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Friday, April 14, 2006 | Permalink »  Previous newsletter »  Current newsletter »

IN THIS ISSUE

Draft N Routers Hit the Street

Wi-Fi takes another quantum leap this week, as both Buffalo and Netgear claim to be shipping the first draft 802.11n routers. Draft N routers promise mammoth throughputs of 300-600Mbps, as compared to today's typical 54Mbps 802.11g or 108-125Mbs enhanced-G products. Neither the Buffalo nor Netgear routers actually seem to be in stock anywhere, but each can be pre-ordered from a handful of online merchants.

Both companies are shipping routers based on Broadcom's new Intensi-fi draft-N chip family. According to Broadcom, Intensi-fi's 300Mbps throughput will provide "sufficient bandwidth, range, and reliability to deliver high-definition video to each room of a typical home." In addition, Broadcom expects 802.11n to make its way into consumer electronics devices, so that your computer can send video directly to your TV, for example. Other applications suited to the high speeds of draft N include VoIP and wireless gaming. Buffalo's AirStation Nfiniti Wireless Router and AP (WZR-G300N) and Netgear's RangeMax NEXT Wireless Router with 10/100 Switch (WNR834B) are priced identically at $179, with matching PC Cards costing $129.

Netgear is also selling a higher-end draft-N line, the RangeMax Next Wireless Router - Gigabit Edition (WNR854T), which uses Marvell's TopDog draft N chipset. The big difference is that Netgear includes a gigabit Ethernet (1,000Mbps) switch on the wired side of this router, which makes sense when wireless speeds exceed those of standard 100Mbps Ethernet, but adds more than $100 to the cost of the router. Netgear has priced a router/card kit (the WNB511T) at $350.

Buffalo and Netgear aren't the only two vendors playing the N game. D-Link has also previewed draft N equipment using Atheros' AR5008 chipset, the DIR-635 RangeBooster N 650 Router ($160), and we expect several more announcements shortly. Before you run out and buy, keep in mind that these are pre-standard products, so there is no guarantee they will be upgradeable to the final 802.11n standard next year. Nor is there any guarantee different manufacturers' products will work together in their high-speed modes (although all are certified 802.11b/g compatible). It's likely that equipment using the same chipset (such as Broadcom or Marvell) will be interoperable at draft N speeds, however. We'll keep you posted on the latest N news right here, and bring you full reviews as soon as we can.

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3G Modem Cards Multiply at CTIA

The two big stories on the 3G data card front last week were ExpressCards and EV-DO Rev. A. If you have a late-model Windows or Mac laptop (such as the MacBook Pro), chances are you have an ExpressCard slot, shutting you out of the many EV-DO and HSDPA PC Card broadband modem offerings from carriers like Cingular, Sprint, and Verizon. The good news is, you won't have to wait much longer to enter the high-speed lane.

While no formal announcements were made, both Sierra Wireless and Novatel Wireless representatives promised 3G ExpressCards later this year, and prototypes were scattered around the show floor. According to Dell (which has already transitioned much of its portable line to the ExpressCard), EV-DO models should be available in May or June, with HSDPA versions coming in August or September. Novatel has also delivered sample ExpressCards to its OEM customers. Our sources say Mac drivers should be available soon after the Windows versions, with the task made easier by Apple's shift to Intel.

Perhaps even more exciting were announcements of EV-DO Rev. A cards from Novatel and Sierra. Rev. A nearly doubles current EV-DO download speeds of 400-700Kbps to 900-1200Kbps, bringing it in line with most home DSL networks. Novatel's Merlin S720 from Sprint is due in the third quarter, as is Sierra's AirCard 595. Also look for notebooks to feature embedded Rev. A EV-DO in that time frame, which should be just in advance of Sprint's planned EV-DO Rev. A network upgrade in 4Q06 and 1Q07. Verizon has also been testing Rev. A service, but has not made formal rollout plans.

But the doorbuster for us was the Novatel USB MCD3000 EVDO Modem being shown surreptitiously around the Sprint booth. This dongle-like gadget opens the EV-DO Rev. A door to almost any computer, whether desktop or portable, Windows or Mac. Although not officially announced yet, this is BIG news, the first such modem to hit the mainstream. Even better, by attaching a USB cable, you can position the modem antenna away from the computer for best reception, something that's impossible with card-based modems. Sprint will sell this device beginning in the third quarter as the Sprint USB720.

CTIA Brings 3G Goodies for Mac Users

Ask JiWire: I'm trying to find Mac support for my [insert latest cool 3G device here]. Do you know where I can find it?

Answer: We seem to have a high percentage of Mac users in our newsletter readership, judging by the number of questions we get, so we're happy to report that last week's CTIA show in Las Vegas brought plenty of good news for Mac fans on the 3G front. All the ExpressCards and PC Cards mentioned above should have Mac support in short order, solving the MacBook Pro dilemma, and Novatel's USB modem will even connect iBooks and 12-inch PowerBooks to EV-DO for the first time, as well as desktop Macs.

We also chatted with Smith Micro at the show, where they were demonstrating QuickLink Mobile for Mac, software that lets you use many phones as modems under OS X. They told us they are currently working on support for several EV-DO handsets. We'll bring you the exact model numbers as soon as we have them; meanwhile, check out the current handset list. Nova Media's Mobile High Speed for Mac, the other major software package providing Mac tethering support for phones and data cards, has also added several new GSM-standard devices to its compatibility list, notably the Sierra Wireless AirCard 860 HSDPA PC Card offered by Cingular, which we reviewed a few weeks ago and found to be just as fast as EV-DO cards, while also offering worldwide roaming.

Last but not least, Mark/Space has an alpha release of its Missing Sync software that finally supports syncing Windows Mobile 5.0 EV-DO phones with the Mac, such as the popular Palm Treo 700w, Sprint PPC-6700, Verizon XV6700, and even the coming Motorola Q.

Got a wireless dilemma you'd like answered here? Just fill out our newsletter feedback form. We'll select the most interesting questions for this space. Or, help yourself and others by posting your questions and answers on JiWire's KnowledgeSpot message boards.

Sprint Blesses Mobile 3G/Wi-Fi Routers

Meanwhile, over in Sprint's CTIA booth, the hot story was the carrier's strategy to market 3G/Wi-Fi mobile routers, probably in association with special rate plans. These routers, like the Junxion Box and Kyocera KR1 we've reviewed previously, use EV-DO modem cards to connect to the Sprint high-speed network, then redistribute the Internet connection via Wi-Fi, just like any standard DSL or cable Wi-Fi router. They can thus be used to set up Wi-Fi hotspots on the road, as well as at home. This is a great boon for mobile warriors and traveling workgroups, and even for single users to use both at home and on the road.

Several router vendors were eager to take advantage of this new rapport by a major carrier (Verizon is still not officially friendly to the idea of sharing an EV-DO connection among multiple users). Most notably, Linksys announced the Wireless-G Router for Mobile Broadband (WRT54G3G). It's expected to be available primarily though carriers this summer, at a street price of $199. Like the Kyocera KR1, it will only accept EV-DO cards, not HSDPA (the Junxion Box supports both).

Other new mobile routers that should ship later this year include the TopGlobal MobileBridge MB8000, the AxessTel MV300 series, and the Option GlobeSurfer HSDPA. Some models will have built-in 3G modems, rather than card slots. We recommend spending a little more for a card-based version, so that you can upgrade to faster modems without buying a new router.

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