Amazon has been testing its own radio network, seeing if Globalstar's private Wi-Fi technology fits the Amazon business model, and if customers would pay for better wireless networking. The news comes from the usual "people with knowledge" who've been talking to Bloomberg about Amazon building a test network in Apple's home …

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Friday 23rd August 2013 16:13 GMT Steve Todd

802.11b/g/n is being replaced

By 5GHz 802.11ac, simply because there's FAR more bandwidth there, and basestations working in that band are required to find an unused band (unlike at 2.4GHz where much kit defaults to channel 6 and then fights it out with the neighbours).

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1. Friday 23rd August 2013 17:51 GMT M Gale
  
  Re: 802.11b/g/n is being replaced
  
  Also capable of being blocked by something not much thicker than tissue paper, unfortunately.
  
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  1. Friday 23rd August 2013 18:01 GMT Steve Todd
    
    Re: 802.11b/g/n is being replaced
    
    Only if that thing is a metal mesh (which would block 2.4GHz also). It works just fine with modern internal walls, and a friend is using a pair of 802.11ac base stations to bridge two floors at 800Mbit/sec.
    
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    1. Saturday 24th August 2013 08:26 GMT Danny 14
      
      Re: 802.11b/g/n is being replaced
      
      5ghz doesnt work well in our stone building. 2.4 does a bit better (vertically through the floors). 2.4 wont go away for a while. 5ghz is good for point to point though.
      
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2. Saturday 24th August 2013 12:47 GMT Robert Sneddon
  
  Re: 802.11b/g/n is being replaced
  
  There are very few users of 802.11ac at the moment. Once it becomes popular with more users demanding higher-speed traffic it will suffer the same problems as b/g/n is suffering from today and 802.11a (which also occupies part of the 5GHz spectrum) is starting to experience. Enjoy the wide-open spaces while you can.
  
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3. Tuesday 27th August 2013 08:18 GMT Tim Bates
  
  Re: 802.11b/g/n is being replaced
  
  "and basestations working in that band are required to find an unused band"
  
  I'm not an expert, but isn't it only 802.11ac that requires that?
  
  Pretty sure the 802.11a AP I configured many years ago didn't even have that little "auto" tickbox option everything has now. And the Nanostations I've got running a ptp link aren't doing auto channeling - they're on a preselected frequency.
  
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Friday 23rd August 2013 18:20 GMT ElNumbre

"Band 14 would operate as a private wireless data network, clear of congestion and guaranteeing speed by excluding anyone who couldn't afford a licence."

..and those who can change the firmware on their AP to 'world-wide' mode.

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Saturday 24th August 2013 11:37 GMT Anonymous Coward

Coverage

"...customers would pay for better wireless networking..."

Talk is cheap. Providing coverage isn't. Wifi is basically crowd sourced and still provides very spotty coverage. This new in-house system will be so ultra rare for so many years that it's pointless. Roll it into wifi a la 'N' and it might gain traction. Otherwise vapourware.

I call 'BS' on this.

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Saturday 24th August 2013 12:33 GMT Mage

One Channel?

Higher WiFi Speeds actually use 3 to 4 channels or even all of them.

For non-interfering coverage at decent speed you need 3 x 25MHz channels. This Globalstar ch 14 (not "band" really) will make no significant difference. Less than 10% capacity improvement.

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