Next-Gen Wi-Fi Lands @ CES with 802.11ac Products
Networking devices based on the new 802.11ac standard will make an appearance this week at CES 2012.
If you just got around to updating the home network to Wireless N, this latest bit of networking news stemming from CES 2012 may leave a bitter taste in your mouth: TRENDnet is just one of many vendors now showcasing a line of products supporting the next generation 802.11ac wireless standard. The company has revealed a 1300 Mbps Dual Band Wireless AC Router (TEW-811DR) and a 1300 Mbps Dual Band Wireless AC Media Bridge (TEW-800MB), both set to arrive in late 2012.
The new 802.11ac standard will reside within the higher 5 GHz band and eventually offer theoretic speeds of up to 6.8 Gbps. However, the first generation of products like these two TRENDnet devices will only provide either 866 Mbps or 1.3 Gbps (1300 Mbps). Still, 802.11ac will be backwards compatible, allowing dual-band 802.11n devices to reach speeds up to 450 Mbps. Single-band devices like most laptops, tablets and smartphones only connect through the highly-congested 2.4 GHz band, and likely can't reach the maximum speed.
"802.11ac wireless coverage is similar to that of wireless n and provides whole home coverage," the company explains. "New Beam Forming technology further improves the ability to transmit wireless signals around physical obstacles such as masonry walls."
TRENDnet’s 1300 Mbps Dual Band Wireless AC Router will offer 450 Mbps on both channels, but up to 1300 Mbps on the 5 GHz band for 802.11ac devices. It will also have Gigabit Ethernet ports; WMM technology, which prioritizes video and audio packets; and the aforementioned Beam Forming technology, which improves wireless transmissions through physical obstacles.
As for the Wireless AC Media Bridge, think of it as a rather large external wireless adapter that features four Ethernet ports. The device connects to a router via Wi-Fi and then sends/receives data packets to/from four connected devices (like a game console, Smart TV, desktop etc) without the need for drivers and USB cables. This particular model is dual-band like the Wireless AC Router, offering up to 1300 Mbps on the 5 GHz band. It will also feature WMM technology, Beam Forming technology and quick WPS setup.
According to TRENDnet, both devices will cost around $200 USD when they hit the market by the end of the year. Until then, look for more information about 802.11ac products to roll out this week and at different tech shows throughout 2012.
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Are these better than infrastructure products?
wtf just got wireless n
*drooling* over this news. I don't care if my nuts shriveled up like a prune
Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet
Can't wait! Was going to get a powerline adapter, but I'll just hold off AC!
Anyone who just upgraded their network to 802.11n has no right to complain. 802.11n isn't exactly a new specification. Products have been on the shelf for going on three years now. Are you really that surprised that your "brand new" three year old technology isn't top of the line anymore?
Personally, I've been looking to move my home network to 5 GHz, and this seems like the perfect way to do it. Count me in as an early adopter.
and I've been complaining that Verizon hasn't come out with a FiOS N router. Oh well. Screw "N", I now want "ac".
If the wireless is as fast as it claims (1.3 Gbps) then there is no need for me to move multiple GB large files with USB 3.0 or eSATA HDD any more. Currently 802.11n is still slow for moving large file wireless.
It'll be another 5 years before it gets out of draft-ac
So, does this mean that my wireless telephones, wireless mouse + keyboards won't interfere with my wifi signal anymore? If so then I'll buy it... also am curious if this can be used to stream a blu-ray movie.
Sony PS3 ..... will still only have 802.11G... krapp!
What about their range? Because last thing I heard about N wireless routers where that they have quite terrible range due to the high frequency band. Is this still true?
What about their range? Because last thing I heard about N wireless routers where that they have quite terrible range due to the high frequency band. Is this still true?
802.11n is still on 2.4 GHz. Some routers off 5 GHz, but it's not part of the specification. There also isn't any difference in effective range, as far as I know. You just get less interference on 5 GHz because there's basically nothing on it. EVERYTHING is on 2.4 GHz. Even microwaves emit radiation in that frequency (which is why some people lose wireless signal when they turn on the microwave).
ive had my N router since like 07... it's been kicking for a while, i dont think i need anything faster right now... but what i would love is faster LAN adapters for my computer, anything about 2 Gb/s costs an arm and a leg...
