UK health officials ordered an investigation into the hazards involved in the use of wireless broadband in educational institutions like schools. It has been found that the radiation emitted by wi-fi devices could be more than that of a standard mobile phone mast.

Wi-fi enabled devices operate at 2.4 GHz frequency - the range that you can find in a microwave or a FM radio of Radio Frequency Radiation (RFR) range. However, Microwave, having the similar wave length, is 100,000 times stronger than Wi-fi.

It should be noted that Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) refers to the safety standards when you handle any devices that emit radiation and is often based on the amount of heat produced by the radiation. It is natural that more radiation will produce more heat which eventually leads to health hazards, according to a scientific survey. Based on the safety standards prescribed, the SAR should be within 2W per kg of body mass.

If you use a mobile phone, it is estimated that its SAR is somewhat around 1 W/kg and this amount radiation is found to generate 0.25 degree C. So, the use of mobile phone does not pose health risk to users during normal usage.

While Wi-fi comes into picture, there is already a speculation that Wi-fi networks might involve health risks. During the typical usage, Wi-fi is estimated to cause just 0.1 W/kg which is well within safety standards. However, when you keep your pc or laptop very close to yourself, especially when you keep it on your lap, SAR could exceed 2 W/kg and this may prove to be hazardous to your health.

The history of Wi-fi in the

Uk dates back to year 2002 when the hotspots were born with a small number wifi hotspots which were launched here and there. However the spurious growth of hotspots led total number of commercial hotspots to 12,000 by the end of 2006. While there are many broadband suppliers who provide Wi-fi access, the cloud remains the largest Wi-fi broadband provider in the

UK. Cloud operates 7400 hotspots which is estimated to be more than two-thirds of total Wi-fi hotspots in the

UK. BT Openzone and T-mobile run 1800 and 1080 hotspots in the

UK respectively.