Why Go Wireless?

For years, there have been proponents, like myself, who have said that every agent in America needs a notebook computer. The premise is simple: take your most powerful tool with you from home to office to seller's homes and all over town with buyers.

The computer alone isn't enough anymore though; we also need an Internet connection. Ricochet had a wireless solution that matched our needs for mobility until they went bankrupt this fall. But don't worry; another solution has developed called Wi-Fi or 802.11b.

Imagine being able to work on your notebook 

computer in any room of your home or even outside by the pool regardless of having a network connection to the Internet. You get to the office and are online immediately checking the availability of homes and current interest rates without plugging into the network. You are eating lunch at a restaurant and checking your e-mail. While you are waiting to pick up an out of town prospect at the airport, you are, again, connected to the Net.

This service is currently being used in Starbucks, airports, hotels, and conference rooms across the country. It is projected that some restaurants will soon have Wi-Fi networks so that you can be online while eating.

Unlike the walkie-talkies that we played with as kids, these devices will not only connect to our network but with virtually any other 802.11b network. You may need permission to roam from one network to the next or pay for service but you won't need a network administrator to configure it for you.

MobileStar is the service available at the Starbucks and American Airlines Admiral's Clubs. There is a monthly flat rate of $39.95 for an unlimited amount of access or you can purchase blocks of time similar to long distance phone cards.

Compatibility is important and Wi-Fi seems to be the platform of choice. 70% of all the wireless nodes that were shipped in 2001 were 802.11b. This gives it the critical mass to become the leader. It is expected to become the predominant wireless home networking solution.

HomeRF has been available longer but the transmission rate is much slower at 1.2 Mbps where 802.11b is 11 Mbps. This is faster than the 10Mbps that most people on a LAN network are used to. There is another alternative coming called 802.11a that is considerably faster but it will be more expensive and it isn't certain how widely accepted it will be in retail environments.

The advantage for the home office is that no time-consuming and costly wiring has to be done. There is a gateway, or base station, that connects the wireless local area network to the rest of the Internet. The notebook computers have an internal card or will use one that fits in the PCMCIA slots to connect wirelessly to the gateway.

They work best with direct line of sight, but will operate through walls, windows, ceilings, and just about anything not made of metal. These devices operate in the same 2.4-GHz band that high-end cordless phones do and have a range of 300 to 500 feet.

Gateways can run between $170 and $500 and the cards for the notebook computers are about $100. An agent could benefit from having a wireless network card for use at the office and elsewhere and still use a conventional Ethernet card at home without purchasing a base station.

Before investing in a wireless solution, find out from the network administrator in your office, your local REALTOR® association, and other places you frequent if they are available and what are the requirements.

2Wire Home Portal 100 series for about $199 at CompUSA, Office Depot, and CDW - http://www.2wire.com 3Com Wireless Access Point 2000, list price $229 - http://www.3com.com