What is wireless communications? Everything you need to know

What is a wireless access point?
A wireless access point (wireless AP) is a network device that transmits and receives data over a wireless local area network (WLAN), serving as the interconnection point between the WLAN and a fixed wire network. Conceptually, an AP is like an Ethernet hub, but instead of relaying LAN frames only to other 802.3 stations, an AP relays 802.11 frames to all other 802.11 or 802.3 stations in the same subnet. When a wireless device moves beyond the range of one AP, it is handed over to the next AP.

Wireless outdoor access point vs. wireless router
Typically, wireless routers are used in homes and small businesses where all users can be supported by one combined AP and router to provide internet access to wireless capable devices. Wireless APs are traditionally used in larger businesses and venues where many APs are required to provide an internet connection to support thousands of users. The number of outdoor access point needed will increase depending on the number of network users and the physical size of the network.

Benefits of wireless access point
Hybrid work has helped illustrate the benefits of wireless APs over a wired LAN to even more enterprises and end users. These benefits include the following: They offer support for up to hundreds of wireless connections accessing the internet because of their much stronger ability to send, receive and manage signals. This makes wireless APs ideal for use cases with high usage rates. Such efficiency is a requirement for serving large areas such as office floors and outdoor areas that a wired LAN can't adequately support.
APs can cover up to 300 meters of space, so they don't suffer from having traditional Wi-Fi coverage blind spots such as in basements and near elevators, where internet coverage typically drops. They enable outdoor Wi-Fi for office building courtyards, restaurants and places such as community pools to serve the work-from-anywhere crowd. They offer flexible networking modes including wireless client, wireless bridge and multipoint bridge to support a variety of wireless use cases for hybrid and remote work.