Gizmodo: 802.11

Which Flavor of Wi-Fi Do You Use?

Sean Fallon — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:00:00 EDT

The 802.11n spec has been in the news a lot lately. After six years, the spec has finally been approved, and we shall soon see wireless N coming to the Xbox and maybe even the iPod Touch.

It seems funny to me that wireless N is finally coming around despite the fact that I have been using it for years. But what about you? What Wi-Fi standard do you use at home?

802.11n Final Spec Is Final, Finally

matt buchanan — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 17:11:02 EDT

Remember when I told you the 802.11n spec wasn't final, even though you've prolly owned a wireless N router forever? It's final now. You can carry on with your life now (since you don't have to buy new stuff). Feel better? [Signal2Noise]

Did You Know 802.11n Isn't a Final Spec?

matt buchanan — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 12:30:50 EDT

Given that wireless N routers have been around for two years now, you'd be forgiven for thinking the 802.11n standard was set in stone a longass time ago. Not true! It'll be finalized by September, according to the chairman of the IEEE 802.15 working group on Personal Area Networks. Which doesn't mean a whole lot except a warm fuzzy feeling, since your wireless N routers will keep working like always.

Interesting tidbit, they've run out of letters to stick onto 802.11 for new wireless standards, so they'll be confusingly called things like 802.11ac. [PC Mag]

Quantenna Claims 1Gbps Wi-Fi Speeds By Next Year

John Herrman — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 06:10:00 EDT

Higher latency and much lower speed are keeping Wi-Fi out of a lot of business settings, even considering massive performance increases of new 802.11n over previous standards. Quantenna says it can remedy these problems with existing technology, and using techniques that are already part of the 802.11n standard. Though there is pretty much no way to tell if their throughput claims are at all reasonable, the basic idea behind the system is simple, and probably doable: lots and lots of parallel connections.

The 802.11n standard already uses parallel data transmission, doubling up data streams to reach its claimed 300Mbps raw data throughput. Quantenna thinks they can stack that same tech to reach a ridiculous 1Gbps, which they claim they'll be able to do for under $50 per chipset. The same principles can be applied for purposes of redundancy, achieving greater reliability and range but at typical 802.11n speeds, which nobody really cares about because — honestly now — 1Gbps. [Ars]

Australians Boast 5Gbps Wireless Speeds

Eric Sheline — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 14:34:45 EST

As usual, just as 802.11n is being finalized news hits about a much faster wireless specification. An Australian NICTA team claims to have made a CMOS chip capable of 5Gbps transmission speeds at a distance of 32ft. Their so called "GiFi" transmitter is small and cheap, but is not yet approved by the IEEE nor independently speed tested. Even if this is real, the 2W power consumption will prevent it from dethroning 802.11n in mobile devices. [Ars]

Wi-Fire Wi-Fi Booster Now Available For Windows Vista, Linux on the Way

Sean Fallon — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 19:00:54 EST

A couple of months ago we discovered that the notion of a 3x Wi-Fi signal boost from the Wi-Fire wasn't a load of crap after all. In fact, it delivered a 5x signal boost and a range approaching 1000 feet for only $79.99. All the more reason why Vista owners should be excited that hField has developed a version compatible with your chosen OS with the same specs and price as the previous versions. They also noted that a Linux version is well on its way, although no release dates have been set. [Product Page]

Buffalo Banned from Selling 802.11a and 802.11g Gear in the US

Matt Buchanan — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 18:39:20 EDT

Australia-based Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation has won a patent infringement suit against Buffalo in a US district court, enjoining sales on all 802.11a, g and n products made by Buffalo as of Oct. 1 (full list here). CSIRO is apparently suing the entire wireless LAN industry, so Buffalo has the quite the list of friends filing briefs on their behalf: Microsoft, 3COM Corporation, SMC Networks, Accton Technology Corporation, Intel, Atheros Communications, Belkin International, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, Nortel Networks, Nvidia Corporation, Oracle Corporation, SAP AG, Yahoo, Nokia, and the Consumer Electronics Association. If Buffalo doesn't win its appeal, it clears the way for CSIRO to take on the rest of the industry, which could result in licensing fees being tacked on to all 802.11a, g and n products. Booooo fees. [Buffalo via Wi-Fi Networking News, Flickr]

Linksys Outs Long Awaited WRT600N Router and WPC600N PC Card for Notebooks

Wilson Rothman — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 00:01:00 EDT

It's been a long time in the making, but Linksys is finally officially pulling the shroud off of the Ultra RangePlus line, including its dual-band draft-N/A/B/G router, the $280 WRT600N, and its $100 PC-card companion, WPC600N. The highlights:
• Two bands means traditional products can connect on the crowded 2.4GHz network while newer high-bandwidth products like Linksys' DMA2100 and DMA2200 can pull streaming HD video from your PC with relatively less interference.
• Linksys Easy Link Adviser for Windows computers gives visual instructions and step-by-step setup. It also has a feature to migrate older devices to the new router.
• Storage Link USB 2.0 jack lets you turn any external drive into networked storage by plugging it into the WRT600N.

