Apple introduced 802.11ac Wi-Fi to the Mac last year, but you needed to buy a new Mac to enjoy the standard’s improved speed and features. Now any recent Mac can connect to an 802.11ac network with the BearExtender Turbo, an external USB Wi-Fi device. Read on for our full review and benchmarks.
Quantenna Plans 10 Gigabit Wi-Fi Chipset for 2015
Wi-Fi speeds may soon easily surpass consumer-level wired networking, according to wireless manufacturer Quantenna Communications. The company this week unveiled plans to release a new Wi-Fi chipset in 2015 that can reach a theoretical maximum of 10 gigabits per second, nearly eight times faster than the maximum theoretical speed offered by current 802.11ac Wi-Fi implementations.
802.11ac Routers Compared: Apple, Belkin, Netgear & Linksys
When Apple released its 2013 updates to the AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule Wi-Fi routers in June, the company added support for the latest and fastest wireless standard, 802.11ac. Our first look at the 802.11ac AirPort Extreme showed very promising performance, with speeds nearing 550 megabits per second in some scenarios, a result that was nearly five times faster than the preceding 802.11n standard. But Apple was not the first to the next-gen Wi-Fi game. Although 802.11ac won’t be finalized…
Pure Speed: 2013 802.11ac AirPort Extreme Benchmarks
Update: In addition to the AirPort Extreme tests, below, we now also have performance benchmarks comparing the AirPort to other 802.11ac-class routers from Belkin, Netgear, and Linksys. After our initial AirPort Extreme and MacBook Air demonstrated hardware problems, we waited several days to obtain replacements, which have finally arrived. While we still have much more planned in terms of reviewing the new AirPort Extreme, we wanted to get you some preliminary bandwidth numbers as quickly as possible, so here are our…
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