as Wi-Fi 4, that significantly improved upon previous standards by introducing MIMO, channel bonding, and dual-band operation.

  • Operates in both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency bands.
  • Introduced MIMO (Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output) technology.
  • Theoretical maximum data rate up to 600 Mbps.
  • Backward compatible with 802.11a/b/g.

Memory trick: N for New, for Nifty, for Next-level speed.

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