WiMAX, a 4G wireless digital communications standard, has intriguing prospects for the home broadband user. Although still largely in development, WiMAX - which has launched only in Portland and Baltimore - is designed to provide broadband wireless access up to 30 miles from a fixed station and three to ten miles from a mobile station. That is significantly farther than the distance from mobile stations currently offered by wireless local area networks which are limited to 100 to 300 feet.
WiMAX (also known as IEEE 802.16 technology) should begin hitting the broader marketplace in 2010, and may prove an excellent product for wireless networking as it uses bandwidth more efficiently than today's Wi-Fi systems - a fact which allows for higher speeds over longer distances. WiMAX can also support both fixed and mobile broadband applications.
WiMAX - Mobility Wherever You Surf the Web
The main benefit WiMAX will offer customers is much greater flexibility in accessing the Internet through a wireless connection. With traditional Wi-Fi technology, users can only access the Internet through setting up their own wireless local area network or being near a Wi-Fi hotspot, but hotspots have very limited range that tie users to a particular location to access the Web. With WiMAX, Internet users will be able to browse the Net from nearly anywhere. Whether you're on a bus, light rail, out in your car, visiting a friend, or traveling - basically wherever you have your Wi-Fi enabled computer or other device - you'll be able to access the Web with WiMAX.
WiMAX Speeds
The wireless industry is expecting a dramatic increase in the use of wireless networks, as much as 60 times more wireless traffic by 2013. WiMAX speeds may be as fast as 2 Mbps to 4 Mbps for downloads - a substantial increase in speed compared to an average of 700 Kbps on today's Wi-Fi networks, making WiMAX a better alternative for fast surfing and use of online applications.
WiMAX and Clearwire Corporation
Clearwire Corporation is the company behind the deployment of WiMAX - the country's first nationwide 4G mobile wireless network. Other strategic investors in WiMAX include Intel Capital, Comcast, Sprint, Google, Time Warner Cable, and Bright House Networks. Clearwire currently provides mobile WiMAX-based service, branded "Clear," in Portland and Baltimore with more market rollouts expected.
