September iMacs now sport latest 802.11 "pre-n" capabilities

According to a September 29, 2006 story at Think Secret ( http://www.thinksecret.com/news/0609imac80211n.html ) Apple's new Intel Core 2 Duo-based iMacs, introduced in September, are the first Macs with internal AirPort cards that support a draft version of the 802.11n wireless specification.


This next generation WiFi standard supports wireless connection speeds up to 540Mbps, (a 10-fold increase compared to the capabilities of existing 802.11g networks). The updated technology will be a critical component in Apple's upcoming settop box (code-named iTV) that Steve Jobs hopes will be release at MacWorld Expo early next year. Video-streaming to compatible devices using an iTV box (delivered in a Mac mini form factor) is shaping up as the centerpiece of Apple's plans for video and home entertainment center computing.


Currently, 802.11n functionality is disabled in Mac OS X, but apparently, the AirPort card in the new iMacs is powered by a Broadcom BCM4321-series system/chip, which is being touted as the "first IEEE 802.11n draft-compliant Wi-Fi solution." The IEEE is an international group that works to establish technological standards for industry.


Consumers who may be contemplating laptop and Mac mini purchases should watch for this latest "pre-n" technology to be added to shipping Apple products, perhaps via a "stealth" upgrade.


When Apple first introduced 802.11b and later 802.11g WiFI cards and routers, each initially arrived before those IEEE standards were finalized. However, all proved to be upgradeable via easily-installed firmware updates. As a result, early adapters were able to maintain compatility as the final standard was smoothly integrated into products. Some competing "pre-n" WiFi products already are on the market, but various technologies have been used and these may not prove to be compatible with the final standard. Meanwhile, until now, Apple has refrained from releasing "pre-n" equipment until the new standard was more tightly defined, probably to ensure that their "pre-n" hardware will be seamlessly flash-upgradeable.


The final version of the 802.11n standard may not become available until late 2007, and may not be seen in shipping WiFi products until 2008. For the past two years, WiFi manufacturers have been bitterly bickering over which competing technologies will make it into the final standard and this has delayed new products that otherwise would have been available by now. A final standards document is now being circulated among 802.11n IEEE committee members, who probably will vote on its acceptance sometime next year.