Rival networking-chip makers Broadcom and Intersil said they had not heard of any interoperability issues with their 802.11g-based products. "Those that have products (using the 802.11g specification) aren't complaining and those that don't are," said Jim Zyren, director of strategic marketing at Intersil. Product manufacturers NetGear and D-Link currently have products in the market using Intersil's 802.11g chips. Broadcom's 802.11g chips are being used in devices from Linksys, Buffalo and Japanese networking company Melco. Atheros had said that the products it tested were based on draft versions of the 802.11g specification that were not up to date. The result, it said, was a shorter range for 802.11g networks. Also, when an 802.11b client entered an 802.11g network, it caused the 802.11g network to slow to 802.11b speeds. Atheros added that its chips, which are sampling with customers now, use the latest version of the 802.11g specification and do not have the same problems. Product makers have taken measures to ensure that in the event the 802.11g specification changes significantly, customers will be able to upgrade their devices via a software update. Buffalo Technology has even said that it will replace products at no extra charge. "The assumption is that products can be upgraded in a flash, but the truth is few consumers really upgrade products," said Craig Barratt, vice president of technology at Atheros. Barratt added that the most serious issue is that products don't work as well as they should, and although he expects interoperability problems to be resolved, the concern is that the problems may leave a bad impression with customers. Those that might have some insight into the extent of the changes between the latest version of the 802.11g specification and the previous version, such as the chairs of the IEEE 802.11 working group and the Wi-Fi Alliance, are declining to comment. The University of New Hampshire Interoperability Lab isn't making results of its first interoperability trials public. Broadcom executives added that they had found an issue of their own and had brought it to the attention of the IEEE 802.11 working group earlier this month. According to Jeff Abramowitz senior director of wireless LAN marketing at Broadcom, 802.11g networks with chips using an older version of the 802.11g specification do not recognise certain older 802.11b PC Cards. A fix is added to the latest version of the 802.11g spec, according to Abramowitz. These issues will likely be worked out as the specification is certified and becomes a standard, but in the short term, the concern is that it will leave a black mark on 802.11g that could slow its adoption. "In the long run, I don't think (any interoperability controversy) will have an effect on the market," said Dennis Eaton, chairman of the Wi-Fi Alliance. "Most mainstream consumers will likely wait until the specification is finalised, and early adopters are more likely to put up with problems." NPDTechworld analyst Stephen Baker said he expected 802.11g to have a bigger impact in the corporate world than with consumers. "How many consumers really need 54Mbps of wireless bandwidth? Someone's broadband connection is more likely to be a bottleneck than their access point," said Baker, noting that few consumer-electronics or computing devices are available in the market that currently connect to Wi-Fi networks. Click here to see a map of the UK's Wi-Fi hot spots.
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