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Wireless technology is giving organizations a greater level of flexibility by supporting mobile workers and enabling easier access to applications and communications from portable devices. Wi-Fi LANs are playing a central role in the ongoing push toward wireless capabilities within buildings and campus environments — and the latest Wi-Fi devices are designed to deliver improved functionality.

Wi-Fi is a wireless technology designed to improve the interoperability of wireless LAN devices based on IEEE 802.11 standards. The Wi-Fi Alliance, a global industry association of more than 300 member companies devoted to promoting the growth of wireless LANs, has tested and certified more than 3,500 devices since it launched its certification program in March 2000.

In June, the alliance began testing the latest generation of Wi-Fi products, based on the 802.11n draft 2.0 specification. The group says devices based on the new IEEE draft deliver up to five times the throughput and up to twice the range of products based on previous standards, “enabling a wide range of content-rich applications, and delivering those applications over a larger footprint.” These products can achieve data rates of up to 300 Mbps, capable of supporting the latest multimedia applications.

The Wi-Fi Alliance announced in September that more than 95 next-generation products have been Wi-Fi certified. These devices, which include access points, laptops, routers and wireless networking cards, will enable enterprises to select from a growing number of interoperable next-generation Wi-Fi products, according to the alliance.

Government agencies, municipalities, educational institutions and businesses, including retailers, law firms, hospitals and banks, are leveraging Wi-Fi networks to enable employees, customers and others to use devices such as laptops and personal digital assistants (PDAs) to access the Internet, e-mail and a host of applications from within a coverage area.

In addition, many business travelers use public Wi-Fi networks, although they do so in an ad hoc fashion, says Jeremy Green, principal analyst, enterprise mobility, at consulting firm Ovum. In other words, lots of companies don’t have contracts in place with any managed service providers. “So the organization might be spending a lot on Wi-Fi access for travelers without really knowing about it,” Green says.

Organizations need to determine whether it’s best to allow employees to continue using Wi-Fi networks in an ad hoc way, or whether they should put in place a comprehensive wireless strategy that includes the use of a managed service to provide broader wireless coverage for the organization, Green says. A wireless strategy could help organizations “get more value out of Wi-Fi networks, support more processes and more applications,” he says.

One potential application that’s gaining attention is the use of voice over IP (VoIP) on wireless networks. Voice over Wi-Fi is a wireless version of VoIP that works with mobile devices such as handsets, PDAs and laptop computers. Among the potential benefits of the technology are lower costs compared with cell phones, improved wireless coverage and higher voice quality within buildings.

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