Wireless transmit power (measured in dBm).Wireless data transfer rates (measured in Mbit/s) these range from 2 Mbit/s to 54 Mbit/s.Specifications commonly used in marketing materials for WNICs include: Earlier 802.11 interface controllers are usually only compatible with earlier variants of the standard, while newer cards support both current and old standards.
The IEEE 802.11 standard sets out low-level specifications for how all 802.11 wireless networks operate. All the nodes in an ad hoc network must have the same channel and SSID. Ad hoc mode In an ad hoc mode network the WNIC does not require an access point, but rather can interface with all other wireless nodes directly. All nodes connecting to the access point must have the same service set identifier (SSID) as the access point, and if a kind of wireless security is enabled on the access point (such as WEP or WPA), they must share the same keys or other authentication parameters. All wireless nodes in an infrastructure mode network connect to an access point. Infrastructure mode In an infrastructure mode network the WNIC needs a wireless access point: all data is transferred using the access point as the central hub. An 802.11 WNIC can operate in two modes known as infrastructure mode and ad hoc mode:
