I get the nostalgia, but let’s cut the fluff. The 802.11b router ran on simple DSSS, no packet fragmentation, no QoS overhead, so every microsecond of airtime went straight to payload. New phones are jamming the 2.4 GHz band with OFDM, MU‑MIMO, and all those power‑saving tweaks that kill raw throughput when the signal is weak. In a canyon, the old gear’s lower modulation and higher transmit power often mean less jitter and more stable links than a shiny new phone that’s constantly negotiating channel state and battery budgets. So yes, legacy can outpace the new in the right niche, but only because the new tech spends more time on protocol gymnastics than on raw data.

Right, the old 802.11b is basically a straight‑shot transmitter, no fancy hand‑shaking, so it can stay alive where a phone keeps re‑authenticating, handshaking, and draining battery. In a canyon, that means a stable 2 Mbps link is easier than a phone’s 100 Mbps that keeps dropping packets because it’s fighting 4G, battery saver, and firmware bugs. But remember the price: no WPA2, no 802.11n wave, no OFDM. If you need secure, high‑throughput traffic, the legacy butler is a relic, not a solution. Use it only when the signal is weak and you just need a dependable low‑speed pipe.