Should we let vendors pitch?
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Tim Higgins
D-Link says DIR-855 will ship…really!
While arranging my DGL-4500 review sample with D-Link, I asked them about the rumors that the long-delayed DIR-855 has been placed on "indefinite hold". D-Link told me that the product is still alive and that the target ship date is now "end of year 07 or early year 08".
D-Link DIR-855 Getting Closer?
During my routine check of the Wi-Fi Alliance 802.11n Certified product list, I found that the mythical D-Link DIR-855 Dual-Band Draft 11n router received its 802.11n Draft 2.0 certification back on October 3. Shame on me for not catching this before now.
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Linksys Range Plus is Draft 11n in Disguise
Today's announcement by Linksys of its "affordable" Range Plus product line (WRT100, WPC100) is an odd one. The product line is described as using "MIMO" technology to provide extended coverage at a price point around $100. But a look at the FCC Test report reveals the real technology used.
Misusing MIMO
As is too often the case, yet another networking term that initially had clear meaning has been grabbed by the marketeers and is being used to lure gullible buyers.
Waiting for Draft 2.0 updates
While the Wi-Fi Alliance's list of 802.11n Draft 2.0 certified products is growing longer, of course, there is still a catch. A product's appearance in the list doesn't necessarily mean that the products you can buy today are Draft 2.0 compliant. Nor does it mean that you can download firmware and drivers to bring them into compliance, either.
Linksys branding to be replaced by Cisco. No surprise here
The Uberpulse headline "Cisco kills Linksys brand, plans agressive move into consumer markets" is sure an attention getter, but comes as no surprise.
First, Chambers actually said: "It will all come over time into a Cisco brand"—which hardly amounts to an announcement that the Linksys brand has been, or will soon be, retired. And for those of us who deal regularly with the company and its products, it's really a statement of the obvious.
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The Gotcha in Draft 11n Wi-Fi Certification
My previous post describing the D-Link DIR-655 / DWA-652's failure to switch from 40 MHz to 20 MHz channel mode when encountering a legacy WLAN, might be counter to what D-Link says is the expected behavior. But I have found that it is neither a violation of IEEE Draft 2.0 nor the Alliance's Draft 2.0 11n Certification.
Since that post, I've exchanged emails with D-Link and spoken with both Atheros and the Wi-Fi Alliance to try to find out how the D-Link products could not be performing as D-Link had described, yet receive Wi-Fi Draft 2.0 11n Certification.
Our 11n reviews resume
With the Wi-Fi Draft 11n certification process underway, I've decided its time to resume reviews of these products. This doesn't mean that I now consider the products to be "done"; far from it. But with the legitimacy of the Wi-Fi mark now being slapped on boxes, I figure someone has to see if these products are really living up to their claims.
11n Draft 2.0 gear not working yet, but does anyone really care?
I share Glenn Fleishman's disappointment with this week's announcement by the Wi-Fi Alliance that they have only begun their certification testing. But judging from what I've seen so far, getting draft 11n gear up to spec is going to be a long, difficult process.
I spent a few days last week testing a D-Link DIR-655 router and DWA-652 Cardbus card, which are based on Atheros XSPAN silicon. These are the first products to have firmware and drivers posted that allegedly implement 11n Draft 2.0 compliance. My primary focus was to see whether the legacy protection mechanisms added in 802.11n Draft 2.0 were working in actual product.