Aren't there also antenna improvements with the pre-N routers that benefit non-N clients?
Lack of good antennas on the NIC's are the biggest drawback combined with low power output IMO. Now with 3rd party firmware it's possible to increase WAP transmit power but that will not help the weakest link which is the NIC's low transmit power. Based on that I'd covet higher power cards like Cisco Aironet or Buffalo AirStation cards though they sure do command a premium price! On top of that If they support external antennas, add one. There are a few companies making clip-on wifi whip antennas for laptops that look promising but you have to have the jack on the card. Thane Sherrington wrote: > At 11:49 AM 11/09/2007, Wayne Johnson wrote: >> At 09:32 09-11-2007, Thane Sherrington typed: >>> Will an 802.11n router give greater range with 802.11g cards, or do >>> the cards have to been N has well? >> >> Sorry but N cards are also required but the router will fall back to G >> or B as req'd/ > > According to this article: > http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,118666-page,1/article.html > > "When we moved the notebook some 50 feet and several rooms away from the > PC and router, the Pre-N throughput declined, as we would expect. Speeds > ranged from 12 mbps to 33 mbps, with an average of 20 mbps. But the > 802.11g PC Card and router could not transfer data at all. > > However, when we replaced the 802.11g router with the Pre-N router, the > notebook with the 802.11g card was able to connect from 50 feet, though > at speeds we'd expect from the slowest Wi-Fi standard, 802.11b. And when > we connected an 802.11g notebook to a network that otherwise included > all Pre-N equipment, the network didn't slow down in an informal test." > > That suggests that using a N router with a G card should give better > range. Hard to say for sure. > > T > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Tonight's top picks. What will you watch tonight? Preview the hottest shows on Yahoo! TV. http://tv.yahoo.com/
