We are currently in an age where we cannot disregard the importance of staying connected, and that is where mobile cellular data comes in to keep us online wherever we go. That’s because not everyone is always at a place where there is a Wi-Fi network. Cellular data allows us to make sure that we stay online even when we are on the road or using our mobile phones. But is cellular data the same as the internet that you get from your Wi-Fi?
Cellular data connects to your phone, and the internet uses cellular signals so that you can stay online wherever you go. In your home, you use a router that uses a wired connection with limited distance Wi-FI. You receive a signal to your Cell Phone from cellular data the same as regular internet, but it is not the same in terms of how it works.
The beauty of mobile cellular data is that it is more convenient when compared to the usual Wi-Fi internet that we get when we are at home or the office. However, you need to know that it still has its limits and its ups and downs. And that is where we compare it with the internet that we get from Wi-Fi networks as there are some differences between the two.
What Is Cellular Data?
The digital age has made it important for us always to stay connected to the internet wherever we might be due to how the world is faster and how many of our regular daily tasks rely on staying online. So, while it was already convenient for us to stay connected to the internet at home or in the office through Wi-Fi Networks, mobile cellular data has made it even simpler and more convenient. But what exactly is cellular data?
Simply put, cellular data is when data is transmitted to our mobile devices through cellular networks with towers. So, that means that we can send data to and from online servers and connect to the internet by using the signals that cellular carriers are using. By turning on the mobile data capabilities of our mobile devices, we can stay connected to the internet even when we are not connected to a Wi-Fi network.
When you want to make use of your mobile phone’s cellular data capabilities, you need to have a subscription with your carrier so that you will be able to use the carrier’s network to connect to the internet. That is basically how cellular data works, as we can simply connect to the internet so long as our mobile devices can detect our carrier’s cellular signals.
Because cellular data only rely on cellular signals, we can connect to the internet wherever we may be. It can be in school, on the road, or even on vacation in the mountains. As long as there is a signal that our smartphones can detect, we can stay online. This access makes cellular data so convenient.
What is the Internet?
“The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a network of networks that consists of private, public, academic, business, and government networks of local to global scope, linked by a broad array of electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies. The Internet carries a vast range of information resources and services, such as the inter-linked hypertext documents and applications of the World Wide Web (WWW), electronic mail, telephony, and file sharing.”
Wikipedia: Internet
The Internet is also a global network of physical cables that can be below or above ground. These cables can be any one of fiber optic cables, telephone wires, television cables, and wireless connections like 5G/4G/LTE/3G. Wi-Fi networks also rely on these physical cables to access the Internet.
A computer server is where websites are stored, and it works a lot like a computer’s hard drive. When you visit a website, like on the “World Wide Web,” your computer sends a request over these Internet wires to a computer server usually housed in a large building called a Data Center with many other servers. These servers also make up the “Cloud.” Once the request arrives, the server retrieves the website and sends the correct data back to your computer.
| Comparison of Cellular Data, Wi-FI, for Wireless Internet Access | ||
| Cellular Data | Wi-Fi | Internet |
| Does not need a router | Needs router | Does not need a router |
| Does not need a wired connection | Needs wired connection | Does not need a wired connection |
| Approximately 1⁄2 mile, to 45 miles depending on 3G, 4G LTE, or 5G | Limited range* | Approximately 1⁄2 mile, to 45 miles depending on 3G, 4G LTE, or 5G |
| Work on Cell Phone, Tablet, Computer | Work on Cell Phone, Tablet, Computer | Work on Cell Phone, Tablet, Computer |
Is Cellular Data The Same As Wi-Fi Internet?
Now that we know more about mobile cellular data, you may wonder if it is the same as the internet at home or in the office. In most cases, you are probably connected to a Wi-Fi network whenever you are using your mobile devices at home or in a certain establishment with a Wi-Fi network available for connection. So, is cellular data the same as Wi-Fi internet? Yes and No.
To start things off, cellular data and Wi-Fi internet are similar because they have the same goal: to connect us to the internet. This connectivity is the end goal of each of these connection types as we use them to communicate with the network computer servers that will allow us to go online.
However, they are entirely different from one another in terms of how they connect to the internet. We will explore this as we look at the differences between cellular data and Wi-Fi internet.
Please see some are other interesting articles like “How to Lower Your Home WiFi Data Usage” and “How Much Will 5G Data Really Cost You?”
Wi-fi Is Not Exactly Wireless
First of all, Wi-Fi isn’t exactly as wireless as you may think it is. The reason is that Wi-Fi comes from a router that transmits wireless signals from a wired connection. In that sense, your router is using a wired connection to share the internet connection. Meanwhile, cellular data is purely wireless because it connects through cellular signals that are transmitted by cellular towers.
Cellular Data Has A Greater Range
When it comes to Wi-Fi, we tend to be limited by the range that the router’s signals can reach. This reason is why Wi-Fi isn’t always available wherever we go because routers have a quite limited range. Wi-Fi routers operating on the 2.4 GHz band can reach up to 150 feet indoors and 300 feet outdoors.
On the other hand, cellular data has a range that isn’t as limited because, as long as you are picking up a signal from your carrier, you can still connect to the internet. Then again, some places are so remote that you won’t be able to pick up your carrier’s cellular signals.
“In cities, each cell site may have a range of up to approximately 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km), while in rural areas, the range could be as much as 5 miles (8.0 km). It is possible that in clear open areas, a user may receive signals from a cell site 25 miles (40 km) away.”
Cellular Data Is More Secure
The thing about Wi-Fi is that it isn’t as secure as you might think it is. That’s because everyone who knows the password to your Wi-Fi network can access or even sabotage the network itself on purpose or by accident. This access makes it less secure to the point that your personal data and information might get compromised.
However, this isn’t the case with cellular data because only your smartphone has access to the network unless you broadcast the internet connection through mobile tethering. But, in most cases, it is a lot more difficult to sabotage someone’s cellular data connection because you would have to disable the carrier’s entire network to do so.
The Infrastructure Is Different
When you look at the way cellular data and Wi-Fi internet works, they tend to be quite different as cellular data relies on cellular towers that transmit cellular signals. On the other hand, Wi-Fi works by relying on wired connections that send the signal to the router, creating a wireless network. Because of how cellular data use a more advanced infrastructure, it tends to be more expensive.
They Have Different Limits
You probably already know this but Wi-Fi internet, depending on your plan, is most likely to be limited or, at the very least, has a very high data allocation. That means that you won’t worry about using too much of your internet every month. But the problem with cellular data is that most data plans on the more affordable side have limits in terms of data allocation. So, when you hit your data allocation limit, expect that you will have to pay more on top of your regular monthly payments, and they will throttle and slow down or shut off your account.
Which Is Better Between Cellular Data and Wi-Fi?
Now that you know more about cellular data and Wi-Fi and how they are not the same let’s see which one is better and which one you should be using. Our recommendation is, of course, to put it simply, use either of them.
Cellular data, being the more convenient of the two, should be used whenever you are on the go or when there is no secure Wi-Fi connection that you can trust. That’s because you can connect to the internet wherever you are as long as you can pick up cellular signals with your smartphone. Meanwhile, because most Wi-Fi connections don’t have data limits and are more affordable, it would be better to use Wi-Fi whenever you are simply at home or the office.
References:
What’s the Difference Between Wi‑Fi Data and Cellular Data?
What is mobile data, anyway? – Blog | Opera News