Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Subscribe
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Subscribe
    Home Latest News
    • Mobile

    802.11n Gear Makes Strides

    Written by

    Andrew Garcia
    Published February 14, 2007
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      Since kweek labs initial evaluation of draft 802.11n-enabled wireless LAN products, wireless chip set and hardware manufacturers have been improving interoperability among their products. New product lines featuring systems based on different chip-set manufacturers are becoming the norm, and vendors have been updating their software and participating in bake-offs to improve interoperability prior to the forthcoming Wi-Fi certification program for draft-802.11n products.

      Wireless LAN vendors and chip set manufacturers have addressed many of the shortcomings eWeek Labs reported in its July 2006 interoperability test roundup, “802.11n is a gamble” (www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1992140,00.asp). Vendors have released new router firmware and client drivers designed to improve interoperability among chip-set implementations, backward compatibility and overall performance, in addition to fixing the usual host of bugs.

      Moreover, many vendors are quietly implementing chip sets from multiple vendors. For example, Linksys released a new Marvell-based access point targeted at small businesses last fall, and Belkin International now ships N1 Routers (Version 2.x) using Marvell chips, rather than the Atheros Communications-based products we tested. This increasing adoption of multiple manufacturers chip sets—along with the seven plugfests most products have gone through at this point—herald the coming of a time when it will not matter whats inside. What will matter is that the label says “802.11n-compliant.”

      Our discussions with several wireless vendors indicate that while sales of draft 802.11n routers have steadily increased since last spring (particularly during the 2006 holiday season), the attach rate for 802.11n clients has stayed consistently low (between 15 and 40 percent, depending on the vendor with whom we spoke).

      Belkin officials said that many buyers may not realize that a draft 802.11n-enabled client is needed to get the most from a draft-802.11n router. Every vendor representative with whom we spoke agreed that most customers will use whatever wireless card is embedded in their client devices, rather than adding an extra adapter. And embedded draft 802.11n client adoption is only now picking up steam.

      Atheros and Broadcom have been shipping laptop-integrated chips for several months now, but laptop vendors such as Gateway and Hewlett-Packard have confined the chips to consumer-oriented models. However, with Intels recent announcement that it is stepping up Centrino draft 802.11n adoption—offering it optionally with existing Core 2 Duo-based consumer systems (rather than waiting for the “Santa Rosa” chip set to go online, as was previously anticipated)—we expect embedded draft 802.11n clients to proliferate quickly in the coming months in the consumer sector.

      Meanwhile, Lenovo has been much more aggressive with its draft 802.11n implementation. We recently tested a pair of draft-802.11n-enabled laptops—the widescreen Thinkpad T60p and the Thinkpad X60 Tablet—that are the first enterprise-targeted notebooks weve seen with the new wireless capability. Each ThinkPad uses Atheros Xspan draft 802.11n chip sets, but Lenovo is also using Broadcom chips for its consumer-oriented Lenovo 3000 line. While the Broadcom-based products offer only a 2-by-2 (or 2 transmit, 2 receive) antenna configuration, Lenovo has added a third antenna around the LCD panel of its 802.11n-enabled ThinkPads to support a 2-by-3 configuration with the Atheros chips.

      eWeek Labs asked Howard Dulany, Lenovos worldwide marketing manager for wireless products, why Lenovo was so aggressive in bringing 802.11n to enterprise systems. Dulany, in Raleigh, N.C., said, “Lenovo strives with ThinkPad to maintain leadership from a technology standpoint. We make these technology decisions probably a year before we do them, and we thought [late 2006] would probably be the right time to put 802.11n in. 802.11g got popular quite a bit before the final specification was approved, so we didnt want to become caught in a situation where we waited too long.”

      While draft 11n remains an optional component in the ThinkPad products—and while the full 802.11n standard ratification is still a year away—customers are adopting the draft 802.11n adapters. According to Dulany, Lenovo is seeing a 15 to 20 percent attach rate for draft 802.11n wireless adapters in the express models available on Lenovos Web site. ´

      Technical Analyst Andrew Garcia can be reached at [email protected].

      Andrew Garcia
      Andrew Garcia
      Andrew cut his teeth as a systems administrator at the University of California, learning the ins and outs of server migration, Windows desktop management, Unix and Novell administration. After a tour of duty as a team leader for PC Magazine's Labs, Andrew turned to system integration - providing network, server, and desktop consulting services for small businesses throughout the Bay Area. With eWEEK Labs since 2003, Andrew concentrates on wireless networking technologies while moonlighting with Microsoft Windows, mobile devices and management, and unified communications. He produces product reviews, technology analysis and opinion pieces for eWEEK.com, eWEEK magazine, and the Labs' Release Notes blog. Follow Andrew on Twitter at andrewrgarcia, or reach him by email at [email protected].

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.