HD television is on the horizon but it’s currently being held down by messy cables. There are two technologies competing to become standard but they’re not quite ready for prime time. Wireless HDMI (high definition multimedia interface) has come a long way and is actually expected to hit the market in September but the price… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Standards
Wireless Standards Group Changes Rules For Parity
The IEEE 802.20 working group has changed its voting rules after allegations that Qualcomm Inc. was trying to dominate the process. In the past IEEE members voted as individuals no matter what company they were affiliated with. Now each entity, ie vendors, research groups, universities, etc will have only one vote and thus limit the… Continue Reading
802.11n Gear To Get Seal Of Approval
It looks like the Wi-Fi Alliance is pushing forward, using the latest draft of the 802.11n standard. This means “Wi-Fi Certified” products should be hitting the shelves this summer. Eight laboratories around the globe have begun testing pre-standard products to see if they stick to WPA2 protocols and if they are backwards compatible with other… Continue Reading
Wi-Fi Persists With Steady Evolution
Wi-Fi has become a staple technology in Australia. Sean Casey, business development manager of Intel Customer Solutions Group, considers the country a mature market, considering the uptake of the technology among consumers and businesses. Casey said the integration of a functional standard into handheld devices and laptops is driving the popularity of Wi-Fi. Part of… Continue Reading
802.11n Wi-Fi Draft Approved By IEEE
An IEEE working group endorsed draft 2.0 of the 802.11n wireless-networking standard, thus paving the way for a possible sale of products based on this spec by as early as this summer. With the approval, WLAN adapters and access points supporting the standard will need no radical upgrade to comply with the final spec, which… Continue Reading
Work Begins On 1Gbps Mobile WiMAX Spec
The IEEE has started working on 802.16m, a protocol that promises WiMAX speeds of up to 1Gbps and backward compatibility with 802.16e-2005 or Mobile WiMax. The group hopes to conclude the technology development phase by the end of this year, vote on the spec in 2008, and ratify as well as finalize it by the… Continue Reading
RuBee Seen As Alternative Protocol To RFID
The IEEE working group for RuBee (IEEE 1902.1) is due to meet in Boston on February 20. RuBee, a wireless networking protocol deemed as an alternative to RFID, is expected to enable networks to run on long wavelengths and cover thousands of radio tags working below 450 kHz. It allows for real-time inventory under harsh… Continue Reading
Testing Faster Wi-Fi
VeriWave is mounting a new blade in its WaveTest 90 chassis for testing 802.11n devices. According to VeriWave vice president of marketing Eran Karoly, the company has received requests for 802.11n device tests from infrastructure equipment makers like Cisco. The new WaveBlade houses a channel emulator for multipath signal simulation. It can perform tests on… Continue Reading
802.11n Devices Are Fully Compatible With .11b/g
SMC Networks has released its first 802.11n draft v.1-compatible products. It is offering SMC Barricade N wireless 4-port broadband router, which enables wired, 802.11b, g, or n wireless devices to share cable or DSL connections. The router features a 4-port 10/100Mbps LAN switch that is integrated with Automatic MDI-MDIX and a wireless access point that… Continue Reading
Next-gen Nabaztag Wi-Fi Rabbit Delayed In U.S.
Shipment of the next generation of Nabaztag, a WiFi rabbit from French design house Violet, to the U.S. remains uncertain. The Nabaztag development blog cited issues raised by the Federal Communications Commission, which have now been cleared, for the delay. The new “Nabaztag/tag” is already available in France, the U.K., and the rest of Europe.… Continue Reading
Ruckus Wireless Announces Smart Wi-Fi
Ruckus Wireless unveiled “Smart N”, a new antenna and signal control technology for 802.11n access points. The wireless equipment maker plans to conduct a demonstration of the product at the Consumer Electronics Show, which will take place in Las Vegas in January 2007. The new solution involves several radios and antennas working concurrently and can… Continue Reading
Wi-Fi Standards Face Patent Threat
A ruling by a federal judge in Tyler, Texas upheld the validity of a 1996 patent obtained by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) on a technology used in implementing wireless standards developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The said patent owned by Australia’s national science agency involves a… Continue Reading
IEEE 802.11 Standard’s Evolution
The evolution of wireless technologies brought lessons that are now driving the draft 802.11n efforts: 1) The WLAN industry made the right move of supporting legacy 802.11b rather than establishing a new and potentially higher-performing frequency band at 5 GHz, which could cause incompatibility among products. 2) Improving throughput in environments filled with interference from… Continue Reading
Time To Welcome Draft N?
Current developments make Draft N poised to hit the mainstream market next year, according to Mike Hurlston, Broadcom’s vice president of WLAN products. Hurlston said four laptop makers, i.e., Dell, Acer, Lenovo and HP, have announced plans to ship Draft N products. He also noted the improved cooperation among chipmakers, thus creating better interoperability among… Continue Reading
Could The French Hinder Draft N In Europe?
A French regulation could impede the adoption of 802.11 Draft N standard in Europe. France was the first country to demand compliance with the latest version of the dynamic frequency selection – a mechanism enabling a WiFi system to move away from a channel once radar is detected – that European regulator ETSI released in… Continue Reading