New Dell Slow Network Speeds - WiFi 802.11 a (optional)???

Hello All,

I just returned my Dell Inspiron 5000 (5547) to Costco because it was defective. I drove right over to Best Buy and got the Dell Inspiron 7000 (7537). I liked my other Dell so I figured I would stick with the Dell Inspiron series.

I got home about an hour ago and set everything up. Everything went well except during the installation I noticed that the WiFi networks that were shown did not include my 5 GHz network only my 2.4 GHz. I didn't think much of it and went on with the installation. As I was downloading software from the internet I noticed a significant difference in the network speed as compared to the Dell 5000 that I returned.

I downloaded the specs for both and I found out why. Look at the specs for each one:

[Dell 5000]

- Wi‑Fi 802.11 ac/b/g/n
- Bluetooth 4.0
- WiDi (optional)



[Dell 7000]

- Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
- Wi-Fi 802.11 a (optional)
- Bluetooth 4.0
- Wireless Display (optional)


My home network is AC so I believe that explains the slowness of the 7000 as compared to the 5000.

The main question I have is what does the Wi-Fi 802.11 a (optional) mean? Does it mean I can upgrade it using software/firmware? Also, if it's WiFi A and not AC what's the difference between them? Will A be just as fast on my AC network as the other Dell which had an AC adapter?

Thank you,

Jan

 

I'll refer you to this for a detailed discussion of the 802.11 standards.

What is the WiFi card your the Inspiron 7000? Does it support dual band operation?

The options in Dells' specs are because they offer different WiFi card options during the ordering process.

John