BearExtender 1200 and Turbo for Mac 802.11N/AC signal extenders unveiled

BearExtender has been making signal extenders for Macs for a few years now, such as the n3 WiFi adapter we reviewed back in 2010. Now the company has unveiled its latest two offerings, the 1200 being an 802.11n receiver and the Turbo being slated for 802.11AC. The 1200 has already been put up for pre-order and ships later this month, but those wanting the Turbo will need to wait a bit.

The BearExtender 1200 is a 1200mA receiver for those using 2.4GHz 802.11N wifi, offering an increase of up to 70-percent in the power department over the original model released by BearExtender, which you can see in the graph below. Another change over the original model is the inclusion of a 5 dBi antenna and a high-sensitivity receiver.

The BearExtender Turbo, meanwhile, is the 802.11AC offering, with the company boasting a max throughput speed about 3x faster than what you get from an 802.11n Mac at 867Mbps. This model offers USB 3.0 connectivity, is compatible with OS X Mavericks, and features dual antennas that can be upgraded if desired.

Said BearExtender's head of Product Development Roland Saekow: "BearExtender Turbo is a dual band (2.4 & 5 GHz) 802.11ac receiver with a focus on throughput speed. Our purpose in keeping BearExtender 1200 on the 2.4 GHz 802.11n band is to achieve the longest possible range on the most commonly used Wi-Fi band today while with BearExtender Turbo we are focused on offering extreme 802.11ac speeds to any Mac owner looking to upgrade."

The 1200 model is available for pre-order as of today for $49.97, and will ship out to buyers on August 5. The release date will follow for Canadian and European buyers later this month. The BearExtender Turbo isn't yet available for pre-order and its pricing hasn't been announced, with availability being slated for some time in October.

SOURCE: BearExtender