Intel’s new Grantsdale chipset, to be released in the first half of next year, will eliminate the need for a separate wireless access point. Thanks to the Grantsdale chipset, Pentium IV desktop computers will be able to act as WiFi hubs.

Today, Access Points and Wireless Routers (APs with multiple Ethernet ports), cost $50 to $150 and connect to a computer. Next year a desktop computer may double as a WiFi hub, simplifying the networking process. Incorporated into the computer, the Grantsdale chipset will not include an actual Wi-Fi radio - users will need to buy a wireless add-on card.

One disadvantage - desktop computers would have to be kept on 24-hours a day.

Sales of low-end access points could dip if PC owners rely on the capabilities of their Intel-powered desktop computers, but other analysts say the utility of a stand alone hub is hard to beat.

Next year, Intel’s graphic chip, the 865G, will be replaced by the Grantsdale-G. Intel’s Grantsdale-G will include integrated Intel Extreme Graphics 3 with dual-display support according to X-bit Labs. Features include PCI Express x16 graphics port (PEG x16), Intel Extreme Graphics 3 – Intel’s third generation integrated graphics core, dual-channel DDR-II SDRAM, dual-monitor, 4 Serial ATA-150 ports, 4 PCI Express x1 ports and Azalia audio. Grantsdale-G will have hardware support for Pixel Shaders 2.0 in order to properly render GUI interface of Microsoft’s next-generation software code-named Longhorn.

Intel, preparing for its upcoming Grantsdale line, will cut 865 series chipset pricing by as much as 6.3 per cent on 28 December. According to Intel’s roadmap, it will launch Grantsdale P and Grantsdale G chipsets supporting the new-generation Socket T (LGA775) Prescott processor in the second quarter of 2004.

Of course, stand-alone access points (that need no computer) are nothing new. Many options are available to simplify Hot Spot activation by eliminating the computer. They include:

• The Linksys WRT-54g can be converted into a solid-state public hotspot - without a computer. How? Splash54G runs out of the system RAM on the Linksys access point. NoCatSplash community LAN software can be embedded inside the device by flashing the ramdisk on the Linksys device. It’s apparently a little tricky, but a Linksys WRT-54 ($80), can be modified with a mini Linux distribution that installs inside the Linksys ramdisk. No computer necessary. Just plug the device into a DSL or cable modem.

• The Pronto Hotspot Controller is a highly integrated, small footprint access device, providing a complete ‘in a box’ solution. Pronto Hotspot Controller has the capability to attach local printers, storage devices and provide a demilitarized zone (dmz) for connecting property owners’ computers in a secure zone.

• FatPort has all the components a community network or startup WISP needs including a 200 mW wireless card. FatPoint’s one-piece access point and authentication gateway runs CompactBSD - a custom distribution of OpenBSD - that fits on Compact Flash cards. The distribution is available on Sourceforge to the open source community.

• Boingo’s “Hot Spot in a Box” ($895.99), uses a Colubris CN3000, pre-configured with Boingo’s software for billing and Authentication.

• The ZyAIR B-4000 combines an 802.11b wireless access point, router, 4-port switch, and wireless service gateway all in a single small-footprint box. No PC is needed - a one-button compact portable thermal printer connects directly to the gateway, allowing clerks and cashiers to easily print receipts with billing and password information. Even better - no back-end system integration is needed.

• Open AP was an earlier attempt to use access points as standalone gateway boxes. It required (now obsolete) hardware such as US Robotics (USR 2450), SMC EZconnect (2652W) Addtron (AWS-100) to flash with linux 2.4.17. The end product was said to be a linux-based access point providing full wireless services, including multipoint to multipoint wireless bridging without a computer.

• LocustWorld has a hardware/software implementation of an open access point platform capable of meeting the needs of community networks. The system is available for purchase as a ready-to-go system called the “MeshBox“, or the software can be freely downloaded from LocustWorld’s website. A bootable CD version of the MeshAP software can be used to instantly run the software on a laptop or desktop PC. Nothing is installed on the hard drive and everything runs from memory.

• Dave Sifry’s Sputnik lets you turn an Intel PC into a dedicated 802.11b wireless access point. The Sputnik Gateway is also available as an open source project. You must have one ordinary Ethernet card and an available PCMCIA slot for an Intersil Prism II chipset 802.11b card with 8.0.3 or higher firmware.

• PCTel software converts a PC into a fully functional access point. Their Segue SAM software works with Intersil-developed Wi-Fi cards installed on a PC. PRISM GT (802.11g) and PRISM WorldRadio (802.11a, b & g) radios are supported. It supports WPA and MAC filtering, Wireless Distribution, firewall functions and allows customization of the user interface. PCTel’s gateway controller provides roaming. PCTel’s Software Access Point puts the access point software on a PC and supports 802.11a, 802.11b, or 802.11g networks, depending on the chip set used in the adapter. SAM is being licensed to adapter manufacturers, ISPs, and vendors of 802.11 client hardware. The first SAM-capable systems are expected to hit the market early next year.

• Linux computers are often used as an access point. No stand-alone AP is required when coupled with Intersil Prism2/2.5/3 chipsets which feature Host AP firmware on the chip. Community LAN software like NoCat, enables management functions and “splash pages” to be incorporated without a standalone access point.

• The Soekris box boots from Compact Flash and includes multiple Ethernet interfaces, a mini-PCI slot, hardware watchdog, serial console, and an AMD 133 MHz processor. It’s often loaded with a mini Linux distribution and NoCatAuth for shared wireless Internet.

• OpenBrick is a small computer with has a 300 MHz (fanless) Geode processor, an on-board NIC, a PCMCIA slot, and boots from Compact Flash. It runs on DC power, and unlike the Soekris, also has USB ports. It comes standard with 128 MB RAM, and also has room for a 2.5″ hard drive.

• Embedded Solutions has a developer’s kit that supports Wifi wireless networking and data storage using CF cards. The uClinux kernel is preconfigured for wireless or flash storage. WiFi wireless networking is supported under uClinux by the Orinoco driver for the PRISM 2.5 wireless chipset.

Low income WiFi networks might Localize Content with a Jukebox Cloud, Radio station in a box and $200 handhelds. DailyWireless has more on tiny servers.

Posted by Sam Churchill on Saturday, November 29th, 2003 at 7:42 am.