802.11b became extremely popular due to its low price point. 802.11g is an improvement, but its backwards compatibility to 802.11b is a severe limitation. For example, a single 802.11b device will cause a 802.11g access point to degrade to the performance of 802.11b. As a result, the best performance exists in environments where the 802.11g access point communicates solely with 802.11g clients.

802.11g, along with amendments a, b, d, e, h, i, and j, were rolled into what is now known as 802.11-2007, the current standard. A newer flavor is 802.11n, though it's common to see wireless routers with tri-mode capabilities. That is, the will provide for both 802.11n and 802.11b/g.