Apple Hiring for Wireless 802.11ac System Test Engineers

Adding to existing rumors that Apple is planning to add high speed 802.11ac wireless networking to its lineup later in 2013, AppleBitch notes that Apple has posted a job listing for a System Test Engineer with expertise with 802.11ac network environments.

airportextreme

System Test Engineer - Wi-Fi (802.11)

System Test Engineering is looking for an experienced test engineer with excellent problem solving and communications skills. In this role, you will be testing, automating, leading, and working closely with the entire cross-functional team to ensure quality for Macintosh products.

- Technical knowledge of WiFi (802.11a,b,g, ac) and Ethernet network environments

802.11ac should roughly triple the speeds seen with the current 802.11n standard, supporting up to 450 Mbps on one antenna and up to 1.3 Gbps when used with three antennas as on Apple's latest Macs.

There is no indication of when Apple will begin introducing the new standard into existing products.

Related Forum: Networking

Popular Stories

ios 26 1 slide to stop

iOS 26.1 Brings Back 2007 Feature in New Way

Friday October 31, 2025 1:40 pm PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a small but helpful change for iPhones, and it could prevent you from running late to something important. Specifically, when an alarm goes off in the Clock app, there is a new "slide to stop" control on the screen for turning off the alarm. On previous iOS 26 versions, there is simply a large "stop" button, which could be accidentally tapped. The new ...
M5 MacBook Pro

Waiting for New Macs? Apple Just Shared Bad News

Friday October 31, 2025 7:32 am PDT by
Apple has just given a strong indication that it will not be releasing any additional new Macs for the remainder of the year. Apple's CFO Kevan Parekh dropped the hint during the company's earnings call on Thursday:On Mac, keep in mind, we expect to face a very difficult compare against the M4 MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and iMac launches in the year-ago quarter.Parekh essentially gave a heads up ...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

8 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 18 Pro

Thursday October 30, 2025 4:42 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max. One thing worth...
iOS 26

6 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 26.1

Wednesday October 29, 2025 4:22 am PDT by
Apple is about to drop iOS 26.1, the first major point release since iOS 26 was rolled out in September, and there are at least six notable changes and improvements to look forward to. We've rounded them up below. Apple has already provided developers and public beta testers with the release candidate version of iOS 26.1, which means Apple will likely roll out the update to all compatible...
Coffee Burgundy and Purple iPhone 18 Pro Mock 1

Leaker Outlines Potential New Colors for iPhone 18 Pro

Friday October 31, 2025 8:28 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone 18 Pro models could be available in new rich and warm color option, according to a known leaker. The Weibo user known as "Instant Digital" today suggested that next-year's iPhone 18 Pro models will be available in at least one of the following color options: Coffee, purple, and burgundy. The iPhone XR, iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPhone 14, and iPhone 14 Pro were all available in ...
Apple Foldable Thumb

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Friday October 31, 2025 8:52 am PDT by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone next year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that 2026 could indeed be the year that Apple releases its first foldable device. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that have been leaked about Apple's foldable iPhone so far. Ove...
apple tv hd

Apple Launched Its Big New Vision for TV 10 Years Ago Today

Thursday October 30, 2025 8:58 am PDT by
Apple launched the Apple TV HD, the Siri Remote, tvOS, and their accompanying App Store a decade ago today, marking a major overhaul of the device. The new vision for the Apple TV was unveiled on September 9, 2015 during Apple's "Hey Siri" event in San Francisco, where CEO Tim Cook introduced the device with the statement, "The future of TV is apps." The announcement represented a major...
iOS 26

Apple This November: iOS 26.2 Beta, Rumored New Products, and More

Thursday October 30, 2025 12:42 pm PDT by
Tomorrow is Halloween, and then November is upon us. Below, we outline what to expect from Apple next month, as the slower holiday season approaches. Apple is expected to kick off November by releasing iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1, macOS 26.1, watchOS 26.1, tvOS 26.1, and visionOS 26.1. With beta testing now wrapped up, the updates will likely be released this Monday, November 3 or Tuesday,...
iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Coming Soon: New Features for Your iPhone and Release Date

