Companies should stay away from next-generation Wi-Fi equipment described as 802.11n compliant, Gartner has warned. 

"Plan to stay with Wi-Fi certified products under the 802.11a/b/g banner. Expect these technology investments to be good for at least four more years," a group of three Gartner analysts recommended, adding that 802.11n should not be considered until 2007.

The forthcoming 802.11n Wi-Fi standard will be compatible with existing 802.11a/b/g standards. It aims to increase the speed of Wi-Fi networks, boosting transmission rates from the current 54Mbps to 600Mbps and increasing the technology's range.

Broadcom and Marvell have already announced that they will start producing 'draft-compliant' chipsets, but Gartner labelled these claims as "misleading" and "premature". 

The analyst firm believes that the technology is likely to be changed before a final standard is approved, and that additional testing will be required to ensure compatibility with existing Wi-Fi standards.

Altogether it will take another year before the 802.11n standard is ready, Gartner predicted.