Upgrade iMac 24" AirPort card??

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Level 1

6 points

Upgrade iMac 24" AirPort card??

With Apple announcing iTV my dream setup looks like it'll soon be a reality. I've always wanted to be able to stream video wirelessly to my Plasma TV.

We all know that it is just not possible with 802.11g to do this so I'm pretty confident that iTV will operate on 802.11n (or pre n).

Which leads me onto the question of if I'll be able to upgrade the AirPort card in the iMac when the new fast AirPort appears (MWSF???).

I want to get an iMac 24" to use as a home media centre/hub but if I won't be able to upgrade the AirPort card in the future I'll hold off for now.

Any help would be very much appreciated.

Mac OS X (10.4.7)

Mac OS X (10.4.6)

Posted on Sep 21, 2006 10:40 AM

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Answer 1

Sep 21, 2006 10:55 AM in response to 'T.

I doubt you would be able to upgrade the card, but apple or some 3rd party would probably offer a usb wi-fi card supporting the new standard once it is approved. If you are like me, my iMac is just feet away from my HDTV. I'll probably just use an ethernet cable to connect the imac to the iTV once it is released. If the iTV supports gigabit ethernet, then it will be much faster than even the 'N' standard.

Glor

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Answer 2

'T. Author

Level 1

6 points

Sep 22, 2006 11:58 AM in response to Glorfindeal

Thanks but I want to keep the iMac in a seperate room and I don't like wires.

I also envisage using iTV on more than one Plasma.

I think I'll wait till MWSF07 and see what appears. Hopefully AirPort "Super Extreme" and iTV should be launched.

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Answer 3

mrtotes

Level 6

11,836 points

Sep 22, 2006 1:31 PM in response to 'T.

You may be waiting until MWSF08. 802.11n is not due to go to Final Approval until Jul 07. I can't see Apple releasing pre-n Airport.

Are you sure 802.11g can't stream video. I've sat upstairs at home pushing a DVD off the iMac G4 up to my Powerbook G4 (with dead optical drive) it stuttered quite badly; but that was over Airport (11Mbps). So my guess is 11g might handle it anyhow.

The other factor is that Disney have leaked that 'iTV' may well have it's own harddrive.

regards

mrtotes

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Answer 4

'T. Author

Level 1

6 points

Sep 25, 2006 5:59 AM in response to mrtotes

I don't think the wait will be that long according to this:
http://macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/11043/

Very interesting and certainly makes the digital mouth water.

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Answer 5

mrtotes

Level 6

11,836 points

Sep 28, 2006 12:28 AM in response to 'T.

Well if WinXP is reporting this correctly I'll have to eat my words; having read the same story on TUAW yesterday.

I would say that Apple has a history of crippling hardware though; so even if it is in there, it doesn't mean we get to use it:

DVD-RW drives limited to DVD-R media only
Graphics cards only mirror displays
One of two processor cores present disabled in a 'Single' core machine.

Today's Macs (i.e. since the Intel switch) have 802.11a hardware - but again we can't use it.)

regards

mrtotes

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Answer 6

Sep 28, 2006 5:12 AM in response to mrtotes

I would suspect that IF apple provided a N card, it is only because they forsee having to use it in the future. Since it is not a approved standard yet and because they don't have a N standard basestation yet and because iTV is not released yet, I can see them temporarily blocking the N functionality. but when they release iTV next year and can all of the suddenly say that their core 2 duo (maybe even the core duo) computers already support it, it will be a feather in their cap.

glor

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