Applications

802.11n

802.11n: The next leap for wireless

Because it promises far greater bandwidth, better range, and reliability, 802.11n is advantageous in a variety of network configurations. Some of the current and emerging applications that are driving the need for 802.11n are Voice over IP (VoIP), streaming video and music, gaming, and ultimately wireless HD video.

VoIP is mushrooming as consumers and businesses alike realize they can save money on long-distance phone calls by using the Internet instead of traditional phone service. An increasingly popular way to make Internet calls is with VoIP phones, which are battery-powered handsets that typically connect to the Internet with built-in 802.11b or 802.11g. Telephony does not demand high bandwidth, although it does require a reliable network connection to be usable. VoIP phones can benefit today from the increased range and reliability of a 802.11n access point.

As with voice, streaming music is an application that requires a highly reliable connection that can reach throughout the home. Millions of consumers are building libraries of digital music on their personal computers by ripping their CD collections and buying digital recordings over the Internet. In addition, growing numbers are streaming music directly from the Internet.

As their digital music collections grow, more consumers find they would like to be able to listen to it through living room stereos or via players in other rooms around the house. Though higher bandwidth is not absolutely necessary, the additional range and reliability that 802.11n offers may be better suited to streaming music than older-generation WLAN hardware.

Gaming is an application that increasingly is making use of home WLANs, whether users connect wirelessly to the Internet from their computers and portable gaming devices or use the network to compete with others in the home.

Transferring large files such as prerecorded TV shows from a personal video recorder onto a notebook computer or portable media player for viewing outside the home takes planning and patience on an older WLAN. By comparison the time it would take to transfer a 30-minute video file. At the best data transfer rate, it would take 42 minutes to copy the file using 802.11b, and less than a minute with a two-antenna draft-n client.

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