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 802.11 a/b/g WLAN products that have already earned certification.

Although IEEE’s 802.11n standard isn’t expected to be ratified until early 2009, these pre-certification products are expected to reap this year’s back-to-school dollars.
Via [crn.com]

For the time being it is recommended that consumers shy away from purchasing new 802.11n standardized products and stick with traditional 802.11b and 802.11g standards.
Via [zdnetasia.com]

Colubris will bring its Multiservice Access Point (MAP)-625, which has two radios. One radio supports 802.11a, b, and g while the other is compatible with 11n draft 2 standard. The MAP-625 11n radio promises a minimum useable throughput of 100Mbps, which could go up by another 24Mbps via the 11abg radio. The company looks to sell the product for $999, around 30 percent higher than the current dual-radio 11abg variant.

The new 11n ZoneFlex WLAN product line from Ruckus Wireless includes a new 11g access point, an existing 11g low-end access point for small offices, a new 11n draft 2 access point, and the ZoneDirector 1000 controller, which the firm will make available in 3 models to host as many as 25 access points. The ZoneFlex 2942 11g access point is expected to deliver 20Mbps of “sustained throughput.” The ZoneFlex 7942 11n access point, which is due for release in August or September, features a 2.4 GHz radio that can operate on 11bg and 11n.

Trapeze Networks unveiled its Mobility Ppoint(MP)-432 11n draft 2 access point. The AP features a 3×3 antenna configuration for each band, and like Colubris’s MAP-625, is based on the Atheros dual-band MIMO chipset. The two radios can operate simultaneously. When working on the optional 40 MHz channels, they can support a total data rate of 600Mbps. The device is likely to be sold for “less than $1,500,” according to the company.
Via [networkworld.com]

The AP300 is relying on radio chipsets from Atheros Communications. The radios can both be 11n or a combination of 11n along with 11a/b/g to work with existing WLAN clients. Meru plans to sell this device for about $1,500, nearly double the price of its current high-end 802.11a/b/g access point. It is still determining the price of the MC500, which can support as many as 200 access points and deliver as high as 1Gbit/sec. of throughput. The TDS, meanwhile, will enable Meru’s controllers to differentiate wireless packets. With the software, controllers may deal with only control traffic, or only data traffic, or both.
Via [computerworld.com]

At present, industry groups like the EICTA, are working hard to change France’s stance. Tony Graziano, EICTA’s director of technical and regulatory affairs, said his group “is of the view that the position from France is in conflict with Community law.” He called on France to stick to the earlier version of EN 301 893 and throw away its demand on the newer variant.
Via [techworld.com]

Last year, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced its plans to begin interoperability testing program for draft 2.0 equipment by June this year as well as certify and brand draft 2.0 compliant products, a reversal of a policy that only allowed testing of devices that comply with a final IEEE protocol.
Via [pcadvisor.co.uk]

Aside from Intel, several companies like notebook makers Asus, Acer, Gateway and Toshiba, and network equipment vendors Belkin, Buffalo, D-Link and Netgear are ready to ship devices supporting 802.11n standard. Gartner, however, warned against premature adoption of the 802.11n standard. The analyst sees more discussions prior to the ratification of the specification, which might entail further changes and therefore need interoperability testing by the Wi-Fi Alliance. Gartner also fears that 802.11n compliance claims by vendors could mislead customers, who may think that the products “can be made compliant through upgrades.”
Via [zdnetasia.com]

The Macs, according to the company, were released prior to the approval of draft 2.0 of the 802.11n specification. But now that the specification is complete, Apple said it is ready to distribute the software to enable the 802.11n hardware in the machines. However, because it already reported its revenues from the sale of the computers, Apple has to charge a nominal fee to determine the value of the software upgrade in order to comply with an accounting regulation known as SOP 97-2.

At Macworld Expo in San Francisco, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said the company added 802.11n chips in MacBook Pro and MacBooks with Intel’s Core 2 Duo processor but did not inform buyers about the said feature. The firm plans to start selling a new 802.11n Airport Extreme Base Station along with the upgrade software for $179 as well as Apple TV, which also hosts an 802.11n chip, in February.
Via [news.zdnet.com]

Via [techworld.com]

Meanwhile, because of the early approval by the IEEE 802.11 working group of Draft 2.0, the 802.11n’s schedule has been changed. Final approval of the draft is due by the end of January, with voting expected by the end of March. The panel plans to work on Draft 3.0 and have it approved by June. With the endorsement of 75 percent of members, the draft could be the basis for the final standard, which is likely to be ratified by October 2008.
Via [extremetech.com]

Santa Rosa would replace the Napa64 platform and features the ICH8-based mobile 965 chipset code-named Crestline, along with support for FSB800 and the company’s Active Management Technology (AMT). It will house processors with Merom core, including the Core 2 Duo T7100 (1.8 GHz) and the Core 2 Duo T7700 (2.4 GHz). Intel intends to sell T7100 with 2M of L2 cache for $209 and T7700 with 4 MB L2 cache for $530.
Via [tgdaily.com]