WiMax Wireless Broadband
Combining both broadband and wireless telecommunications technology, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access – otherwise known as WiMax – transmits data without the need for wires and acts as alternative method of connecting to the web to cable and DSL.
WiMax reaches parts other wireless broadband processes can’t
Fixed WiMax wireless broadband access can provide broadband coverage up to 30 miles. It is one of the leading telecommunications technologies that the world is looking to in order to bring wireless broadband to developing nations with a poor communications infrastructure; or where a country’s geographical spread is especially vast, like with the US. WiMax technology was used to assist in the rescue mission after the 2004 Indonesian tsunami and also used in areas affected by Hurricane Katrina.
WiMax can be used for wireless networking similarly to Wi-Fi and is a second generation method that reportedly gives higher performance, for example more efficient bandwidth use, interference avoidance and is more effective over long distances. Whereas a Wi-Fi arrangement may have a range of around 100 yards, covering say a coffee shop or an office floor, WiMax can create a wireless ‘hotspot’ of around six miles, covering a small city with one base station. Wi-Fi’s throughput is around 11 Mbps, WiMax is 72 Mbps (enough to service up to a thousand homes with high-speed access) so the differences are pretty significant.
2.2million WiMax wireless broadband users in 2008:
Leading telecommunications market research and analysis firm Maravedis reported that more than 22 WiMax service providers shipped a total of 2.2million WiMax CPEs in 2008 and the number of WiMax providers are growing along with the technology’s popularity and proven performance.
Many wireless broadband providers are buying into the future of WiMax. Intel has formed partnerships with some of them to make 4G wireless broadband access a reality across the world. With the continuing evolution of mobile broadband devices, WiMax developers are looking to integrate the technology in an ever increasing number of portable units including handsets, PC peripherals and embedded devices in laptops. WiMax service providers and laptop manufacturers are both jumping on the WiMax wireless broadband wagon: Dell is now offering WiMax on two notebooks in the US. Both the Dell Studio 17 and Studio 15 models have WiMax integrated with WiMax and will connect wherever WiMax hotspots are available across the certain US states.
