With 802.11n poised to become the mainstream Wi-Fi standard, chips suppliers are racing to lower their costs and offer affordable single-chip solutions at 90nm and below in order to get a head-start in the market, according to industry sources. In 2007, the industry still had doubts about the acceptance of 802.11n, but now chip suppliers are concerned about how to roll out their solutions quickly and and cheaply to cater to growing demand in the market, the sources commented.
Single-chip solutions at 90nm and below are promising, with Broadcom, Atheros and Ralink Technology all having told their downstream clients that their single-chip 802.11n solutions will start volume production in the first half of this year, the sources said.