Apple Rolls-Out 802.11n Software Upgrade for Mac Computers

Telecom News Editorials Reports Glossary

Apple Rolls-Out 802.11n Software Upgrade for Mac Computers

7:00 am on January 31, 2007 | Category: Wireless Technology, Wi-Fi, Software

Apple Inc. released an important software upgrade yesterday which unlocks the 802.11n Wi-Fi chips included within almost every new Macintosh computer.

The presence of “Wireless-N” technology in certain Mac products was revealed by Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, at the Macworld conference earlier this month. Apple subsequently announced that it would charge $1.99 for the new software, igniting significant criticism from users.

Wireless chips based on the 802.11n draft specification are embedded in all Mac laptops with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, as well as most newer model Mac Pro and iMac desktop computers. They were not initially advertised as a feature in these models due to confusion regarding IEEE standardization of the new Wi-Fi specification.

At this point in time, wireless chips based on the draft specification are widely expected to be compatible with the final 802.11n standard, although this is not yet guaranteed to be the case.