802.11n on Apple's Wireless

WUSBDesign

This thought came about when I was looking and comparing MacBooks which come with 802.11g and 802.11n.

My wireless network setup is 802.11g plus a Netgear DG834PN (firmware version 1.03.35). all connecting fine. If a MacBook with 802.11n comes along, will the MacBook connect seamlessly to either the "g" or my Netgear (re-configured appropriately)?

I know backwards compatibility is to be expected, but I am looking for user's first-hand experiences. My confidence in 802.11n is....marginal after what happened to the offerings from "pre-N" products.

Dorsanty

WUSBDesign wrote: »

This thought came about when I was looking and comparing MacBooks which come with 802.11g and 802.11n.

My wireless network setup is 802.11g plus a Netgear DG834PN (firmware version 1.03.35). all connecting fine. If a MacBook with 802.11n comes along, will the MacBook connect seamlessly to either the "g" or my Netgear (re-configured appropriately)?

I know backwards compatibility is to be expected, but I am looking for user's first-hand experiences. My confidence in 802.11n is....marginal after what happened to the offerings from "pre-N" products.

I've happily run my MBP on N and G networks. I think all the Core 2 Duo Macs are N capable and just need the 'enabler software' so allow you to configure the card to run N.

Link to enabler, http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=9BFE4FC5&nplm=D4141ZM/A
I'm sure there are other sources for this too. I'll say no more

Type 17

As mentioned, N works fine on MacBooks - if you have a non-Apple AP, get the N enabler on the Apple Store, or if you buy an Apple N-enabled AP (Apple Airport Extreme Base Station), the enabler is on the CD that comes with it.

WUSBDesign

Thanks guys. Now, I feel comfortable about paying a little more for a MacBook which comes with 802.11n instead of "g" wireless capability.

Type 17

One small but important point to note - no AP (to my knowledge) can run both n and g at the same time, so if you want to connect a PC/Mac that only handles b or g at the same time as your n-enabled MacBook is connected, you will have to temporarily set the AP and the MacBook to g, or run two APs to suit the two different computers.

I have a DSL modem connected to an n-capable AP for the wife's MacBook and my iMac (we work from home), but I also have it connected to another b/g-capable AP for when my brother calls with his b-only iBook, and for when business contacts with g-capable PCs call.

Dorsanty

Type 17 wrote: »

One small but important point to note - no AP (to my knowledge) can run both n and g at the same time, so if you want to connect a PC/Mac that only handles b or g at the same time as your n-enabled MacBook is connected, you will have to temporarily set the AP and the MacBook to g, or run two APs to suit the two different computers.

Yeah, that's true. Although my Airport Extreme offers to run in N mode with G compatibility. Mad I know. So it runs at 2.4Ghz and not the full 5GHz that N is meant to run at. But it I think it implements the MIMO feature at this speed meaning your N capable Mac will run faster then just normal G network.

I have 2 APs but only run the 1. Don't want to be microwaving myself out of it.

WUSBDesign

For 802.11n APs, I am holding out for the moment. My investment in MIMO "G" APs needs to pay off first....My DG834PN was out of action until recently when I upgraded its firmware. Previously, even normal "G" connections are pathetic. At this rate, I leave the "N" APs alone for a further year.

So, a MacBook with "N" will work in my current "G" environment.

theothernt

The important thing to remember is that the Macbook and Macbook Pro should work fine with any a/b/g/n network.

And although 'n' is the next standard, it's not there yet so it would be mad for a laptop not to support a/b/g networks.

Also, on a Mac (or PC for that matter) you generally don't control the a/b/g/n aspect - you just see a list of Access Points and pick one :-)

- Neil