U.S. Robotics Takes 802.11b To Another Level

By Michael Foley
iApplianceWeb
(04/18/02, 04:08:43 PM EDT)

Why wait for 802.11a or 802.11g, U.S. Robotics is ramping up the speed to 802.11b with their new products. Its new line of Wi-Fi products have speeds up to 22 megabits per second (Mbps) and are also has backwards compatibile with 802.11b 11 Mbps products. The product line consists of a PC Card, PCI Adapter and an Access Point.

U.S. Robotics' wireless access products are based on Texas Instruments Incorporated ACX100 802.11 technology. TI's technology enables U.S. Robotics' products to have speeds up to 22 Mbps and be backwards 802.11b compliant at 11Mbps in the 2.4-gigahertz radio spectrum. Additional features include a bridging function to support building-to-building roaming and networking, a 256-bit WEP encryption and MAC address authentication for security and privacy and up to 70 percent better area coverage than conventional 11 Mbps wireless products.

The product line features:

• 22 Mbps Wireless Access Point. It will be available in June 2002 at a suggested retail price of $199.99.
• 22 Mbps Wireless Access PC Card, supports peer-to-peer networking with up to three computers without an access point. It will be available in June 2002 at a suggested retail price of $99.99.
• 22 Mbps Wireless Access PCI Adapter Card, supports peer-to-peer networking with up to three computers without an access point. It will be available in June 2002 at a suggested retail price of $119.99.