PISCATAWAY, N.J.—The IEEE 802.11 working group voted down an initial draft of the proposed 802.11n standard, virtually ensuring development of a 2.0 version.
But whether the vote was a dramatic defeat or an expected speed bump is open to interpretation.
Draft 1.0 of the measure fell well short of the 75 percent super majority needed for acceptance, garnering only 46.6 percent of the vote. A task group has been charged with reviewing submitted comments on the standard.
Chipmaker Airgo Networks Inc., which has repeatedly said that the release of “draft .11n” chipsets would be premature, said the vote illustrates “the clear desire for significant changes to the draft.” The company urged members to address issues such as interoperability with legacy devices and the “inferior performance” of “draft n” products.
“Today’s outcome proves that Draft 1.0 was not as stable as some in the industry would have us believe,” Airgo Chief Executive Officer Greg Raleigh said in a prepared statement. “Airgo will continue to pursue its strategy of waiting until a more mature, stable draft is established before introducing products that comply.”
But fellow IEEE member Atheros Communications Inc. took issue with Raleigh’s comments, claiming that the failed vote was expected and “does not indicate that there will be radical changes to the standard.”
Analyst firm ABI Research said the vote is indicative of a long slog ahead for 802.11n, which is also known as multiple-input multiple-output. While standards-based .11n chipsets and devices are expected to come to market later this year, the firm warned users to wait until next year before investing in the technology.
“True interoperability between vendors is still wishful thinking,” according to Alan Varghese, ABI’s principal analyst for wireless semiconductors. “So consumers and business users should be wary about their purchases, at least (until) final ratification of the standard, which is expected sometime in 2007.”
