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Generation W: Page 6 of 8

But now's the time to get serious: 2004 will usher in a more mature generation of products, and we expect some major standards to be nailed down. Prices will continue to drop, and innovation will be the name of the game. Plus benefits will go beyond the usual mobile Web and e-mail access. How does wireless voice and video over IP sound?

Serendipitously, just as we were gearing up for the mother of all WLAN reviews, we found out that Syracuse University's School of Information Studies was renovating its four-story, 50,000-square-foot Hinds Hall digs and planning a full wireless overlay with 802.11b and 802.11a support. So we worked up an RFP using this scenario, and asked vendors to bring their gear on site for hands-on testing. We stressed security, including flexible authentication, access control and rogue-device detection; reliability; scalability; ease of management; and investment protection. And to spice things up, we threw in wireless VoIP, as well as video and transparent mobility across IP subnets.

A mix of established providers--Cisco Systems, Enterasys Networks and Symbol Technologies -- and start-ups -- Airespace, Aruba Wireless Networks, Chantry Networks and Trapeze Networks--committed the resources to participate. After exhaustive testing, we gave the well-rounded, appliance-based Airespace Wireless Enterprise Platform our Editor's Choice award.




Standards Update

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WLAN standards are in a constant--albeit glacially slow--state of change. In some respects, this painfully deliberative pace is a result of the complexity associated with the underlying WLAN issues. It's not easy to design security and QoS (Quality of Service) standards for wireless environments. It's also true that there's a rich history of vendor politics associated with standards, with big industry players often willing to obstruct when directions don't serve their corporate interests.

Despite these problems, some progress can be noted. For example, the 802.11b, 802.11a, and, to a lesser extent, 802.11g standards are solid, with high levels of interoperability across products that use different radio chipsets. However, other important standards are still being hammered out. Take a look at the chart for a rundown.

More than $1 billion in venture capital has been invested in the Wi-Fi market since January 2001, according to a recent report by Fierce Wireless and the Wireless Data Research Group. Clearly, a significant number of savvy investors think wireless is the next big thing.