Finalized 802.11n specs pushed further into the future

We hope your 802.11a/b/g setup is doing alright, because it looks like the finalized specifications for the next leap forward in WiFi has taken yet another step back. While we've all been waiting (and waiting) for some good news to surface about the progression of 802.11n, it appears that bad news just follows the next-generation WiFi standard around like a shadow. Despite the fact that Draft 1.0 has already been implemented in a plethora of products, including Dell's own 802.11n card for notebooks, reports are pointing to January 2007 before we even see a vote on the second draft of the specification. This issue is getting critical as vendors have jumped all over preliminary specs in order to grab sales by touting "802.11n compliancy," but a mishmash of implementations that don't always play nice together, as well as the questionable ability of Draft 1.0 products to be upgraded to Draft 2.0 (not to mention the final 802.11n draft) with a simple firmware update, is paving a trail of incompatibility and confusion. Ideally, the IEEE captains who are steering this ship can get things on track for an early '07 approval, but even if this does go down, we supposedly won't see final (as in, the really-real-final) specifications until sometime in 2008. While achieving speeds of near 600Mbps sounds mighty tempting, you'd probably be better off avoiding any device that promises to deliver such performance until this decision-making bottleneck clears up -- unless, of course, you just like playing the odds.

[Via Ars Technica]

[bob @ Aug 14th 2006 6:22AM]

boycott 'n' until they pull their act together!!!

[Rug @ Aug 14th 2006 7:32AM]

There's not one issue that Airgo cites that can't be resolved.

[Jonathan Keim @ Aug 14th 2006 8:26AM]

@bob

Yeah since they can't get their products out we'll boycott their products.

(lol, you can't boycott them if they don't even have their products out yet to boycott!)

[DidYouLoseASock @ Aug 14th 2006 8:39AM]

I will support it when they start marketing the four letters as "bang"

[scott @ Aug 14th 2006 9:15AM]

Does anyone else think the IEEE's logo is a little sexual? At least very phallic, if not actually being one hundred percent demonstrating sex.

[Tonytitan @ Oct 30th 2006 8:40PM]

The IEEE symbol is a visual representation of a law of electricity that declares that if your thumb points in the direction of the current flow in a wire, your fingers will point the direction of the flow of the magnetic lines of flux surrounding the wire. This law is called, curiously enough, the Right-Hand Rule. ;-)

[Ewan @ Aug 14th 2006 9:22AM]

Since it's going to be 2008 before this is certified, you might as well go out an buy your kit now - by the time the certification process is complete you'll be looking for the next upgrade anyway...

[bob @ Aug 14th 2006 9:23AM]

Jonathan Keim, dont be a twit! why would i mean boycott products not out, think about it, i mean pre-n and draft-n DUH

[Cade @ Aug 14th 2006 11:46AM]

At this point, I'm perfectly happy with my b/g devices. Maybe by the time they get the 'n' devices out in 5 to 10 years i'll have need of them.