802.11n is still on 2.4 GHz. Some routers off 5 GHz, but it's not part of the specification. There also isn't any difference in effective range, as far as I know. You just get less interference on 5 GHz because there's basically nothing on it. EVERYTHING is on 2.4 GHz. Even microwaves emit radiation in that frequency (which is why some people lose wireless signal when they turn on the microwave).
There actually is a big difference in effective range between the two frequencies. 5 GHz frequency has a shorter range then a 2.4 GHz frequency. Also 5 GHz networks do not penetrate objects as well as 2.4 GHz networks.
I bought a house just over a year ago and as it was a wreck I got the builders in, so I took the opportunity to fit the whole house with CAT6.
If I had just waited I could have bought this instead, but then again the cost of the cable and a Gigabit switch was less than the cost of this router and I still would have to get compliant adapters for all the devices.
In the long run I saved a bundle but within about 5 years I may regret my decision.
I've never seen a wifi signal of other than g in my lifetime.
The shift over to 5 GHz should help in some ways... While it may have poorer range, I'm sure that the shift to MIMO, along with general improvements, will almost certainly bring better range than, say, 802.11a.
Speaking of that, the "AC" thing is confusing. Is it intended to be a successor to 802.11a? (for the uninitiated, it was a lesser-used standard that came out AFTER B, used 5 GHz, and had the lowest range, but G-level bandwidth; it wasn't until 802.11g that Wi-Fi could have the best of both the "A" and "B" worlds)
This letter-picking is really confusing: from "B" to "A" to "G," to "N," and now to "AC." I can overlook the B/A discrepancy, (technically, they came out in the reverse order they were first written up in) and I'd just assumed that "G" stood for "Gamma," the third letter of the Greek alphabet after "Alpha" and "Beta." 'course, "N" broke that sequence entirely.
I bought a house just over a year ago and as it was a wreck I got the builders in, so I took the opportunity to fit the whole house with CAT6.
CAT 5e will handle gigabit Ethernet. If you installed CAT 6, then it technically supports 10-gigabit Ethernet... For whenever they ever actually release them for home PC use. (to date, I only ever see it used as an option for supercomputer interconnects, though I believe it's lost ground to the likes of InfiniBand and HyperTransport.
If the wireless is as fast as it claims (1.3 Gbps) then there is no need for me to move multiple GB large files with USB 3.0 or eSATA HDD any more. Currently 802.11n is still slow for moving large file wireless.
There will still always be justification for using a disk (particularly eSATA HDDs & SSDs) to transfer absolutely massive quantities of data; while the latency will always be high (minutes to hours for the first reception) the total throughput will never be beaten by wireless or wireline, as disk capacity & drive interface speed (and hence total bandwidth) will always keep increasing too. As a computer scientist once said, "Never underestimate the bandwidth of a van full of CD-ROMs going down the freeway."
Speaking of that, the "AC" thing is confusing. Is it intended to be a successor to 802.11a?
Think of it like counting in letters, this is 'standard' 29. Not every standard is meant to be an improvement, but more of a specification for a different purpose.
25 = y
26 = z
27 = aa
28 = ab
29 = ac
Think of it like counting in letters,
That's what I'd last concluded on for "N," though it begged the question of why I'd never seen any mention of any of the other standards in-between. After all, even if they never met adoption, certainly there would've been at least some press coverage for them before they vanished from public.
CAT 5e will handle gigabit Ethernet. If you installed CAT 6, then it technically supports 10-gigabit Ethernet... For whenever they ever actually release them for home PC use
I did have it as an eye for the future, but it seems Wifi is catching up quickly, when my kids get to be teenagers they will wonder what those strange old fashioned wall-ports were for.
"A wired network, son"
"Wired? Dad your such an old fuddy duddy"
As for the specs, I want it. Going to 5GHz should alleviate some of the interference problems with all the other wireless gear in the neighborhood. But I wish they'd fire the dyslexic guy in charge of naming the standards :-)
It'll be another 5 years before it gets out of draft-ac
lol, Sad but true. The technical specifications can completely change but then.
