802.11n is the Spoiler at the Wireless HD Video Party

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — 802.11n Wi-Fi technology will dominate the wireless HD video market, at least for the next several years, reports In-Stat. Three other technologies are competing in this space–Wireless Home Digital Interface (WHDI), WirelessHD, and Ultrawideband (UWB). However, the ubiquity of Wi-Fi technology is proving unstoppable.

“802.11n is the next generation of the immensely popular Wi-Fi family. It promises data rates above 100Mbps and is backwards compatible,” says Brian O’Rourke, In-Stat analyst. “The installed base of Wi-Fi is immense, and effectively includes all mobile PCs, many mobile phones and a wide variety of CE devices. The primary drawback to 802.11n is expense, since it requires codec technology on both ends to transmit HD video. Neither of its primary competitors, WHDI and WirelessHD, requires codecs.”

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

• UWB will not be a major factor in the consumer electronics market. Many chip companies are leaving the market in late 2008 and 2009.
• Nearly 24 million digital TVs will ship with some type of Wireless HD video technology in 2013.
• WHDI and WirelessHD are being promoted by startups, but they are new, expensive, and power-hungry, which is generally not a recipe for quick market success.
• WHDI and WirelessHD will see a slow start, with fewer than eight million devices with those technologies shipped in 2013.

Recent In-Stat research, Wireless HD Video Technologies 2009: WHDI, WirelessHD, 802.11n, and UWB All Test the Waters (#IN0904455MI), which will be published shortly, covers the worldwide market for wireless HD video technology.