Wi-Fi card too powerful for some countries - News - Communications

To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu

--------------------------------------------------------------
This story was printed from ZDNet Australia.
--------------------------------------------------------------

Wi-Fi card too powerful for some countries

By John Lui, Special to ZDNet
May 26, 2003
URL: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Wi-Fi-card-too-powerful-for-some-countries/0,130061791,120273667,00.htm

Network device maker SMC Networks has launched what's believed to be the most powerful wireless LAN card ever--so powerful that many countries have not approved it for sale, according to its makers.

The card, the SMC 2532W-B, boasts three times the range of a standard Wi-Fi card but "there are limits to transmitting power in many countries," said Sum Kok Meng, an SMC Networks product manager.

The device was designed for notebook users who need an extra-wide roaming range, said Sum.

In countries such as Singapore, the telcoms regulators put a cap of 100 milliWatts of transmitting power on Wi-Fi cards.

The new SMC card's power is double that, enabling it to broadcast almost a kilometre away, and comes with an extra sensitive receiver for faint signals.

He claimed that it is the most powerful Wi-Fi card currently available to retail consumers.

Countries where the US$140 device has been approved include the US, Middle East, and Australia. In countries such as Malaysia, it is either still undergoing regulatory tests, but in crowded, mostly urban Singapore, it has been turned down flat.

Transmitting devices have power limits set on them so as to prevent them interfering with other networks.

The card was designed for users such as logistics staff taking inventory in large warehouses, or for homes and offices with wall obstructions, said Sum. Due the extra output of the device, it consumes about a third more power than a standard card, though it has a "resting" power-saving mode.