Last week, the IEEE announced that it’s standards board had finally ratified the 802.11n-2009 amendment.  This in itself is great news, but in truth manufacturers have been producing 802.11n products for a number of years based on the draft ‘n’ standard.  The fact that the IEEE have ratified the standard means that more manufacturers will produce more ‘n’ standard products and finally push wireless technology forwards.

If you’re happy with the 802.11a/b/g infrastructure that you currently have deployed, why on earth should you upgrade to ‘n’?  The following 5 reasons should give you enough to build a credible case to ditch your old WLAN and take advantage of the power of ‘n’.

1. Speed

By leveraging technologies such as MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output),  Channel Bonding and Packet Aggregation 802.11n is much, much faster than older standards like a/b/g and deliveries a net bit rate of up to 300Mbit per second.  Compare this to a maximum speed of up to 54Mbit per second for a/g and 11Mbit/s for b and it’s easy to see why ‘n’ is the ideal choice for real-time wireless data connections.

2. Range

By range, I mean wireless network coverage.  802.11n equipment typically has at least twice the reach of a/b/g equipment.  This, of course, all depends on the environment in which the WLAN is deployed.  For example, a busy warehouse with lots of racking and moving dense metal equipment (such as forklift trucks) can drastically impair the range of WLAN coverage.  However, 802.11n equipment should still transmit a greater range in this type of environment.  (As a sidenote, full coverage in a warehouse can be achieved by strategic placement of APs, use of appropriate antennae and a wireless scan to identify black spots).

3. Less Interference

802.11n operates over the 2.4GHz AND 5GHz frequencies, whereas b and g operate over the 2.4GHz frequency.  ‘So what?’ you may ask.  Well the 2.4GHz band is an extremely noisy frequency, as it’s not just wireless networks which transmit over it.  Microwave ovens, cordless phones and Bluetooth devices also transmit over this frequency, so having any equipment such as this within the vicinity of your b/g WLAN can seriously affect it’s performance.  Using 802.11n equipment over the 5GHz band can ensure peak performance without the worry of someone reheating their lunch impairing your WLAN.  It’s also worth pointing out that 802.11a uses the 5GHz band, but only transmits at up to 54Mbit/s and has a much shorter range than b/g/n with approx 15 metres indoor range.

4. WiFi Certification

The 802.11n draft standard was approved by the WiFi alliance in 2007.  This means that 802.11n equipment which carries the WiFi Certified logo is interoperable with other wireless equipment carrying the logo and legacy equipment (i.e. a/b/g equipment) is compatible with the new technology.

5. More Possibilities and Cost Savings

Using a faster, more reliable WLAN infrastucture with a greater reach means you are able to roll out productivity enhancing and cost reducing equipment.  Technology such as VoWLAN and video conferencing needs a stable connection and high bandwidth, but to a 802.11n infrastructure this would be child’s play.

So, in conclusion, there are plenty of reasons as to why you should upgrade to an 802.11n infrastructure.  On the whole, the management and maintenance of ‘n’ equipment should be easier as it will have a longer supportable life.  802.11n products are widely available now.  Why not take a look at the Motorola ‘n’ products that we carry, and see how they compare to your existing kit?

Motorola AP7131 Wireless Access Point

Motorola RFS6000 Wireless Switch

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Posted by Lee Hoosein on September 17th, 2009 :: Filed under WLAN
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