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LAS VEGAS -- Wireless networking didn't quite steal the show at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, but one or two vendors were here to show new products based on the 801.11b standard, also known as Wi-Fi. Meanwhile, at least one vendor offered a glimpse at upcoming products based on the next version of the specification, which promises much higher connection speeds.

As of this week 232 wireless networking products from 61 companies had been certified Wi-Fi-compliant and listed with the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance, which ensures that competing Wi-Fi products will interoperate, WECA says in a statement. The 802.11b standard can transfer data at speeds of up to 11 megabits per second (mbps).

"We're seeing all kinds of devices," says WECA spokesperson C. Brian Grimm. "PC Cards, access points, residential gateways, even USB devices."

While few new products were launched here, Grimm says companies that gain certification for one product usually submit more. For example, Samsung Electronics has five products certified and is sending more through the process, he says. Other examples include Intel, with about a dozen products certified.

Building a Bridge

Irvine, California-based Linksys showed its upcoming Instant Wireless Ethernet Workgroup Bridge, which connects to any device that has an ethernet port using a CAT-5 cable. Once connected to the bridge, the device can send and receive data wirelessly through a Wi-Fi access point positioned elsewhere in the home or office, says spokesperson Diana Ying.

The bridge will bring wireless connectivity to devices including PCs, printers, Internet appliances, and even gaming consoles such as Microsoft's Xbox, Ying says. Scheduled for release early in the second quarter, the bridge will be priced at $149.

Linksys also showed its Instant Wireless Presentation Gateway, which allows any user with a standard Wi-Fi access card to send data straight to a projector or any other VGA (Video Graphics Array) display, Ying says. That should eliminate the need for users to connect their laptop computer individually to a display when they want to give a presentation at a meeting.

Users are assigned a designated "hot-key" combination, such as Control-A, which they enter when it's their turn to present. The WPG11 will be released in the second quarter, priced at $299, Ying says.

Actiontec Electronics launched its Wireless-Ready DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) Gateway, which connects to the Internet using DSL at up to 8 mbps and allows data to be shared among PCs over both a Wi-Fi network and a 10/100-mbps network, the company says. The gateway also comes with a basic firewall for security. The product was made available to manufacturers Friday, although it wasn't clear yet who would offer the product.

A Versus B

One company trying to stay ahead of the game was D-Link Systems, which showed a PC card adapter and access point based on the next version of Wi-Fi, dubbed 802.11a. (Confusingly, 802.11a is the successor to 802.11b, despite what the name suggests.) WECA won't start certifying 802.11a products until June or July, but vendors were eager to show their new wares nonetheless.

There are pros and cons to 802.11a, D-Link sales engineer Thomas O'Neill says. The big plus is that the newer standard will offer a far greater data transfer speed. The 802.11b standard operates at a frequency of 2.5 GHz and has a bandwidth of 11 mbps, while 802.11a will operate at around 5 GHz and has almost five times the bandwidth, at up to 54 mbps, O'Neill says.

The higher frequency should mean the newer standard incurs less interference from devices such as cordless phones, which also operate at 2.5-GHz range. However, higher frequencies tend not to travel as far and have trouble passing through solid objects, like walls.

There is also an issue of distance. The 802.11b standard can connect devices up to 300 feet away indoors, and 900 feet outdoors, D-Link's O'Neill says. However, 802.11a is expected to reach only about half that distance, O'Neill says.

"Using 802.11a will probably be more for [indoor] use, while 802.11b can be used to connect different buildings," he says.

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