With their ability to enable cable-free networking of devices in the home, mobility throughout the residence, and the sharing of Internet access among several members of the household, wireless home networking technologies are, and will continue to become increasingly desirable to consumers, according to Cahners In-Stat/MDR (www.instat.com).
The high-tech research firm reports that with Wi-Fi access point gateway devices generally running from $150-$200, and with PC cards falling to the sub-$100 range, consumers are more willing to get on the wireless train.
"The idea of being wirelessly connected to the Internet is slowly becoming flashy and sexy, at the same time boosting mobility and productivity," says Gemma Paulo, an industry analyst with In-Stat/MDR.
The report, "The Connected Couch Potato: Living it Up in the Wireless Home" analyzes the wireless home networking market, provides an overview of promising wireless technologies for the home and analyzes the 802.11a vs. 802.11g controversy.
The report also states that the evolution of network interface card (NIC) form factors has enabled the embedding of NICs into laptops and wireless gateways. As a result, the embedded market is expected to grow against the percentage of non-embedded in the home, as more and more 802.11x technology is embedded into all kinds of consumer electronics devices and gateways. Low-cost, low-power technologies such as Zigbee and Spike will be embedded into gaming devices, kitchen appliances and home security systems. Other wireless technologies such as Ultra-Wideband and peer-to-peer mesh technology may also show up in household devices in the future.
In-Stat/MDR has also found that:
* HomeRF shipments comprised approximately 45% of total wireless Local Area Network (LAN) node shipments to the home in 2000, but for 2001, HomeRF will only command approximately 30% of the total residential WLAN market. HomeRF's percentage of the total market will continue to decrease over the forecast period,
* Home and small business networking specialists, such as Linksys, D-Link, Buffalo Technology, Netgear, SMC and SOHOware, have succeeded in the highly-commoditized wireless NIC market with their expertise in the low-cost, high-volume small business and SOHO/consumer spaces,
* Total WLAN nodes going into the home in 2001 will be 4 million worldwide, with approximately 70% of these being 802.11b, and the remainder being primarily HomeRF. 802.11x technologies are expected to increase as a
percentage of the total WLAN nodes going forward into 2006.
