Wireless-N or 802.11n is the wireless technology for 2008 and beyond. This new wireless standard surpasses 802.11g. It is the next generation IEEE standard for wireless LANs.

Great, so do you need it? You may if your home or business has wireless “dead zones”, as 802.11n has a greater range than the previous 802.11g, up to twice the range (although some router manufacturers are no longer making these claims), and with better coverage and resistance to interference. Wireless-N routers feature a smart-antenna technology called MIMO, which stands for Multiple Input Multiple Output. It allows wireless devices to more efficiently transmit data in indoor environments.

MIMO has been around for a while on Wireless-G Plus Routers, which are also known as Pre-N Routers. This confusing terminology was caused by vendors implementing their own proprietary implementations of the MIMO technology before 802.11n draft specification was approved. So while a Pre-N or Wireless-G Plus Router would be faster than a Wireless-G router, it may not be compatible with future Wireless-N devices. This is something to be aware of, as a Pre-N router may be cheaper that a Wireless-N router, but could result in problems later on as more 802.11n devices become available.

That of course brings me to the downside – cost – generally 802.11n routers cost twice as much as 802.11g routers. However, if you are replacing wireless router, or putting in a new one, and your wireless clients are support 802.11g, then a 802.11n router makes sense.

Posted on January 2nd, 2008 by mervyn