Who needs Charter Communications Com Wireless Home Networking?
Any Charter Communications customer who has more than one computer probably has a need for Charter Wireless Home Networking. Charter Communications Wireless Home Networking allows Internet connectivity for up to 5 PCs through only one cable modem. Sharing a connection within the home allows for flexibility, easy access, and the confidence of knowing the connection will be there when you need it.
Extra Security, More Value
Running a home network with the Charter Communications solution also adds a layer of security to the customer’s connection, sort of a digital version of a castle’s moat. This protects our customers from worms and security exploits, and helps prevent electronic intruders from getting access to private information.
There’s still more! The Charter Communications High Speed Internet solution, is 3 products in one, saving space and cleaning up all those wires. Here’s what it does:
Cable modem: Connects the customer to the Charter network.
Ethernet Gateway Router: Lets customers plug in and connect via an Ethernet card in their computer and CAT 5 cable. Acts as a gateway to protect the customer from outside intruders.
Wireless Gateway Router: Lets customers connect wire-free over the air via 802.11b or 802.11g adapters. Allows encrypted wireless connection via WEP, for an extra layer of security.
Charter Communications Com How it Works
Let’s start with a wireless device all of us can relate to: a cordless phone. There’s a small transmitter in the phone that can send and receive radio signals. When you talk into a cordless phone, your voice is picked up by a microphone, embedded into a radio frequency and transmitted with the antenna.
The base station can receive the transmission with its antenna, and send it through the phone lines to your friend on the other end.
You would set each computer up with a cordless phone.
You would give the computer a way to turn its binary 1s and 0s into sounds (a modem!) that the cordless phone could use to transmit and receive and convert back and forth.
This would actually work. The biggest problem would be that the data rate would be very, very slow. A cordless phone setup like this wouldn’t even allow the computer to connect at full 56K modem speeds, because of the data loss and static. You’d most likely get 14.4 (or worse) connection speeds. Definitely not fast enough!
The Charter Communications Home Networking Gateway is the wireless “Access Point”.
The wireless network is similar to the concepts of your cordless telephone.
The “Access Point” is similar to your cordless phone “base”
The “Wireless Device” is similar to your cordless phone “headset”.
Real WiFi Connectivity
The transmitters used in wireless, or WiFi connectivity are not so different from the radio transmitters we have just discussed. They transmit and receive information over an FM channel, and convert data into RF and RF into data. They can even change frequencies if there is interference on the channel they’re using, just like a cordless phone. There are some differences, though.
WiFi that works with the 802.11b and 802.11g transmit at 2.4 GHz. The high frequency and error checking allows higher data rates. While some cordless phones transmit at 2.4 GHz, error checking is virtually nonexistent.
WiFi uses efficient encoding techniques to further improve the possible connection speed and data transfer rate. This data encoding can also allow encryption.
WiFi transmitters can transmit directly on any of three bands, or they can split the available radio bandwidth into dozens of channels and “bounce” or “frequency hop” rapidly between them, hundreds of times a second if necessary! The advantage of frequency hopping is that it is resistant to interference and can allow dozens of WiFi cards to talk simultaneously without interfering with each other.
What does this mean to Charter Communications Customers?
WiFi devices can handle lots of data per second. We use the 802.11g wireless specification which permits data throughput up to a theortical 54 megabits per second. Please note the actual throughput may be significantly less.
Range
The realistic maximum range for good, stable wireless connectivity with a Charter Wireless Home Networking Gateway and the right adapters is about 150-175 feet. Distances of 200 feet or more are possible in lab conditions, with little structural interference, but in the real world there are far more possible causes of interruption. Signal quality degrades over distance, but within this range, connections should be stable, unless there are heavy structural walls, or large sources of interference.
Note: Take into account that steel reinforced concrete walls, large amounts of metal, or devices that generate lots of EM interference may create wireless ‘dead’ spots, even within a single home.
Industry’s First DOCSIS® 2.0 Certified 802.11g Wireless Internet Gateway
For complete high-speed wireless networking, this combination DOCSIS 2.0 cable modem, 802.11g wireless access point, wireless router, and 4 port switch with Plug-and-Play™ USB connectivity does it all. It supplies complete network cable access with firewall protection so home users can enjoy instant high-speed Web access, file sharing, video streaming, head-to-head Internet game-playing, and MP3 downloading with no external modem required.
The external antenna takes care of connectivity without any need for a PC card in the unit. This highly capable 54 Mbps wireless, Ethernet, USB Internet gateway provides state-of-the art filtering and controls allowing parents and administrators to limit URL access and monitor Internet activities. And it's equipped with a double firewall (SPI + NAT) protection to secure computers and networks against hackers. The sleekly designed exterior complements home and office environments. And since it's made by NETGEAR, you can rest assured this product is engineered for trouble-free, long-running reliability.