Monday October 27, 2025 7:55 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 26.1 update includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones, including a toggle for changing the appearance of the Liquid Glass design, "slide to stop" for alarms in the Clock app, and more. Below, we outline key details about iOS 26.1. Release Date Given that Apple has yet to seed an iOS 26.1 Release Candidate, which is typically the final beta version, the...
iOS 18 Siri Personal Context

Apple CEO Tim Cook Says Revamped Siri on Track to Launch Next Year

Thursday October 30, 2025 1:50 pm PDT by
Apple CEO Tim Cook today said that a more personalized version of Siri remains on track to launch at some point next year, with the new set of features expected to debut on the iPhone as part of iOS 26.4 in March or April. "We're also excited for a more personalized Siri," said Cook, on Apple's earnings call for the third quarter of the 2025 calendar year. "We're making good progress on it,...

Top Rated Comments

KnightWRX Avatar
167 months ago
could someone put those speeds in laymen terms? Would an average user notice any different when surfing the web?
Only if your ISP's link is more than the current 802.11n speeds of 150/300/450/600 mbps.

Which it probably isn't.

----------

Surfing the web will probably stay the same. However, downloading and uploading... :eek:
No, downloading and uploading either, unless again, you're one of the few lucky guys to get an Internet connection at more than the 802.11n bandwidth ratings.

This is for home networking improvements. Your ISP is most probably your current bottleneck to the Internet.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KnightWRX Avatar
167 months ago
What's all this "Likely" weasel word crap? Name a single ISP who has a commercial line even purely downstream above 150-600mbps. Nobody asking about whether or not it will affect them at home has that kind of connection, so give them the right answer.

The answer is no, this isn't going to improve your Internet experience one bit
I want to make no assumptions about people's internet connection. There is 1 Gbps connections offered by ISPs (Google Fiber) to some limited number of markets.

Of course, if you don't know, you most likely don't have a 1 Gbps connection to the Internet, but again, let's not make assumptions. Likely is not a weasel word, it's simply indicating that the responses applies to the vast majority, but not the totality of users.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
blackhand1001 Avatar
167 months ago
I'd like to see what the real speeds end up being cause even with N wireless file transfers are still slower than they would be on fast ethernet (100mbps) and way slower than gigabit. The real rates are never anywhere close to what they say in the specs.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iRCL Avatar
167 months ago
What's all this "Likely" weasel word crap? Name a single ISP who has a commercial line even purely downstream above 150-600mbps. Nobody asking about whether or not it will affect them at home has that kind of connection, so give them the right answer.

The answer is no, this isn't going to improve your Internet experience one bit
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
b0fh Avatar
167 months ago
could someone put those speeds in laymen terms? Would an average user notice any difference when surfing the web?
Think of it in terms of pipes :D:D:D

You have one pipe coming in (DLS/Cable/FIOS/whatever). That's usually between 1Mbps to 30Mbps.

Now, inside the house, you have a giant hose, capable of 150/300/450 Mbps and now 1.3 Gbps.

Will your uploads and downloads go any faster? Why? Why not?

However, if you had multiple wireless devices in the house, and assuming they all support the new standard, then where you were not able to wirelessly stream (from your media server inside the house) 1080p under 802.11a/b/g, but you could with 802.11n, now you can stream it to multiple devices...
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KnightWRX Avatar
167 months ago
YES :) In Layman's terms this will not improve the speed of web browsing, but it will seriously improve Home Sharing (and related uses) when streaming to multiple devices simultaneously and streaming high bit-rate (high quality) and high resolution videos :) please include QoS when this is incorporated into your router product line!

Multiple streams is right. A Blu-ray disc's bitrate is what ? 40 mbps ? 50 mbps ?

This is more for network backups/transfer of large files in your home, basically replacing your Gigabit Ethernet.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)