Chapter 7

  This chapter focused on the wireless technology currently available and its origins. I have used 4G and 5G networks, but I have never wondered what they are standing for. 1G, which stands for First Generation, was the first wireless technology available. It was a voice-only network that started in Chicago back in 1978. Eventually, cell phone manufacturers found a way to support text data over the same connection, giving birth to 2G networks. 10 years later, constant and fast connections were available which allowed videos, web pages and email transfers. This advanced technology was known as 3G networks. By 2009, 4G networks provided simultaneous support and transitory network connections without data loss.

   The book accurately described that 5G networks were estimated to be available by 2020. This guess was pretty close to reality for fifth generation networks were available in early 2019. However, by 2020 its adoption was widespread throughout the world. This chapter also dived into Wi-Fi, which is the trademark name of the Wi-Fi Alliance. Here I learned that an Access Point is what creates the Wi-Fi signal and sends data to the wired router in order to connect to the Internet. It was explained by the author that a hotspot is an area of network coverage (e.g. Starbucks), the transfer rate is the speed of data transmitted, and the range is the physical distance between the access point and the wireless device.