New Wi-Fi Brand Emerges: Wi-Fi Direct
The Wi-Fi Alliance, an industry trade group for the promotion of all things Wi-Fi, announced recently that a branded version of new wireless peer–to–peer networking protocols are in the pipeline. Dubbed Wi-Fi Direct, “The Wi-Fi Alliance expects to begin certification for this new specification in mid-2010, and products which achieve the certification will be designated Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ Wi-Fi Direct…Only Wi-Fi Alliance member companies will be able to certify devices to the new specification.”
The 802.11 standard already supports peer-to-peer mode for creating ad hoc mesh networks, referred to as an Independent Basic Service Set (IBSS), where any device that starts a mesh network chooses the network ID, the SSID or Service Set Identifier. As is currently the case, not having a Wi-Fi Alliance badge doesn’t preclude interoperability with certified devices; it just means that a particular product may not work with certified peers.
Wi-Fi Direct is an extension of the existing 802.11 specification that will allow certified products to connect, even without a Wi-Fi network. Its peer-to-peer technology will enable users to connect Wi-Fi Direct devices to each other anywhere, with or without a Wi-Fi network, hotspot, or Internet connection.
In addition, two or more compliant devices will be able to easily connect, enabling applications such as printing directly from a camera, sharing and syncing music and contacts directly with a friend, and displaying pictures directly from a mobile phone onto a TV.
“Wi-Fi Direct works on standards–based Wi-Fi–certified devices… It’s additional functionality beyond what’s in the 802.11 spec. You’ve got to have one device that supports the Wi-Fi Direct spec, and that’s a software upgrade to standard Wi-Fi–certified hardware,” said Kelly Davis–Felner, marketing director at the Wi-Fi Alliance during an interview with Technorati on October 20th.
“We’ll start testing and certifying products next year to that spec. That device can then go make a network with other Wi-Fi devices, several of them add a time, and those devices don’t even need this special kind of software/firmware load. But, you’ve got to have at least one that’s been certified to support the spec in order to make a Wi-Fi Direct connection or group."
The Wi–Fi Alliance is all about interoperability, Davis–Felner said. “There’s kind of two pieces to it. This is a Wi-Fi Alliance–defined specification that lives on top of the garden variety Wi-Fi MAC PHY. So, if you go and buy an access point or notebook today, we are going to have tested and certified that product to make sure it interoperates.
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