Well, I have seen speed degradation on wireless as opposed to wired LAN in every case I have tested.

802.11b is 11 Mbps and is definitely going to slow your connection down.  When I used this my 4000 Kbps connection (at the time) slowed to about 2000-3000 Kbps  when I was not too far from the router.  The farther away you are the worse the problem.

802.11g is 54 Mbps and will increase your range quite a bit.  You should see allot less degradation of speed because of the higher bandwidth and the increased range.  You will also have much better range through walls and obstacles.

Now on to the newest S#!t out there.  Pre-N - Now, Pre-N has not come out yet but Pre-N stuff has.  Belkin offers a Pre-N router for about 159.99 and a laptop card for 109.99 see this at Belkins Site (direct link to router).  Below are some of the listed advantages... stuff in green are advantages over old technology.

•   800% greater coverage than standard 802.11g - Belkin Pre-N provides the industry's best wireless coverage, extending your range with improved reliability and fewer drops.
•   600% greater speeds than standard 802.11g - Belkin Pre-N provides the industry's fastest wireless connection for gaming, streaming video, Voice over IP, and moving large files efficiently and quickly between all the devices in your networked home.
•   Improved performance of standard 802.11g and 802.11b networking devices - Using a Belkin Pre-N Router or Card with an older 802.11g or 802.11b networking product increases wireless coverage up to 20%.
•   Improved resistance to wireless interference - Belkin Pre-N products sense potential interference and dynamically shift to the clearest wireless channel available.
•   Belkin Pre-N products do not drop to the lowest networking speed in a mixed-mode environment - If a standard 802.11g or 802.11b device is introduced into a Belkin Pre-N network.
•   The Belkin Pre-N product will not drop to the standard 802.11g or 802.11b speeds - Belkin Pre-N products will continue to transmit at a link rate of 108Mbps, a result competing products cannot achieve.
•   Advanced Security - Wi-Fi® Protected Access (WPA) support provides enhanced encryption protecting your wireless network.
•   Pop-up Blocker - 6 months of free pop-up, adware, and spyware stopper
•   Web Content/Parental Control Filter - Web Content/Parental Control Filter 6 months of free built-in parental Control/Web Content Filter provides over 50 fully configurable filters that allow you to block websites and images.

NOTE: Pre N basically means that the protocol MAY change.. or it may not become a standard.  So if it doesn't become a standard you won't for instance; be able to take advantage of Pre-N at your local airport.  When it becomes a STANDARD it will be called 802.11n[/size]

As for having wireless in your house, if you have a laptop there is NOTHING like it.  If I still had my laptop I would at least have 802.11g.  There is nothing better than being able to roam your house with your laptop and not have to worry about wires.  Also, you can network your computers without a bunch of wires all over the place.  I personally have my whole house wired with CAT-5 -- and this is what I myself would rather have until wireless gets a little better.... but again, I don't have a laptop anymore.

With anything over 802.11b, don't trip on the little bit of speed you will lose... it will be worth it for convenience.

- Damon

You know Shug, that's basically my true speed. My ping and the occasional loss of connection kill any chance of me ever reaching 4 Mbps speed to here. Upload is still yummy, set exactly at my cap. Just that ping robs me of 60 Kbps on the test results.

 joeybelle ,
Welcome to the site I hope you will enjoy and tell your friends about testmy.net, I believe it to be the most accurate testing site on the planet, and great ppl to talk to in the forums.....and we are easy on everyone.....L0L
   As has been said I agree that there is not doubt that any wireless connection will get you lower speeds. Often its a matter of convenience, there is one important factor for your needs that have not been addressed, that is its something your girlfriend wants. Now the equation changes you may be better served by going wireless and losing some speed so as to stay on the good side of your G.F. .......L0L jk....anyway good luck with your choice and someone  will always be happy to address any of your computer needs as best we can.....
Microwave