Ah, yes – there’s nothing like emerging technologies and standards to prompt a person to rush out and purchase all the latest and greatest gadgets. I wonder how many of you took the early plunge despite Electronic House’s earlier warnings on buying 802.11n draft 1.0 versions of the next-gen Wi-Fi products? For those who wisely waited, you’ll be happy to know that the Wi-Fi Alliance has started testing for interoperability among the draft 2.0 products. Certified (key word) products are due in stores by the end of the summer.

With five times the throughput and twice the range of previous standards, as well as backwards compatibility and a nice long list of Alliance members, the latest standard and all the products using it will no doubt augment the digital home experience. I spent some time browsing the list of Wi-Fi Alliance members at www.wi-fi.org. It’s a nice long train. And every one of them gets along ... or at least their Wi-Fi products do.

Between watching re-runs of the “The Jetsons” and convincing his Insteon and Z-Wave controls to get along, Ben Hardy is immersed in the world of home automation, home control, and home networking.

Ben Hardy - Contributing Writer

Between watching re-runs of the The Jetsons and convincing his Insteon and Z-Wave controls to get along, Ben Hardy is immersed in the world of home automation, home control, and home networking.