Broadcom criticized for 802.11n chipset

Broadcom faced scrutiny from financial analysts on Friday after announcing a sampling of its Intensi-fi 802.11n chipset less than 24 hours after the IEEE agreed upon a draft proposal. Broadcom claims its move is no different than its actions for products targeting the 802.11g market. But analysts say the situation is different. The 802.11g chips were offered between an IEEE ballot and a final standard not before letter ballots were issued to vote on the new specification. Broadcom expects any changes in the standard to be handled by software fixes.

Broadcom is, of course, going to be aggressive with 802.11n products. It ruled the 802.11g market by introducing products based on the draft version of the standard that the company called "54g" months before the 802.11g was accepted. Vendors are doing this because equipment can become commoditized very rapidly. They want to beat the standard and get some sales with some decent margins. However, the plan can backfire. Some vendors took advantage of unsuspecting buyers when they touted pre-standard technology for 802.11g and later didn't meet the standard. We're seeing vendors launching mobile WiMax solutions that don't meet a standard either. Check out the next story.

For more about Broadcom's 802.11n moves:
- read this article from EE Times