Linksys Optimizes Digital Media Streaming with Ultra RangePlus Dual-Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router and PC Card
WRT600N and WPC600N deliver on promise of Wireless-N by enabling the simultaneous use of multiple wireless spectrums

IRVINE, Calif., - Oct. 23, 2007 - Linksys, a Division of Cisco, the leading provider of VoIP, wireless and networking hardware for the consumer and small business environments, today announced Ultra RangePlus, its new premium line of home networking products. Ultra RangePlus is a family of products for consumers who are looking to maximize both the performance and range of their wireless networks1. The first available products from the family are the Ultra RangePlus Dual-Band Wireless-N Gigabit Router (WRT600N) and the Ultra RangePlus Dual-Band Wireless-N Notebook Adapter (WPC600N).

Greater Wireless Network Coverage
The WRT600N is designed to transmit simultaneously in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz wireless spectrums to provide greater wireless network coverage and transmission speeds. Consumers can connect their traditional wireless networking devices, such as PCs, VoiceOverIP products, and printers, to the WRT600N in the 2.4 GHz spectrum, while utilizing the additional 5 GHz spectrum to optimize the performance of latency-sensitive devices like Media Center Extenders, Set Top Boxes, or gaming PCs

"Simultaneous Dual-band Wireless-N is an important technology as consumers continue to move more entertainment content throughout the Connected Home," said Mani Dhillon, director, product marketing, Linksys Consumer Business Organization. "The 5 GHz spectrum is less crowded, offers more channels, and is less prone to interference from neighboring networks, allowing advanced applications like streaming HDTV to rooms throughout a home to become a reality."

Linksys Easy Link Advisor
Linksys Easy Link Advisor (LELA) is included with the WRT600N to help consumers install and manage their home networks. LELA takes the consumer on an uncomplicated, illustrated journey toward secure home network setup without the need for knowledge of technical jargon such as SSID, MAC address, or WPA. The user simply launches the application on their PC and follows the instructions that include adding PCs, enabling security, and automatic mapping of the newly created network.

Devices, such as network printers, IP cameras, or network attached storage, that may have been present on previously installed wireless networks can be easily migrated to the newly created Ultra RangePlus-based network using LELA. To further empower the consumer, LELA also includes troubleshooting tools and a easy-to-read list of all network information, including IP addresses and connection status.

Storage Link
With Storage Link, USB 2.0 storage devices, including inexpensive external USB drives, can become networked attached storage by simply plugging into the WRT600N. The contents of a connected drive can be accessed by anyone allowed access to the network without the installation of any custom software, making StorageLink the ideal solution for sharing files, digital music, videos, or pictures. For digital entertainment, its always-on media server functionality enables users to stream digital media to any UPnP-enabled digital media adapter without the use of a PC.

Pricing and Availability
Both the WRT600N and WPC600N are available now through Linksys e-commerce resellers at estimated street prices of $279.99 and $99.99 respectively. Additional Ultra RangePlus products, including USB and ExpressCard adapters will be available in the first quarter of 2008 from retail, direct response, and VAR partners.

[Linksys]

Wi-Fire Wi-Fi Booster Tested (Verdict: Almost a 5x Boost)

Jason Chen — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 16:40:52 EDT

The 1000-foot range and 3x signal boost hField Technologies claimed for their Wi-Fire signal boosters seemed like spec inflation, but Macenstein took precious time away from taking pictures of bikini ladies and tested it out. Their findings? An almost 5x boost. They would have hit the 1000-foot range as well if it weren't for line-of-sight issues, but they did find the clip on the Wi-Fire directional antenna to be all but worthless. All in all, a pretty great buy for $79 if your Wi-Fi streaming video looks more like a slideshow. [Wi-Fire via Macenstein - Thanks Mike!]

Wi-Fi Capable BlackBerry 8820 Becomes Official

Jason Chen — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 18:28:29 EDT

We saw this Wi-Fi equipped BlackBerry make its way through the labyrinthine corridors of the FCC a few weeks ago, but now RIM's making it official. The BlackBerry 8820 is coming, and it's going to have GPS, 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi, microSD/microSDHC, and quad-band GSM. Wi-Fi fans, this is your BlackBerry. And if T-Mobile is looking for a killer device to add to its HotSpot @Home stable, they should look long and hard at the 8820. [MarketWire]