While Baltimore, Washington, D.C. and Chicago are currently basking in WiMAX service, the rest of the country will have to wait even longer due to a delay by Sprint. Don’t jump the gun, folks. Sprint just wants there to be more WiMAX enabled devices to accompany the rollout. Sprint Nextel spokesman Jeff Chaltas anticipates “several more mobile WiMAX devices will be available at commercial launch, making for a better experience and a wider range of devices for our XOHM customers.” The snafu in Australia also has nothing to do with the delay here in the States, says Chaltas. The technologies and how they are implemented are comparable to apples and oranges. Chaltas says the following is the main reason for the delay, → Read More
Hey you guys. I have a bold statement. One that may shock and amaze the entire technology subculture made of blog readers, blog writers, and kids that surf our site looking for references to Miley Cyrus. And here it is. This WiMAX thing might just catch on. Yes, I said it. Can you believe it? It also might be “big” and whatever other buzzwords (like “big”) that the major media conglomerates want to slather across its deliciously fat techno-belly. But I digress. Take a look at the above video for more. → Read More
Got a chance to play around with the WiMAX-enabled Nokia N810 that’ll be coming out soon. It’s basically the same deal as the currently-available N810 with the added convenience of being able to glom on to WiMAX networks. Nokia had a “Sky Cafe” rigged up to a gigantic crane that hoisted what basically amounted to a metal platform with an island bar and seat-belted swivel chairs. Since there’s no actual WiMAX network set up in Vegas yet, the device was using a regular Wi-Fi connection. It’s still a fun device to play with and once WiMAX is more widespread, it could make a killer mobile internet doodad. Check out how fast it boots up (towards the end of the video). I have the old N770 and it takes quite a while to get going. The N810 is quite a bit nimbler. → Read More
Hey, guess what? Remember all the rumors that were floating around about the WiMAX edition of the Nokia N810? Well, Nokia officially took the wraps off of it and I thought I’d tell you. The N810 is pretty much unchanged other than the addition of WiMAX. It comes with a Sprint XOHM account creation wizard to make the transition easy and fast. The N810 will seamlessly switch between Wi-Fi and WiMAX so you’re always connected. The first WiMAX enabled device, the N810, will become available this summer for $449. → Read More
A link to Nokia Europe shows a Nokia N810 tablet with WiMAX capabilities. It appears to be a standard issue N810 and we can only assume it will appear at CTIA this year. → Read More
In order for Sprint and Clearwire to really get this WiMax thing underway nationwide, they’re going to need some pretty substantial moolah — like $3 billion. According to the Wall Street Journal, “Comcast, the nation’s largest cable operator, would put up as much as $1 billion, while No. 2 Time Warner Cable would add $500 million” along with smaller cable operator Bright House Networks chipping in another $100 million to $200 million. Google’s another possible funding source as well. → Read More
The CEO of Buzz Broadband just shuttered his WiMAX network and, in a conference in Bangkok, called the technology worthless. He complains that out of line-of-sight with the antenna WiMAX degrades horribly, resulting in network failures. He is now using a number of standards including TD-CDMA to get about 10Mbps and will not be using WiMAX. Gulp! And we just bought a huge transmitter for the whole family. Australian WiMAX pioneer trashes technology as “miserable failure” [Commsday] → Read More
This is entirely based on conjecture, but Intel has revealed pricing for its upcoming Wi-Fi and WiMAX/Wi-Fi modules for the Montevina-based chips, which will begin to roll out in June. The rumor floating around the other week said that Apple would refresh the MB line with Montevina-based chips in June as well. Both modules are 802.11n compliant so the addition of either is more than likely, but what if Apple did include the Echo Peak module? There’s a fat chance in hell this would ever happen, but a WiMAX-enabled MB would be phenomenal, right? RIGHT?! However, Sprint’s XoHM network is rolling out very soon so this could happen, but the price of the WiMAX modules is nearly double that of the Wi-Fi module. I know I’d pay a little extra for WiMAX. What about you? Intel unveils prices for notebook WiMAX/Wi-Fi modules [Digi Times] → Read More
[photopress:rcpwifi_1.jpg,full,right] Intel has developed a way to transmit a standard Wi-Fi signal some 60 miles. Created for rural areas and the developing world, the technology, called rural connectivity platform, or RCP, works its magic primarily in software. An Intel manager said that while regular Wi-Fi access points are coded to time out if a signal isn’t received within a certain amount of time, RCP rewrites the rules so that the receiving access point doesn’t freak out because it’s waiting for the signal. → Read More
I doubt this will really effect us non-evil mastermind types, but WIMAX use frequencies that could interfere with satellite communications, rendering some services unusable. While I’m sure the WIMAX folks already have a fix for this, it’s important to become alarmed and post without thinking regarding the threat to our precious satellite connectivity. Long-range Wi-Fi threat to satellite communications Premium [Newscientist] → Read More
