Would these differences in wireless vs. wired internet speeds warrant a new router?

Question

In our home we have a wireless router (802.11g, pretty old) that connects to quite a few devices (~10). I noticed that we weren't getting the internet speeds I expected us to get based on what we were paying for, so I did some tests on wired vs. wireless connections. Here is the data:

(All tests are for download speed through the site speedof.me; upload speeds were all basically the same.)

Laptop 1 (802.11n network card, tested within few feet of router) Wired : 53.38 Mbps Wireless : 18.08 Mbps

Laptop 2 (802.11g network card, tested within few feet of router) Wired : 31.94 Mbps Wireless : 11.89 Mbps

Desktop (802.11n network card, further away from router though) Wireless : 11.27 Mbps

I'm tempted to believe that it's our old router that's causing the disparity between wired and wireless, but do you think getting a new (802.11n router I presume) would increase the speed of wireless?

Answer 1

Depending on your need and budget, I would say yes.

All things being equal (SnR, same data, etc), the limiting factor to speed over wireless is the fact that you have a 802.11g connection, where an 802.11n connection would be heaps faster. The numbers you posted are in the ballpark of what I'd expect when doing a wireless survey of a b/g network.

At home I have am limited to 802.11g myself because of an old router (WRT54GL, haven't found a decent replacement), and when I need to transfer stuff to my phone fast I normally use my neighbours 802.11n network, as he doesn't have encryption on. It's a lot faster despite somewhat lower signal quality.