Airport 802.11n Enabler: To Install It or Not To Install It?

As we reported yesterday Apple silently released the Airport 802.11n enabler to allows Mac with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor (except the 17-inch, 1.83GHz iMac) or a Mac Pro with AirPort Extreme to get full WiFi capabilities.
- If you have received recently or if you are waiting for a Core 2 Duo based Mac or Mac Pro, the airport 802.11n update might be already included. To check it, open "Network utility" and look at the information displayed concerning the Airport interface: if you can see something similar to the screen capture below then your computer is compatible with all WiFi formats, 802.11 a/b/g/n, and you do not need to purchase this update.

- If this update is not free, Apple has made software license for the 802.11n Enabler software more flexible as you can install and use it on all computers under your ownership or control.
- The bad news: this enabler does NOT solve the sensitivity and transfer speed issues faced by iMac Core 2 Duo and Mac Pro owners when using 802.11g network. This is a real scandal when asking money for an enabler that does not solve on-going issues.
- We have tried to force the enabler to be launched on a non supported model, a MB Pro Core Duo, but the patch did not provide any improvement or any other changes, it still does not support 802.11n.
- In addition to the current issues with 802.11g not being fixed, the enabler does NOT allow creation of a 802.11n local network between two 802.11n-based machines (Let's say 2 iMac C2D). Apple will probably have to dig into OSX network layer to allow it.
In summary, better wait than purchase this enabler, save your money for Leopard, this will be a much better investment.
En résumé, à moins d'avoir tout ce qui est nécessaire pour en tirer partie, cette mise à jour est inutile.