Slashdot Mirror
First 802.11n Products Breaking Out
capt turnpike writes "If you're hooked up to a fat pipe, but want mobility, it looks like the new 802.11n standard might have some promise. eWEEK.com got their hands on some of the upcoming products and put the new devices through their paces." From the article: "The 802.11n task group is aware of the current draft's issues with legacy wireless LAN devices (specifically with how 802.11n shares bandwidth with attached legacy clients), and representatives from Cisco and Motorola broke off to look into the issues before the next meeting of the draft subcommittee, which is scheduled for May. Expectations vary widely, depending on whom you talk to. In previous conversations with Dave Borison, Airgo's director of product marketing, we leaned that Airgo is not making chip sets based on the draft standard because the company thinks the issue of legacy interoperability is significant enough to necessitate small modifications to the silicon."
From the article:
We also found that Linksys' draft 802.11n router caused performance issues with legacy 802.11g networks.
AND:
The current draft of the 802.11n standard was approved for letter ballot in March; the full standard is expected to be ratified by the second quarter of 2007.
AND:
With this uncertainty in mind, it is not advisable to invest in these products lock, stock and barrel. Enterprise-grade WLAN manufacturers continue to wait for the standard to fully bake, and enterprise customers should do the same.
For the record, I think regardless if it's called pre-N or "draft 802.11n", it is still isn't the final product... so beware what you buy.
Funnypics
If you're hooked up to a fat pipe, but want mobility I was under the impression that immobility was the desired effect of a fat pipe...
.... but maybe the prudent thing to do is wait and see how these new products behave in the real world. Early indications are that there are "issues" as described in the articles below:
, 39020348,39265307,00.html ?articleID=186700327
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/communications/wireless/0
http://www.eetimes.com/news/semi/showArticle.jhtm
http://wifinetnews.com/archives/006507.html
This is my opinion. To make sure you don't steal it, it's covered by the DMCA.
I realize I'll probably get modded down for suggesting this, but why don't you guys just set up a wired LAN? You all probably are plugging power cords in, so there's already a bit of a cable tangle. If you all plug into a wired network, you won't have nearly as many lag/interference problems.
This guy's the limit!
Why in the world would you buy a "Pre-N" router? You need a compatible card and router, which is not cheap, and will probably be incompatible.
The title is also decieving;
"The current draft of the 802.11n standard was approved for letter ballot in March; the full standard is expected to be ratified by the second quarter of 2007."
So anything you buy will not work with what you buy when it's fully ratified. Pre-g, anyone?
"During eWEEK Labs' tests, Linksys products based on Version 1.0 of the 802.11n draft standard were indeed fast--faster than anything we've tested to date--but issues with range and interference with legacy wireless networks show room for improvement."
Speed may be important, but reliability is more important. Most internet connections aren't even close to that fast, and if it doesn't have range or reliability, why would you use it on a LAN?
Gamers, who would benifit from this, use wired mice for similar reasons; batteries don't die in wired mice, no lag, no problems. Same reasons that they wouldn't use 802.11n: If 802.11n can't deliver reliability, why use it?
And backwards compatibility? That's one of the most important points of all! Sheesh.
The ever obligatory...
Great, I just bought X type product and now they come out with something newer to screw us into spending more money. Someone wake me when they stop this nonsense so I can buy one last product and die in peace!
Actually the presence of 802.11b devices on a 802.11g network will slow the network down, just not all the way to b speed. See this table for example. As stated there, you seem to drop about a third of the speed, and noting the source [PDF], I'd assume that data is reliable.
Oh no... it's the future.
Did anyone notice that the numbers are not very impressive? The Asus Wireless G had 85% of the throughput of the Linksys WRT300N, and much better range degradation. I think that Linksyss claim of 4X the range and 12X the speed of other G class hardware falls flat on its face!
Are you serious? Ok if we are talking laptops I'd agree. But for desktops (which the average gaming machine is). Wired is the way to go. Why sacrifice speed for a very small convience.
I am actually pretty satisfied with the speed of my 'G' system I would rather they would have focused their efforts on 'reliable speed at a DISTANCE' (without having to erect a GIANT antenna, boosters, etc...)
A.K.A I want 'G' speeds 5-15 miles out.
Uhhh...
The "Pre-N" stuff floating around is all Airgo manufactured. The Airgo design differs from the 802.11n draft, and I suspect that's what this is really all about.
Airgo has a *LOT* to lose by not getting the standard changed in their favor. They put all their eggs in one basket on this one... and the IEEE didn't go with their solution.
I'd take anything that comes out of an interview with somebody who works for Airgo with a healthy dose of salt...
It sounds like they're spreading FUD about the IEEE draft because they're upset that their gear isn't compatible with it... I doubt the real concern is of backwards compatibility with existing gear.
You serious? You know there are other reasons for routers besides linking one computer to the net through a DSL connection. Internet speed is but one of many concerns when purchasing a router. Some of us use multiple computers and move multi gigabyte files between the computers. Try doing that with an "11mb" 802.11b connection... Then try it with 54mb 802.11g, then try it with a 100mb wire or even 1gb wire... Instead of hours to move so mething from room to room, it takes a couple minutes. That's why it's so important for a 802.11n to be cross compatible.
If I'm sitting in my car outside of someone's house I want to be able to get all of their mp3's before they notice I'm sitting their with my laptop. As it is now, 54mb/s takes WAY TO LONG to download an mp3 collection from an unsecured network.
Funnypics