Abstract

Belkin Corp. commissioned The Tolly Group to evaluate a wireless router and wireless client network interface card that are based on Airgo Networks' True MIMO™ antenna and chipset design. True MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) is the most advanced form of smart radio technology that promises to increase speed, coverage, and reliability for wireless systems. The Belkin products tested represent a pre-standard implementation of MIMO technology. MIMO technology will drive the key performance improvements in the upcoming 802.11n standard.

Engineers measured the upstream and downstream effective throughput of the Belkin Wireless Pre-N Router (F5D8230-4) and Wireless Pre-N Notebook Network Card (F5D8010) – installed in a Dell Inspiron 8500 and measured the range at which pair could communicate at a minimum of 10 Mbps across variable distances from an access point in an effort to establish a credible effective coverage area metric. Effective throughput is a metric that combines throughput with coverage area.

Both the Belkin router and wireless client network interface were tested against a bevy of popular 802.11b/g products from D-Link Systems Inc., Linksys Corp., Netgear, Inc. and U.S. Robotics Corp.

Tests show that the Belkin Pre-N products tested deliver eight times greater effective network coverage and up to six times greater effective throughput, as calculated by a metric that factors in both performance and range, than standard 802.11g devices tested.