Why Does My Router Have A 2.4 And 5GHz Network?

These are wireless bands. A wireless band is simply the frequency (or electronic pulses per second) at which the signal is sent. One GHz = 1,000,000,000 cycles per second. Since 2.4 GHz is extremely common, it is usually crowded. Everything from baby monitors to cordless phones to even microwave ovens can cause interference in this band. It is possible to reduce interference by switching to a different channel. We will review this next. When possible, try to use 5 GHz, as your likelihood of experiencing interference (slower speeds) will be significantly reduced. 5 GHz is slowly gaining traction, but does not suffer from the extreme congestion as 2.4 GHz.

Many routers now have dual-band, which means you can use 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz networks from one device. We will typically suggest to subscribers that devices which are capable of faster speeds would be connected to the 5GHz network since it is capable of delivering those faster speeds and the slower on the 2.4 network. Splitting the devices on 2 different networks give you the most flexibility when it comes to your network, since a wireless network can only go as fast as the slowest connected device.