IEEE sets new Ethernet standard that brings 5X the speed without disruptive cable changes

“Going beyond 1 Gb/s with existing Cat5e and Cat6 cables was little more than a talking point two years ago. But now with NBASE-T, we have the ability to extend the life of an enormous asset —your wired network. The Cat5e and Cat6 installed in just the last 15 years now exceeds an estimated 70 billion meters of cabling, which is more than 10 trips to Pluto,”

Source: IEEE sets new Ethernet standard that brings 5X the speed without disruptive cable changes

Wi-Fi Alliance® introduces low power, long range Wi-Fi HaLow™

Wi-Fi HaLow extends Wi-Fi into the 900 MHz band, enabling the low power connectivity necessary for applications including sensor and wearables. Wi-Fi HaLow’s range is nearly twice that of today’s Wi-Fi, and will not only be capable of transmitting signals further, but also providing a more robust connection in challenging environments where the ability to more easily penetrate walls or other barriers is an important consideration.

Source: Wi-Fi Alliance® introduces low power, long range Wi-Fi HaLow™ | Wi-Fi Alliance

Is a Wireless Data Center Possible?

In a new paper, a team of researchers from Cornell and Microsoft concluded that a data-center operator could replace hundreds of feet of cable with 60-GHz wireless connections—assuming that the servers themselves are redesigned in cylindrical racks, shaped like prisms, with blade servers addressing both intra- and inter-rack connections.

via Is a Wireless Data Center Possible?.

Although many 60-GHz technologies are under consideration (IEE 802.15.3c and 802.11ad, WiGig, and others), the authors picked a Georgia Tech design with bandwidth of between 4-15Gbps and and effective range of less than or equal to 10 meters. Beam-steering wasn’t used because of the latencies involved in reinstating a dropped connection, although both time and frequency multiplexing were. (Because the team couldn’t actually build the design, they chose Terabeam/HXI 60-GHz transceivers for a conservative estimate.)

Don’t sweat 802.11ac Wi-Fi – because 802.11ad will knock your socks off

802.11ac is a development of the current 802.11n standard, producing improved performance on the same 5GHz frequency bands. Some routers using the 802.11ac have already been deployed, and the experts on the panel agreed that it will become commonplace by early 2013.

via Interop: Don’t sweat 802.11ac Wi-Fi – because 802.11ad will knock your socks off.

Devices using the 60GHz standard could begin to appear in 2014 and become more prominent in 2015. This means that the next major transition is still well over a year away – in part because 802.11ac will not be a particularly testing upgrade for most end users.

Wi-Fi roaming: Hotspot 2.0 and Next Generation Hotspot

Operators faced with overloaded 3G and 4G networks would also like to use Wi-Fi offload for users as well as for backhaul data, which is why both the Wi-Fi Alliance and the Wireless Broadband Alliance are working on standards to simplify connection and roaming: Hotspot 2.0 and Next Generation Hotspot (NGH) respectively.

via Wi-Fi roaming: Hotspot 2.0 and Next Generation Hotspot | ZDNet.

San Jose tries again with free downtown Wi-Fi

The IEEE 802.11n network from Ruckus Wireless is designed for outdoor public use, with multiple antennas and beam-forming mechanisms to get around obstacles. It will be implemented by system integrator SmartWave Technologies.

via San Jose tries again with free downtown Wi-Fi.

San Jose’s new system will replace a series of public hotspots that the city set up with partner MetroFi in 2004. Those networks were supported by advertising, but the arrangement fell apart when MetroFi went out of business in 2008. The annual $22,000 operational cost for the single new network will be about equal that of the old hotspots, Sammeta said.

Making a WiFi Hotspot / Access Point using Linux & wifi lan card/USB adapter

If you have a wifi LAN card / USB adapter, then you can use it as an access point so that other machines can connect to the internet via your machine using Wifi. The process is fairly simple, but requires you to have a compatible set of drivers which allow a wifi lan card to come into “Master” mode.

via Making a WiFi Hotspot / Access Point using Linux & wifi lan card/USB adapter « Vivek’s blog.

AirTraf > Home

It is my pleasure to announce that AirTraf project has resulted in founding of a new company, Elixar, Inc.

via AirTraf > Home.

802.11b network analyzer.

Also, from http://www.elixar.com/corporate/history/airtraf-1.0/airtraf_download.php

AirTraf 1.0 is available under the GNU GPL license. If you are not familair with the terms of this license please read it before downloading.  Also please note that AirTraf is currently being released only for the linux operating system.

Terahertz wireless chip brings 30Gbps networks, subcutaneous scanning

Rohm, a Japanese semiconductor company, has created a silicon chip and antenna that’s currently capable of transmitting 1.5Gbps, with the potential to scale up to 30Gbps in the future. By comparison, the fastest 802.11 (WiFi) transmission speeds max out at around 150Mbps, and the incoming WiGig standard peaks at 7Gbps.

via Terahertz wireless chip brings 30Gbps networks, subcutaneous scanning | ExtremeTech.