As for the specs, I want it. Going to 5GHz should alleviate some of the interference problems with all the other wireless gear in the neighborhood. But I wish they'd fire the dyslexic guy in charge of naming the standards :-)
Yea, 5Ghz is nice but I am not sure what they have done different in that frequency than what was done in 802.11a. It does not penetrate walls very well at all so I wonder what Trend is doing.
They are know for making high powered wireless routers. Maybe that is what they are doing. Bumping the power to make up for the wall penetration issues with the 5Ghz spectrum.
Anand has a nice article about it. Looks like closed loop Beam forming is going to help a bit with the propagation issues. I bet Trend is still going to bump the power a bit though.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/5292 [...] ifi-primer
I did have it as an eye for the future, but it seems Wifi is catching up quickly,
I dunno about that. After all, as some have pointed out, we'll likely see a cycle like we had with 802.11n, where it was announced years ago, and just only recently stopped being "pre-n" or "draft-n." Meanwhile, we've already had less-publicized developments for terabit Ethernet. Coincidentally, 2015 is where 802.11ac will finally get full release, so we'll have 6.8 gbps WiFi (assuming the final revision gets the full "potential" bandwidth) vs. 1,000 gbps Ethernet.
Granted, it's likely that few home users will need anywhere near that level, let alone by 2015: already, 10gbps as I mentioned has been around a while, just not implemented much for home PCs, and largely relegated to HPC and datacenters. I mean, even if you were streaming a 2160p, in 3D, at 60fps, raw, you'd only need about 23.9 gbps of bandwidth. (though this does give us an idea of the sort of bandwidth our digital TV connectors are going to need) Compressed, it wouldn't need anywhere near that; with 1080p being 48mbps, 200mbps would, in fact, be fine for streaming; 802.11n can't always quite meet this, but 802.11ac should be plenty enough.
Anyone who just upgraded their network to 802.11n has no right to complain. 802.11n isn't exactly a new specification. Products have been on the shelf for going on three years now. Are you really that surprised that your "brand new" three year old technology isn't top of the line anymore?Personally, I've been looking to move my home network to 5 GHz, and this seems like the perfect way to do it. Count me in as an early adopter.
Agreed 100%
Also, from what I'm reading, most people here are talking about transferring large files between home computers. Well, unless your got a massive raid 0 or raid 5, you'll never saturate even a 1Gb network. You are limited by your drive speed at that point. Would be nice if the next XBOX 720 would have gigabit with built in b/g/n/ac though
Yea, 5Ghz is nice but I am not sure what they have done different in that frequency than what was done in 802.11a. It does not penetrate walls very well at all so I wonder what Trend is doing. They are know for making high powered wireless routers. Maybe that is what they are doing. Bumping the power to make up for the wall penetration issues with the 5Ghz spectrum.
Beam forming is mentioned in the article to alleviate the range issues. I'm no WiFi expert, but I think it has something to do with constructive interference between multiple antenna producing a "beam" of stronger signal, which software figures out the best way to point to get optimal signal strength. Bouncing off walls, and such.
There. Fixed that for you.
It will be wonderful when our ISPs catch up to those speeds. Right now I get 20mbps at home, and 35mbps at work - even the cheap Linksys AP (802.11b) we use in the office is faster than our internet connection. New tech is always nice, but gotta watch out for that pre-standard classification. Things could change drastically, or the industry decides to skip the standard in favor of another, then you could be left with a brink - a $200 one
Mimo and/or beamforming is not always a replacement for output power. I have a 802.11n Belkin router with mimo (and 2.4Ghz/5.8Ghz capable) at home, and it can not cover my entire house, let alone out to my backyard. So I got a Ubiquiti Bullet M2 HP, which is also 802.11n (2.4Ghz only), but with 600mW of output to an 8dBi omni antenna, and I get signal EVERYWHERE in my property, even 200ft away down my street. Even turning power down 3dB to comply with FCC rules I still get pretty much the same coverage. And that's with a baby monitor that smothers all of the 2.4Ghz spectrum (for US wifi), and several neighbors using 2.4Ghz APs nearby.