Generation N: Five 802.11n routers tested

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Ever since it was announced in 2004 we have been patiently waiting, however up till now to no avail, for the release of 802.11n. This hasn't discouraged a number of manufacturers from releasing routers based on a concept version of this new wireless standard. Though these prematurely released routers have their fair share of teething problems,  they are definitely a lot faster than any of the current 802.11g sets.

When practically all the companies in a particular market segment work together to develop a new standard it usually proves to be beneficial to both consumers and manufacturers alike. A format war such as Blu-ray versus HD DVD is not something people in general are waiting for and only leads to confusion and apprehension when it comes down to adopting a new standard. The companies involved in this particular market segment are greatly aware of the importance of developing one new standard instead of multiple, though having said that it seems they cant quite agree on the way it should be implemented.

In 2004 the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, a leading authority on international technological standards) gave  green light for the development of a successor to the popular WiFi-standard 802.11g. Fast-forward three years and the ratification of 802.11n is still not in sight. IEEE have stated that this should take place sometime this year but it is clear that it has given itself some leeway in regards to that statement. Taking into consideration that the final phase of the ratification process usually entails going over the finer details, several chip manufacturers have decided to release product based on the concept version of the 802.11n standard. The decision to release a product based on a standard that hasn't been ratified isn't exactly new: even before the current 802.11g standard had been sanctioned there were numerous products available which were based on the original concept version.

Meanwhile, ASUS, Belkin, D-Link, Linksys and Netgear have released products based around the concept version of the 802.11n standard. More than enough reasons for us to take a look at what the new standard has to offer.