The Home Hub (2000 or 3000 only) supports both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz wireless bands for your primary Wi-Fi network. These are frequencies at which your modem transmits its Wi Fi signal. It can transmit both at the same time to optimize your Wi-Fi performance or you can choose to use only one or the other.
2.4 GHz
Advantages
- Superior reach (Wi-Fi distance).
- The higher the frequency, the shorter the range. Therefore, 2.4 GHz has a longer Wi-Fi reach (distance) over 5.0 GHz. The reach of both 5.0 GHz and 2.4 GHz should be sufficient to cover the area of a typical home.
Disadvantage
- Greater chance of interference which will affect Wi-Fi performance.
- Many wireless products in the market (cordless phones, baby monitors, etc.) today use 2.4 GHz and as a result you are more likely to pick up interference from these devices.
- High interference can cause slow speeds when connected wirelessly and can also cause frequent disconnects.
5.0 GHz
Advantages
- Less likely to become congested.
- Less vulnerable to wireless interference as opposed to 2.4 GHz.
- Higher throughput (data transfer rate) than 2.4 GHz.
Disadvantage
- Shorter Wi-Fi reach (distance), but that may not be an issue in a typical home.
Recommendation: Set both 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz to On and let the connecting device (such as a laptop) automatically manage which band to connect to based on signal strength.
