X

Trendnet showcases first 802.11ac products at CES 2012

Trendnet announces first 802.11ac wireless devices at CES 2012.

Dong Ngo SF Labs Manager, Editor / Reviews
CNET editor Dong Ngo has been involved with technology since 2000, starting with testing gadgets and writing code for CNET Labs' benchmarks. He now manages CNET San Francisco Labs, reviews 3D printers, networking/storage devices, and also writes about other topics from online security to new gadgets and how technology impacts the life of people around the world.
See full bio
Dong Ngo
2 min read
The new 802.11 AC wireless router TEW-811DR from Trendnet.
The new 802.11 AC wireless router TEW-811DR from Trendnet. Trendnet

Trendnet, a vendor of affordable and green networking products, announced today the first 802.11ac networking products to be showcased at CES 2012.

The Trendnet 802.11ac TEW-800MB media bridge shares the same design as existing wireless N bridge from the vendor.
The Trendnet 802.11ac TEW-800MB media bridge shares the same design as existing wireless N bridge from the vendor. Trendnet

Asintroduced by networking chip-maker, Broadcom, recently, the 802.11ac wireless standard is the next generation of the 802.11 wireless technology with the 802.11n (or wireless N) currently being the mainstream. The new standard will initially offer up to 1300Mbps speed (compared to the top 450Mbps of the existing N standard), with the capability to scale up to 6.8Gbps in the future.

The new AC standard also uses the low 5Ghz band and incorporates a standardized beamforming technology, which improves the transmission of wireless signals around physical obstacles such as masonry walls.

Trendnet's new AC products include a 1300 Mbps dual-band Wireless AC Router, model TEW-811DR, and a 1300 Mbps Dual Band Wireless AC Media Bridge, model TEW-800MB. Both of them will be at the show this year. Both devices are dual-band and support the existing wireless N adapter. On top of that, both support Gigabit Ethernet as well as other existing networking features found in other Trendnet routers.

It's unclear what chips these new 802.11ac products are based on. Yesterday, Broadcom also announced that its first 5G Wi-Fi (another name for 802.11ac) chips would be shown at CES this year.

The new TEW-811DR and TEW-800MB devices will not be available for purchase until the second half of 2012. Both of them are estimated to cost around $200. Since it's likely your computer won't have built-in support for 802.11ac, you'll need both of them to take advantage of the new AC wireless speed.