Most people have wireless in their home these days. Those people who use their computer frequently know that wireless can be slow (and is in fact much slower than a wired connection); these people usually end up "wiring in" their most-used electronics and leave the wireless for their mobile devices, such as their tablets.

However, in the past few months a new system, "wireless Ac" has been developed that can supposedly hit speeds "over the air" that are as fast as wired internet.

That sounds really cool, until you factor in a couple of major problems.

Like any other device that has just been released, if you buy in early, you'll be paying a premium price for the new technology. Currently, on the east coast I have been seeing wireless Ac routers running for about $115. Which doesn't seem too bad until you realize that the router won' even work.

Wait, what?

That's right - you see, a wireless system has two parts, the router and the receiver. The receiver has to be built using the same technology as the router (i.e. wireless n router needs a wireless n receiver) and the fact is that virtually none of the mobile electronics on the market today are using the wireless Ac technology.

So, what happens? Well, most new wireless Ac adapters are built with wireless N backwards compatibility. That means that your electronics will pick up the signal, but it likely won't be any faster than your old router, meaning you just paid a pretty hefty sum of money for the same thing you had before. The only way to get wireless Ac speeds right now is to pick up a USB adapter that will set you back roughly another $100, and since most mobile devices don't support these kind of adapters, this is really only useful for a desktop or laptop PC.

In my opinion there isn't enough literature out there on this, so I figured I'd throw a blog up on it. Final verdict: hold off on wireless Ac until mobile devices start coming out that have the hardware to pick it up. That is when this new technology will really begin to become useful. Until then, beware of buying a wireless Ac router, and getting tricked into thinking it's working when you're only getting wireless N service.

Also, remember: wiring in is always faster and more reliable. Have a computer at the other end of the house? Go with a powerline kit.