Wireless Master

Did you know that now there is a similarity between a poor farmer in a remote part of India, and a rich businessman in Chicago? Well, if you think there is no similarity, then think again. Both will benefit from the WiMAX revolution, which is the fourth generation of wireless technology. Look at it this way – the farmer will be able to speak on an inexpensive cell phone for a totally affordable price – even at a distance of many kilometers from his village; this is due to the low-cost services and increased coverage that WiMAX offers. The rich businessman in Chicago can use high-speed, continuous, and pervasive mobile Internet service from his laptop, on the way to a coffee parlor, or even in the Subway. In this article, we shall tell you all about WiMAX.

WiMAX stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, and is the next generation open standard that seeks to serve the increasing demands of users for high data throughput Broadband services like streaming media on the Internet, live video conferencing, and mobile TV on computers, and also mobile TV computers and handsets and PDAs. WiMAX, many people expect, will be integrated into the next generation mass market consumer devices and will offer something that does not exist at the present time – a speed similar to cable and metropolitan area coverage for people on the move, and all this at a much lower cost that we generally see today! In fact, WiMAX already offers Broadband services in many of the rural and emerging markets, which are currently not supported by wire line-based technologies, and WiMAX started its first deployment in developed countries, and has replaced both Wi-Fi (which was commonly used), and traditional cellular standards like 3G.

So what’s the history behind WiMAX? Well, wireless communication standards had evolved to become digital (Wi-Fi or GSM), and voice has now become one among several more bandwidth consuming (Broadband_ applications like high definition games or video. Today, more and more wireless IP (Internet protocol) network standards are trying continuously to satisfy the increasing demand for more bandwidth in more locations, for people on the move.

While Wi-Fi is very popular and successful today, and is convenient for use in homes and offices, it does have its share of disadvantages. One main disadvantage is that it has poor signal coverage – only 200 meters outdoors, and 30 meters indoors. Plus, Wi-Fi cannot support Broadband services while on the move, and does not support continuous connectivity between the Wi-Fi hotspots which would enable a person traveling from his office cubicle to the office conference room to have a continuous wireless conversation.

Thus WiMAX is a new standard that enhances the existing standards for wireless Broadband and gives you a Broadband service that is not only pervasive and mobile, but also fast and cheap. WiMAX allows you to connect anywhere within your service provider’s wide coverage area, and also gives you fast, efficient speeds and a Broadband experience that is familiar. The WiMAX standard is based on the IEEE 802.16 standard, which is also called WirelessLAN.