Will this make my internet faster? silly question?

[James]

Hi, so we have a wireless router in our house but it comes with a yellow "ethernet cable". Now I'm just wondering, if I plug it into my laptop vs using it as wireless, will it make the internet on my laptop faster?

Sorry, this might be a really silly question, but I know next to nothing about computers.
&thanks for your time

[Namery]

N, it will not make your Internet faster.

[Nick]

Yes it will, but by how much depend on a lot of other factors. And when you try, be sure to turn off the wifi connection so it will purely be ethernet

[BILL]

The cable connection can be faster than wireless, but not faster than the connection from your router to the ISP. Most ISPs charge higher monthly fees for faster connections.

[?]

A direct link is 9/10 times faster than wireless. Depending on how where your laptop is in reference to where the wireless router is really the only factor that will show a difference. Ex. If your in another room then the router you will notice a slower speed then being near the router. Direct links don't have interference besides how many devices are on your wireless router.

[Warren]

It might, it depends on what kind of wifi you have, and how fast it is, as well as how fast your internet connection is. For example, I have 54 MB/sec wifi, and 15 MB/sec wifi. I have a desktop that has an Ethernet cable connection and this laptop, which is of course on the wifi. I usually get full rated speeds on both. What you need to do is measure the speed with wifi, (do it several times, to different cities), then repeat with the wifi shut off and the Ethernet cable connected. You should have your answer. Link to my favorite speed test site provided below. Note that tonight, I had horrible speeds to Los Angeles, which is closest to me, but full speed to New York, San Francisco, and Dallas. Go figure!

Good luck!

[pmc123]

Wired Ethernet is generally faster than its wireless counterpart. In addition, wired Ethernet is subject to less interference than wireless. If you activate both connections, routing will automatically prefer the wired circuit.
However, all of that is meaningless because most people have internet links that are much slower than Ethernet spec. It doesn't matter if you run your local network at gigabit - the 1.5 mbps adsl link or even a 10 mbps cable link will still be the choke point.