The N Crowd: Wireless N Put To The Test

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Solution providers working with 802.11n wireless networking find themselves in the odd position of investing in technology that's here, but not really.

The IEEE has yet to ratify the 802.11n WLAN standard, which promises high speeds and increased range over its predecessors. Ratification isn't expected until 2009, but in the meantime all of the major wireless vendors have launched products based on the draft version of the standard over the past year. For VARs, this is new technology that offers tremendous promise in terms of both performance and profit opportunity, but it's not without its challenges.

Aside from the draft status of the technology, solution providers are dealing with new expertise requirements and a lack of mature planning tools.

"There are always nuances with any new technology, but 80 percent to 90 percent of it operates the same as the traditional protocols. There is some new technology embedded, such as MIMO, higher throughput, that people have to learn out in the field," said Brett Rushton, vice president of network strategy and infrastructure at Calence LLC. Calence, a Tempe, Ariz.-based solution provider, has 10 to 20 clients deploying 802.11n-based products.

The lack of mature 802.11n design tools is one of the biggest challenges solution providers face, leaving them to rely on their own field experience to ensure top-level network performance. There can also be snags with power consumption, as the power specification for 802.11n exceeds the original specification for Power over Ethernet, Rushton said.

Austin Smith, CEO of Digital Son, I.T. Services, a Lawrenceville, Ga.-based solution provider, said some customers are still hesitant to invest in 802.11n. But for those that are leery of the technology, an on-site demonstration is usually all it takes to kick-start a sale.

"If they have a need for wireless-N, just demo it. For one music entertainment customer, I brought some gear over and set up a demo. Just dragged-and-dropped a raw music file across the network," Smith said. "It took 30 seconds vs. 35 minutes to an hour-and-a-half. They can see the raw difference in the numbers."

Despite 802.11n's challenges, the channel knows a good thing when it sees it. "There's going to be strong momentum in the channel as wireless moves from being nice to have, to being critical. We're seeing strong interest and strong demand for it," said Nadeem Ahmad, director of global technology for solution provider Dimension Data, Reston, Va. Ahmad is recommending that Dimension Data clients deploy 802.11n as a pilot in preparation. "The final is coming; you don't want to wait," he said.

Next: Methodology

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