Early adopters were once regarded as trail blazers; now the industry treats us like paying guinea pigs. The very fact that you’re reading PC Plus effectively makes you a target – you’re a technology enthusiast, and undoubtedly want to be at the cutting edge. The trouble is, what you may early-adopt this year almost certainly won’t be what everyone is using next year.

Companies are increasingly under pressure to be first to the market with something new and different. How else can your interest be piqued and your performance anxiety poked so that you are forced to believe that what you currently have is not good enough, and that you’ve simply got to have that latest release? Wireless networking is the obvious demonstration.

When you bought into the 802.11b standard, you may have marvelled at the fact you were able to transfer data wirelessly between your computers. When 802.11g came out, you realised you could not only transfer data but also perform meaningful functions such as streaming media. And with Pre-N, the promise of enough bandwidth to stream high quality video proves tempting – but wait … it’s Pre-N! Pre-N? Yes, ‘pre’, as in released before it has undergone extensive compatibility and quality assurance checks. When the esteemed Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers have fully ratified the 802.11n networking standard for all to use, will your Pre-N kit even work with it?

The answer’s not clear at present. You may well be able to flash your hardware to bring it in line with the ratified standard. You may also find some graceful companies will honour your returns – doubtful, I know. What is clear is that wireless networking is developing at such a rate that even if you bought a final, ratified product this year, you may find it’s still out of date next year.

Fortunately PC Plus can help you with this conundrum. We’ll help you decide which standard to back and what kit to buy – and there’s no better place to start than our wireless networking technology focus in issue 244. Early release technologies are only one part of the early adopter’s problem. What if you’re presented with a choice between two or more competing technologies? This presents itself in the field of high-definition video. Sure, the hardware will probably work, but what happens if you plump for HD-DVD, while the rest of the world goes for Blu-ray discs? The inevitable dual format drives will be available, but undoubtedly with a premium to pay for your peace of mind. Some companies, including Toshiba, have even placed brave statements admitting to ‘potential new format issues’ on their advertising – are you prepared to put your money into either HD format?

Fear not! Our ‘DIY high definition’ feature (Issue 244) puts you in the driving seat. It shows where you can get HD video, what the best utilities to transcode between formats are and how best to enjoy the new high-quality video definitions using the power of your PC.

Early release technologies will always be an issue in the IT industry. But how can you be sure that the computing kit you buy today is the finished article? This growing concern has prompted our new campaign, ‘Stop selling us betas’, which highlights a number of areas where products released to market are clearly not ready. Why should we be paying to field test these ‘almost finished’ products?

We’ll always be victims of our own lust for technology. And while companies are prepared to feed our addictions, we will always be hungry for more. Just be careful what you swallow, especially when it’s marketing hype.