Imagine working on your laptop or checking e-mail from anywhere in your home. Imagine being able to connect to your office network from an airport or coffee shop. Imagine retrieving files or presentations from the corporate network, cruising the Internet or sending instant messages to co-workers—and doing it all from a conference room, company cafeteria, or a public hotspot. All without wires!

'Wi-Fi' enabled computers and Pda’s send and receive data, anywhere within the range of a base station, whether you are at home, the office or corporate campus, or in airports, hotels, coffee shops and other public areas equipped with 'Wi-Fi' access. And it's several times faster than the fastest cable modem connection.

It's powerful. 'Wi-Fi' networks use radio technologies called IEEE 802.11b or 802.11a/g to provide secure, reliable, fast wireless connectivity. A 'Wi-Fi' network can be used to connect computers to each other, to the Internet, and to wired networks. 'Wi-Fi' networks operate in the unlicensed 2.4 and 5 GHz radio bands, with an 11 Mbps (802.11b) or 54 Mbps (802.11a/g) data rate or with products that contain both bands (dual band).

Home 'Wi-Fi' networks can connect multiple computers to each other, to peripherals, and to the Internet. A 'Wi-Fi' network can connect a family's computers together to share such hardware and software resources as printers and the Internet. That means everyone in the family can share stored files, photos and documents and print them out on a single printer attached to one desktop computer—all without unsightly cables running throughout the home.

'Wi-Fi' networks also work well for small businesses, providing connectivity between mobile salespeople, floor staff and behind-the-scenes finance and accounting departments. Because small businesses are dynamic, the built-in flexibility of a 'Wi-Fi' network makes it easy and affordable for them to change and grow.

'Wi-Fi' networks found in busy public places like coffee shops, hotels, airport lounges and other locations where large crowds gather, is the fastest-growing segment of 'Wi-Fi' service, as more and more travellers and mobile professionals clamour for fast and secure Internet access wherever they are. Soon, 'Wi-Fi' networks will be found in urban areas providing coverage throughout the central city, or even lining major highways, enabling travellers’ access anywhere they can pull over and stop.