It’s been years that most of our devices have become wireless. Even though the speed of data transfer was an issue in the beginning, after the evolution of 5G networks, you can get the speed in the range of Gigabits via wireless, at least in theory! So why do we still use wired networks? Why an adequately designed smart home uses hundreds of meters of Cat 5 or Cat 6 wire to make all the devices work correctly? Isn’t a wired network a thing of the past?
Reliability
Routers and repeaters have indeed improved substantially in the last decade. Still, because of many factors, including the structure of a building, the noise of other wireless networks around your house and a few other factors, a wireless network can never be as reliable as a wired one. You may not notice the process of your phone or iPad getting disconnected and reconnected again when you move from the second floor to the basement. The truth is that most of the time, it happens! For normal usage of the Internet this might not even be a problem, but what about when you have your security system integrated with your Crestron or Control4 system? Then it is of absolute importance that you don’t lose your connection even for a fragment of a second.
Speed
As mentioned before, although in theory, you can get to gigabit range of gear, but practically this is not always the case. The process of “handshaking” between your device and your router usually takes longer when you are using a wireless network as opposed to a wired one. Again this might not be as important if you are watching a movie. Because although your overall speed might be a little slower, the buffering or loading time can help you not even notice the more leisurely pace. What about when someone is at the door, and your doorbell connects to your home automation system? You need the fastest speed to see who is behind the door and whether you should open the door or not!
Power over Ethernet (POE)
Many of your home automation devices either only run with POE or have the option to work with POE. Power over Ethernet or POE as it’s shown in the term is the technology to transfer power with the same cable you use for data to power your devices up. Most of today’s cameras, Touch panels, doorbells, and many other smart home devices can benefit from POE. On the other hand, if you want to power up those devices without a cable, you need to have local adaptors here and there.
Security
A wired network is much harder to hack into versus a wireless one. The proven fact is no matter how secure your system is; it is always possible for intruders to hack into your network. A wired network decreases the chance significantly. In most cases, there needs to be physical access to hack a wired network, which is not the case with a wireless network.
Weather Conditions
In Toronto, Canada, the cold weather in winter almost affects everything! Does it also affect your WIFI signal? Well, yes and no! The reason is that most of your home automation devices are inside your home, including the router, which is in an acceptable range for most of the devices. But how about an outdoor wireless Camera? Both the cold weather in winter and humidity in the summer of Toronto can affect the WIFI signal that your outdoor devices receive. As these devices are usually security devices here at Dana Smart Homes, we strongly recommend using wire for outside devices such as doorbells, cameras, etc.
There are many other reasons that industrial and commercial networks try to use wired networks as, which are not necessarily applicable to home automation networks. The question that arises is what we should do with our iPad or iPhone or even our laptop? Aren’t these devices designed to be wireless? Of course, they are! No one can deny the ease of usage of wireless devices.
Conclusion
The balanced solution is not to eliminate your wireless network. In fact, in nearly all smart home automation systems, a hybrid network exists; creating a hybrid wired and wireless network. For the sake of security, we usually use what is called a “Trunk Network.” a trunk in simple terms is like a parallel network. This way, we can connect as many as possible wired devices and also lets your wireless devices communicate with them. This way, not only the network is more secure, but also a tremendous amount of bandwidth is not wasted for your automated devices. You can continue watching your favorite movies and let the whole smart home ecosystem to run with the parallel network.
Let’s make it easy; a proper network setup for your smart home automation consists of Wired + Wireless devices that are designed and configured correctly!
