Apple included 802.11n capable wireless cards in many recent Core 2 Duo Macs but is going to be charging $1.99 to activate this aspect of the wirelss card unless you purchase a new AirPort Extreme base station for $179. They say they have to charge $1.99 because of accounting rules requiring a company to charge money if an enhancement is made to existing hardware. Other accountants disagree and believe Apple could legally give away the 802.11n activation for free.

MacRumors.com reports, ””GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) doesn’t require you to charge squat,” says Lynn Turner, managing director of research at Glass Lewis & Co. and a former chief accountant of the Securities and Exchange Commission. “You charge whatever you want. GAAP doesn’t even remotely address whether or not you charge for a significant functionality change. GAAP establishes what the proper accounting is, based on what you did or didn’t charge for it. ... The reaction from the Mac community appears to be mixed since the formal announcement from Apple. While many were happy to see the final price drop more than half from its previously rumored $4.99 pricetag, many others were frustrated at having to pay anything for hardware capability already in their systems.”