MAJOR misconceptions about the difference between *internet* speed and *LAN* speed.
Internet speed should match whatever your subscription is -- to see your internet speed, go to http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest
Your LAN speed depends on the connection:
802.11b is 11Mbps
802.11g is 54Mbps
802.11n is 108Mbps
wired is either 10Mbps or 100Mbps; sometimes 1000Mbps.
There's nothing you can plug into your network to make the internet faster - so don't fall for the old "oh, a faster router makes the internet faster"...it's just a waste of money.
24Mbps sounds like a 54G router that's about half way out in it's range...but it shouldn't make any noticable difference unless you have a business-grade internet connection. The common speed intervals for 54G routers are 54, 48, 36, 24, 18, 12, 11, 9, 6, 5.5, 2, & 1 Mbps rates.
Put your wireless router as high up as you can and as far from electrical and metal things as you can, that'll give you the best coverage. Try to put it in the middle of where you expect to be (usually the middle of the house). If you have 2.4GHz cordless phones you may want to replace them with 5.8GHz, 900MHz, or the new DECT6.0 phones that won't cause interference. Also, wireless video senders, or wireless cameras that run on 2.4GHz should be set to the farthest channel from your router (e.g. set video sender to 1 or A and put the router on channel 11). Channels 1, 6, and 11 are preferable because they don't "overlap" with each other.
Also, beware the units -- 8Mbps = 8000Kbps = 1MBps = 1000KBps - some people don't seem to understand that difference either...and upper/lower case matters!
And the person saying that's slow they have 54 mbps and their parents have 108 mbps is wrong. That is their LAN speed. Inside of their own network, they can get those speeds, but through the internet they most likely cannot. My internet speed is 10 mbps but my entire network speed (wired) is 1 gigabit. That means I can transfer files from one computer on my network to another on my network at 1000 mbps. But anything on the internet is a MAX of 10 mbps with my connection. I'm assuming you're reading this in your wireless connection status: 24mbps. That means you're connected to the network at that speed, but if the internet has only 1 mbps speed, you will only get 1mbps across the internet. There is a different between your network and your internet.
Most typical Wireless-G routers and adapters have a 54Mbps connection to the network. And typical LAN connection have a 100Mbps connection. Rarely do these connections get that much speed from the ISP. They only use that speed when they are connecting to other network devices or sharing media.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080820113230AAHgwNY
