[hab]

Does anybody know the current status of the development of the 802.11n standard? The rumors I have read indicate that a final agreement on the standard is due this spring sometime. Is it really just details on the software or is it hardware too?

I want to replace my G4 iMac and note that the new iMac has a "Built-in 54 Mbps AirPort Extreme (802.11g)." I also note that the new Airport Extreme Base station supports 802.11n and comes with a "CD with AirPort Utility (Mac and Windows), 802.11n Enabler for Core 2 Duo and Xeon-based Macintosh computers." So, evidently, the C2D computers have some type of 802.11n hardware already and need only software to be use the "draft" standard for 802.11n networking.

My question is whether anyone knows if the current iMac hardware is at risk of being obsolete by any change in the "final" 802.11n standard or is the final agreement solely software related? If the former, then I would be inclined postpone my iMac purchase and await the final standard.

[mduell]

After 802.11b/g were such a hit, everyone and their mother decided they wanted to be a part of the 802.11n process. The last draft had an order of magnitude more comments than I ever remember 802.11g having. The IEEE working group requires a supermajority for the standard to become final, so it takes a lot of time to placate everyone. They also have some relatively long time requirements for comment periods and such; the final 802.11n standard will be approved no earlier than April 2008.

Everyone and their mother is shipping hardware that conforms to the current draft of the 802.11n standard, thus draft-n (there was also pre-n, which was the hardware before there was a draft standard). Apple has included draft-n hardware (i.e. the radio and antenna) in most of the Core 2 Duo and Xeon Mac (17" 1.83Ghz C2D iMac is the exception).

There is always a chance that the final standard will change enough so that the current draft hardware won't be able to meet the requirements with a firmware/software upgrade. However with the recent(ish) shift toward putting as much functionality in software as possible, and leaving the hardware as generic as possible, I think there is a good chance that you'll be able to get the current draft-n hardware to comply with the final standard with a firmware and driver update.