TechSpot - PC Technology News and Analysis

While 802.11n's official ratification and release is still estimated to be months away, with some estimates as far as a year from now, many vendors have still been pushing 802.11n equipment. Unfortunately for those would-be early adopters, it often is very pricey – despite being in and of itself “beta” equipment.

D-Link is changing that a bit, with plans to begin pushing 802.11n products in Europe before the end of this year that fall into the low-priced category. The idea is to capitalize on the new technology at a low price point and increase market share in Europe, which has been growing slower than in the U.S.

While there is still a risk in buying 802.11n equipment, the odds of a major standard shift between now and official ratification are slim. Companies like Intel, D-Link and Cisco are playing that to their advantage, hence the slow creep of N-supporting hardware you can find on the shelves. After all, if you can pick up a “pre-N” compatible AP and client card for your home and double your throughput compared to G or A, and do such for relatively the same price, why not?