If the rumors are true then Nokia will announce the WiMAX N810 tablet that’s been swirling about for months. They did mention it coming way back in August so this seems to make sense. Doug and I will be on the ground to sort it all out for you in April. Nokia N810 with WiMAX launching April 1st at CTIA? [BGR] → Read More
[photopress:SWT_W100K_002.jpg,full,pp_image] We’re a couple months away from seeing any WiMAX activity here in the US, but it’s coming, at least. Will we have any WiMAX ready devices? Probably not unless the rumors of the Nokia N810 WiMAX tablet are true. Per the usual, Samsung has gone and announced a WiBro PMP that features a 4.3-inch WVGA touchscreen, DMB, DMB PIP, GPS, a 2-megapixel AF camera, the ability to support VoIP and video chat as well as support for MP3, XviD, WMV and H.26 videos. Not to mention 8GB of internal storage for the camera, which I find weird so I’ll be investigating as to whether or not that internal storage is solely dedicated to the camera. The SWT-W100K will retail for about $520. SWT-W100K: The New WiBro Based PMP from Samsung [Akihabara] → Read More
[photopress:indiawimax.jpg,full,center] This photo has nothing to do with WiMax and everything to do with tennis players in local garb Well someone’s taking this WiMax thing seriously. Someone, donchta know, in India. Tata, the giant Indian corp responsible for the $2,000 car and $20 cellphone, says it plans to have a WiMax network up and running by March, 2009. The network will cover some 200,000 people. The corp says it will invest some $500 million over the next three years and plans to target businesses in more than 100 cities and consumers in 15 cities. Meanwhile, we’re still waiting for Sprint’s WiMax network to go live sometime this spring. One quick look at the calendar shows that Sprint has only a few weeks left if it wants to make good on that promise. Tata Rolling Out Large WiMax Network in India [IDG/New York Times] → Read More
Dan Hesse, Sprint Nextel’s new CEO and the man in charge of turning the troubled company around, said in a conference call yesterday that Sprint’s still exploring the possibility of a WiMAX partnership with Clearwire. “Sprint has an enormous asset—nearly 100 megahertz of un-utilized spectrum—and we have the opportunity to have a three-year head start with our Xohm service, true wireless broadband with multi-megabit speed,” he said, according to a mocoNews.net article. “We have had wide ranging discussions with Clearwire on potential relationships but no final agreements have been reached.” → Read More
[photopress:wimaxrouter_1.jpg,full,right] Sprint’s nationwide launch of WiMAX is still a ways away, but the company charged with supplying routers has begun shipping them. Zyxel, which linked up with Sprint last summer, will initially ship only a few routers since WiMAX is currently only available in Chicago, Baltimore and DC. If nothing else, this shows that Sprint is moving along nicely with its mobile broadband platform. Not much else to mention. Zyxel begins shipping WiMAX routers to Sprint Nextel [DigiTimes] → Read More
It appears a new Nokia tablet is making the rounds in the rumor mill and this one comes WiMax-enabled. We’ll see what happens at CTIA in April. WiMax N810 Leaked, To Be Announced At CTIA? [via Into Mobile] → Read More
Remember the joint venture Sprint’s CEO, Hesse, was looking to form a couple weeks back that might help save WiMax? Well, it looks like Intel has taken the bait and Clearwire is joining in. According to sources close to the aforementioned companies, Intel is pitching in with $2 billion. Other backers are expected to be announced when the new deal is officially announced in the coming days. I can’t wait for WiMax! Sprint, Clearwire Near WiMax Deal [The Street] → Read More
Despite recent hiccups for Sprint in the last four to five months that may have led many to believe that Xohm aka WiMAX was dead in the water, we’ve learned that things are still on track for a spring time launch. However, it won’t be a full roll out of the service, but, rather, a soft launch, which is somewhat disappointing unless you’re in Baltimore, Chicago, or Washington, D.C.. Sprint’s vice president for technology development, Ali Tabassi, confirmed the roll out at MWC. When asked about a national roll out he was quoted as saying that he’s waiting “for finalization of our budget.” Yikes. It’s also worth mentioning that Sprint had anticipated reaching 100 million subscribers this year, but Tabassi put the kibosh on that as well. Sprint’s Limited WiMAX Launch Imminent [PC World] → Read More
Hell yeah. This guy knows the score. He’s standing in the middle of a busy metropolitan street as debris blows around behind him. Debris uprooted by Motorola’s super-fast WiMax devices, no doubt. How very green of you, Moto. Thrill to the speed of the “CPEi 750″ WiMax router with data and VOIP ports, run wild with the “200″ PC card for notebooks, and sit quietly at your desk with the “PCCw” wireless PC card. None of this stuff is actually up and running in the US yet but these devices have just been announced so maybe garbage will be blowing around in your town in the future. Motorola announces WiMAX hardware [bit-tech.net] Motorola WiMax [Motorola.com] → Read More
San Francisco, CA
