We <i>can</i>, but the norm (and law via FCC part 97) is for one to use &quot;the minimum power necessary to carry out the desired communications.&quot; So if you need 1.5kW to reach your wifi robot on the other side of the valley, go for it, but otherwise quieter is the rule. There&#x27;s a subculture of hams who try to see how far away they can make contacts on minimal power (miles per milliwatt). It&#x27;s not unheard of to make trans-Atlantic contacts using 100mW, by bouncing the signal off the ionosphere. It&#x27;s possibly to reach most of the globe on 25W via PSK31, with sound cards handling the signal processing.