According to the company, the single-stream feature enables Wi-Fi devices that delivers performance enhancements over the existing 802.11g technology, at comparable price points. Align systems are also forward compatible to higher-performance, multi-stream, MIMO-based 802.11n.
Align systems deliver up to 150Mbps PHY rates, and leverage the efficiencies of the 802.11n media access control technology to achieve actual throughput levels up to five times that of legacy 802.11g.
Initial Align systems target the low-cost notebook, netbook, home networking and consumer electronics markets, enabling end-to-end, 1-stream connectivity for WLAN operation.
Todd Antes, vice president of computing and consumer networking for Atheros, said: With Align, consumers will benefit from a new class of standards-based Wi-Fi products that deliver greater networking efficiency on every key measureperformance, power and price.
