Apple AirPort 802.11n plans?
With some pre-N products already trickling into the market and the 802.11n spec to be finalized next year, what do you think Apple's plans are for the new spec?
(For those not in the know, 802.11n is the successor to 802.11g (AirPort Extreme) and 802.11b (AirPort), offering wicked dramatic improvements in both speed and coverage area over 802.11g...)
And more importantly, what are they going to call it?
AirPort Extreme Extreme? AirPort Extreme 2? SuperAirPort? Hmmmmm...
Either way, a new base station and new cards are without question in the works, so another question is, how backwards-compatible will the cards be?
I for one would hate to get a Belkin PCMCIA card to get N in my PowerBook, preferring an updated AirPort card by Apple for the bottom of the machine, but given the new antennas required for the MIMO technology N uses, that might not be possible...
What do people think/expect/hope for?
Let's speculate! 8)
(For those not in the know, 802.11n is the successor to 802.11g (AirPort Extreme) and 802.11b (AirPort), offering wicked dramatic improvements in both speed and coverage area over 802.11g...)
And more importantly, what are they going to call it?
AirPort Extreme Extreme? AirPort Extreme 2? SuperAirPort? Hmmmmm...
Either way, a new base station and new cards are without question in the works, so another question is, how backwards-compatible will the cards be?
I for one would hate to get a Belkin PCMCIA card to get N in my PowerBook, preferring an updated AirPort card by Apple for the bottom of the machine, but given the new antennas required for the MIMO technology N uses, that might not be possible...
What do people think/expect/hope for?
Let's speculate! 8)
Comments
Airport ... Airport Extreme ...
Make way for ... Airport Absurd!
Airport Ludicrous!
Fasten all seat belts, close all entrances, secure all exits to the zoo!
--B
Originally posted by Outsider
Historically Apple hasn't made similar upgrades compatible. Notice the difference between Airport 1 and 2, however I would love for them to deviate from past ways and offer an Airport "n" variant in the Airport Extreme form factor.
I do as well -- except the problem is that the new antenna design necessitated by N makes that all but improbable.
So what are the new super-specs then?
IEEE has informally assigned a group to investigate what needs and markets the next standard, 802.11n, should address, according to Brian Matthews, IEEE's publicity chair for 802.11. Throughput of the next standard hasn't been determined but is expected to be at least 100Mbps and could reach 320Mbps.
"What exists today meets the needs of 90 percent of the market," said Nogee. "The more standards that are set, the more complex the market will become...It's debatable if people will even notice going from 54Mbps to 100Mbps in most applications."
# 800% greater coverage than standard 802.11g
Belkin Pre-N provides the industry's best wireless coverage, extending your range with improved reliability and fewer drops.
# 600% greater speeds than standard 802.11g
Also, if older G and B clients join an N network, the average speed of the network will not drop.
Cheesy graphic:
Originally posted by Frank777
Great. So now neighbours on the other side OF THE CITY can hack into your computer.
It may surprise you, but with the advent of the Internet, even the guys on the other side of the globe were able to hack into your computer...
Originally posted by Frank777
Great. So now neighbours on the other side OF THE CITY can hack into your computer.
Actually, with greater range comes greater security... WEP is pretty useless as wireless security, but WPA is pretty decent. By the time 802.11n rolls around, 802.11i = WPA2 will be ratified and (hopefully) implemented in 802.11n devices, and we'll be safe until quantum computing rears its ugly head.
Originally posted by earthtoandy
everyone who has seen spaceballs knows the next step is... Ludicrous speed.
Airport Ludicrous!
Fasten all seat belts, close all entrances, secure all exits to the zoo!
Cancel the three-ring circus!
Originally posted by wmf
AirPort Extreme could not fit into an AirPort slot, because the PCMCIA slot just wasn't fast enough to handle it.
That's ludicrous -- what about the PCMCIA cards offered by Belkin and Netgear and others? They work very well with 802.11g.