A WLAN chipset is a hardware device that allows a computer to connect to a wireless network and can refer to the chipboard inside the WLAN hardware unit. WLAN chipsets include wireless cards, routers, and signal boosters. Companies that manufacture WLAN chipsets include Netgear, D-Link, Broadcom, and ASUS. WLANs allow computers to connect wirelessly and exchange data streams. WLAN hardware includes routers, cards, and wireless-enabled devices. WLANs can be set up and run without an internet connection, making them more secure.
A wireless local area network (WLAN) chipset can refer to a piece of hardware that is designed to allow a computer to connect to a wireless network, or it can refer to the chipboard located inside the WLAN hardware unit. An engineer building or designing a WLAN hardware component may call the internal chipboard within the hardware a WLAN chipset. Types of WLAN hardware units that may commonly be referred to as WLAN chipsets include wireless cards, routers, and wireless signal boosters. Companies that manufacture WLAN chipsets are numerous and include Netgear®, D-Link®, Broadcom® and ASUS®. Unlike chipsets for display and audio, a WLAN chipset is almost always a self-contained hardware device and is rarely integrated as part of the computer motherboard chipset.
Computers that connect to each other using wireless networking hardware within a designated proximity are considered to be using a WLAN. A computer without a WLAN chipset cannot connect to a wireless network. Most people will come across a WLAN chipset as a complete piece of WLAN hardware used to connect one computer to other computers without having to connect them to a wired network. While a wired network uses cables and a wired network hub to connect computers that need to exchange data, networks using WLAN chipset hardware transmit and receive data streams to approved computers within the network.
Wireless networking hardware can include wireless routers, wireless cards, or wireless-enabled devices. Wireless routers broadcast the network connection as a wireless signal that can be detected and used by computers that are configured to connect to the wireless network broadcast. A wireless card, also known as a WLAN card, connects to your computer and allows it to communicate with wireless routers that broadcast a signal compatible with the wireless card. Common types of wireless network signals used by wireless networks include 802.11b and 802.11d.
Although a WLAN chipset usually connects a computer to the Internet via a modem connected to the WLAN, this type of network can be set up and run even without an Internet connection. This type of setup allows computers connected to the same wireless hub to exchange information and use printers connected to networked computers, but without modems to connect the network to the Internet. A secure WLAN without an Internet connection can be more secure than a WLAN with an Internet connection because it is less vulnerable to security attacks from the Internet.
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