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Wi-Fi Alliance updates Certified 802.11n program, intros shiny new logo
It's all paperwork at this point, but you had to know that the Wi-Fi Alliance wouldn't just let the two-year old 802.11n draft 2.0 program remain as it was now that the protocol is finally finished, right? Announced today, said organization is updating the Wi-Fi Certified program to add testing for "popular optional features now more widely available in WiFi equipment," all of which are detailed in the read link. The real news, however, is the new face. On the same day that we were shown an absolutely spectacular new Windows 7 logo -- one that will inevitably mar your next laptop's palm rest -- the Wi-Fi Alliance (or the WFA, as we call 'em at the poker table) is rolling out an updated logo, family of taglines and product labeling matrix. Thrilling, isn't it? Head on past the break for a few more... if you're into that kind of thing. [Via PC World]
It's official! 802.11n standard finalized after a mere seven years
Remember when the Wi-Fi Alliance finalized the 802.11 draft-n spec some two and a half years ago? Of course you don't -- as long as your media players, laptops, and the like can connect to each other (and to the cloud) without a hiccup you probably don't care about IEEE's paper trail. The standard, which saw no major changes between then and now (meaning that all your draft-n devices should work fine with the finalized standard) theoretically connects at 300Mbps, or about six times the peak speed of 802.11g. But you already know that, since you've been using it for years now. The final standard is set to be published mid-October.
Toshiba TG02 earns WiFi certification, still unclear what it is
The Toshiba TG02's strange path to reality continues to unfold with a fresh Wi-Fi Alliance certification to shove under its belt alongside that FCC approval it earned a few months back. Of course, it wasn't called the TG02 back then -- it was known only by the more cryptic TM5-E01, a phone alleged to be a Windows Mobile clamshell despite the TG01-ish external photos provided with the filing -- but at any rate, it seems that we're talking about the same thing here. There's not a lot of additional detail to go on here, but it's encouraging to see that Toshiba's still hard at work besting its already-awesome first Snapdragon model -- and if it really is a clamshell, that'll be sure to bring out a whole trove of HTC Star Trek fans who've been in hiding for a year or two. [Warning: PDF link] [Via Unwired View and tweakers.net]
Atheros offers up 802.11n Draft 2.0-spec XSPAN solutions
You'll probably recall Atheros' name from the rundown of Draft 2.0 802.11n gear mentioned just a week ago, but now the firm is getting official with its bundle of refreshed pre-N gear. The new AR9001 family of chipset solutions builds upon the existing XSPAN offerings, and is reportedly compliant with the latest IEEE draft of 802.11n. Primarily aiming for SMB and Enterprise markets, the outfit is doling out a number of AR9001AP access points / router SoCs that "integrate its 802.11n MAC / baseband and 400MHz Wireless Network Processor (WNPU) into a single chip." On the consumer front, the AR9001U sect presents the "world's first dual-band capable 802.11n USB chipset," and also includes the company's first 1x2 MIMO configuration. Unsurprisingly, pricing details on all these goodies are still up in the air, but Atheros claims that second-generation AR9001 items are currently sampling to customers and should hit " full volume production" in Q3 of this year.[Via PCWorld]
Wi-Fi Alliance unveils first 802.11n Draft 2.0 products
You might remember that the 802.11n "Draft 2.0" specification was finally approved just a couple months ago, and since the final 802.11n standard is guaranteed to be compatible with that version, the Wi-Fi Alliance (the trade group that controls the Wi-Fi spec) has retooled the Wi-Fi logo and decided to start certifying products as "802.11n Draft 2.0 certified," in anticipation of the spec being formally released in 2008. There's only a few products on the list released today: router / card combos from Atheros, Broadcom, and Marvell; Cisco and Intel APs; and a chipset / router combo from Ralink. This is, of course, in contrast to the veritable cornucopia of products (hello, Santa Rosa) that meet the earlier draft-n spec, which the Alliance did not certify. While we understand the need for the Wi-Fi Alliance to somehow regulate the enormous number of possibly-incompatible draft-n implementations out there, we'd much rather it just hurry up and finish the 802.11n spec already -- it's been two and a half years. Peep the full list of Draft 2.0 certified products after the jump.
