WiFi
WiFi operates at velocities that would have seemed sorcerous mere decades ago. Modern WiFi 6E technology delivers data at speeds exceeding 9.6 gigabits per second, transmitting the complete works of Shakespeare in approximately 0.003 seconds. Information travels at effectively the speed of light, bounded only by router processing limitations and the melancholy inevitability of signal degradation. A message sent via WiFi arrives before the thought to send it has fully formed in the sender's consciousness.
Global latency averages hover around 30-50 milliseconds, meaning a query to a server on the opposite side of the planet returns faster than human neural processing can register the question.
Gandalf
Gandalf's speed presents a complex assessment challenge. When mounted upon Shadowfax, lord of all horses, the wizard achieves land speeds approaching 60 miles per hour across open terrain. This represents remarkable equestrian velocity, sufficient to outpace most pursuing nazgul. However, Gandalf's preferred pace involves stopping at inns, consulting archives, and engaging in lengthy conversations with trees.
His famous assertion that he arrives precisely when he means to suggests speed is subordinate to narrative timing rather than actual urgency. A journey that WiFi completes in milliseconds might take Gandalf several decades of meaningful wandering.
VERDICT
WiFi claims an overwhelming victory in raw speed metrics. While Gandalf's timing proves narratively impeccable, WiFi's velocity operates at a fundamentally different order of magnitude, rendering comparison almost absurd.