Introduction

When considering services that use communications, Wi-Fi may be the first thing you consider.

It's fast, inexpensive, and has excellent connectivity with devices such as tablets and gateways, making it a very attractive option.

However, there are cases where people choose cellular communication over Wi-Fi. In this article, we will explore the reasons for this from a technical and operational perspective.

①Easy to implement in customer environments

Services that use Wi-Fi are highly dependent on the customer's network environment.

Corporate Wi-Fi often has robust security and very complex security designs, making it difficult to connect.

It is not uncommon for individual measures to be required when implementing a system, such as the need to respond each time passwords are changed periodically.

On the other hand, cellular communications allows the service provider to control the communications environment, making it easy to implement without relying on the customer's network.

②Reducing the burden during the operation phase

When providing a service, it is necessary to take into account the burden during the operational phase.

When using Wi-Fi, connection problems occur continuously due to changes in customer network settings, making it difficult to switch off and resulting in intermittent burdens.

In contrast, with cellular communications, the communication environment can be controlled by the service provider, just as it was at the time of implementation, so there are fewer situations where individual support is required for each customer.

3. Can be installed anywhere

To use Wi-Fi, an access point must be installed, so it can only be used in places where power and a network connection are available.

To install it in a place where Wi-Fi is not available, you first need to set up the communication environment, which may incur construction costs.

In contrast, cellular communications can be used anywhere there is radio coverage, so it can be used in a wide range of locations.

There are some situations where cellular communication is more suitable, such as outdoors or in buildings without communication facilities.

Summary

From these perspectives, we believe there are cases where cellular communication is more suitable than Wi-Fi.

However, Wi-Fi and cellular communication each have their own advantages and disadvantages, so you need to choose the one that best suits your device and how you use it.

About Connect SIM by macnica

Connect SIM by macnica is a cellular communication service for IIoT (Industrial IoT) provided by Macnica.

We offer customized communication plans for NTT Docomo lines and multi-carrier SIM cards tailored to your needs.

We contribute to optimizing communication costs by proposing flexible communication plans that suit our customers' usage.

We also provide samples for verification free of charge, so please feel free to contact us.

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