Wi-Fi - News, Features, and Slideshows

News

• Meraki buy more than cloud Wi-Fi to Cisco

  Even though Meraki made a name for itself in cloud-based WLANs, Cisco's long-term goals for its new acquisition go beyond just Wi-Fi.

• CONNECT: Networky gift ideas for the holidays

  Opening a new gadget for the holidays isn't any fun if you can't connect to the InterWeb or other devices. Sometimes you need to upgrade your network, and they often make great gifts, too!

• Google takes Maps indoors, but challenges remain

  Low adoption and insufficient research has slowed the movement of Google Maps indoors, a Google software engineer said today at the Indoor Positioning and Indoor Navigation conference held at the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

• Flemington racecourse to trot out Wi-Fi system by 2013

  Punters keen to have a flutter at Flemington racecourse in Melbourne will be able to bet online and watch the race in HD on their smartphone within the arena when a Wi-Fi service is introduced by the Victorian Racing Club (VRC) next year.

• Livescribe Sky smartpen review

  Using a microphone and camera built into the pen, the original Livescribe Pulse smartpen digitised handwritten notes and automatically matched each pen stroke to the precise moment in the audio that the note was taken. The combined text and audio could be accessed through the pen or transferred to a Mac or PC for storage by USB.

• Qantas business lounge members get free Wi-Fi service

  Qantas has teamed up with Optus to offer free Wi-Fi to the airline’s Club, Qantas First and Business Lounge customers at 20 airports around Australia.

• Caveats for VPN users in public Wi-Fi hotspot networks

  Using non-secured public Wi-Fi hotspots can leave you vulnerable to identity theft, data theft, snooping, impersonation and malware infection. That's why so many people rely on public virtual private network services, but VPNs are no panacea. Here are five potential gotchas.

• Adelaide Fringe Festival patrons to get free Wi-Fi access

  Art patrons keen to share content and tweets from the Adelaide Fringe Festival in 2013 will be able to do so at free Wi-Fi hotspots scattered around the festival areas.
  

• SLIDESHOW: 8 Free Wi-Fi security tools

  Even if you have an enterprise-level Wi-Fi spectrum analyzer, free Wi-Fi tools can also come in handy

• 8 free Wi-Fi stumbling and surveying tools

  Even if you have an enterprise-level Wi-Fi spectrum analyzer, like <a href="http://www.metageek.net/products/wi-spy/">Wi-Spy</a> or <a href="http://www.flukenetworks.com/enterprise-network/wlan-security-and-analysis">AirMagnet</a>, free Wi-Fi tools can also come in handy. You might use them during the planning or installation stages of your <a href="http://www.networkworld.com/topics/wireless.html">wireless</a> LAN, while troubleshooting, or when performing maintenance. They could even serve as your primarily tools in smaller and less-complex environments.

• Another milestone for 802.11ac and gigabit wireless LANs

  This vendor-written tech primer has been edited by Network World to eliminate product promotion, but readers should note it will likely favor the submitter's approach.

• New Wi-Fi routers, cloud services simplify branch networks

  Aerohive Networks has unveiled a set of products and services for small, remote, or branch office <a href="http://www.networkworld.com/topics/wireless.html">wireless</a> networking. The new "Branch on Demand" product line includes low-cost Wi-Fi routers, coupled with expanded cloud-based VPN termination and security services.

• Aruba expands 'instant' Wi-Fi offerings to small, midsize businesses

  Aruba Networks has unveiled new WLAN access points and software, expanding its Aruba Instant product line of easy-to-deploy Wi-Fi networks, and retargeting them for small and midsize businesses.

• In Chicago, a 4G coming-of-age party

  CHICAGO -- Carriers, chipset makers and device manufactures this week threw something of a coming-of-age party on behalf of <a href="http://www.networkworld.com/topics/3g-4g.html">4G</a> <a href="http://www.networkworld.com/topics/wireless.html">wireless</a> technologies.

• Meru software applies corporate Wi-Fi security to private devices

  WLAN vendor Meru Networks has announced a new optional software module that lets its Wi-Fi networks recognize privately owned clients and automatically configure them to meet corporate security and management policies.