As companies compete for any advantage, some unlikely names are showing interest in radio spectrum. The FCC is set to auction off 90Mhz pieces of the 1.7GHz to 2.1GHz bands. Names such as Google and Time Warner and Verizon are all being listed as possibly interested in pieces of the spectrum. The theories on what… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: May 2006
HP Launches Wi-Fi Rival To Cisco
Hewlett-Packard is introducing a Wi-Fi switch module for its ProCurve 5300 edge switch. The company believes its Wireless Edge Services Module (WESM) is more tightly integrated than the Wi-Fi Services Module (WISM) from rival Cisco. HP plans to sell WESM, which will initially include support for 12 access points or “Radio Ports”, for 3,699 euros… Continue Reading
Google Teams With Nokia For Wi-Fi Mobile Phone Service
Google is working with Nokia to launch a handheld device that will include Google’s instant messenger and Internet calling service called Google Talk. The plan envisions users to tap a wireless Internet network instead of cellular signals to make calls. The service will be restricted to people with Google Talk on their PCs or Nokia… Continue Reading
WiMAX Poised For Big Growth, Says Research Firm
With an expected compound annual growth rate of more than 268 percent, the WiMAX market is taking the lead in the mobile wireless race. According to market research analyst firm Semico Research Corp., WiMAX is “poised to do for broadband what cellular has done for phones — make broadband mobile.” Investors such as Intel and… Continue Reading
$3.6M Euro Project Targets Integrated Wireless Nets
Researchers at Imperial College, London have launched a project called MEMBRANE (Multi-Element Multihop Backhaul Reconfigurable Antenna Network), which seeks to come out with an integrated set of antennae and wireless networking technologies. The $3.6 million project is supported by Intel, Lucent Technologies and Telefonica as well as the European Commission. The group hopes to have… Continue Reading
Alienware Chooses Airgo Chipsets For New Laptops
Alienware, a soon-to-be-acquired-by-Dell niche PC maker, has targeted chipsets made by Airgo Networks to power two of the Alienware game-focused laptops. The notebooks — Aurora m9700 and Aurora mALX — will come equipped with Airgo’s Gen3 True MIMO technology (multiple input, multiple output), combining mobility plus Wi-Fi connections at speeds fast enough for high-performance gaming.… Continue Reading
Phoenix Plans To Create Downtown Wi-Fi Network
Downtown Phoenix is jumping on the municipal WiFi bandwagon. While not as ambitious at San Francisco, the plan will try and cover all of the Copper Square area. The plan does not include a free service option. The plan seems to be aimed at business people on lunch and tourists. The project is still at… Continue Reading
Free Wi-Fi in S.F. More Than Flipping A Switch
No one ever said it would be easy. The plan to blanket San Fracisco with wireless is not a matter of flipping a switch. San Francisco is full of hills and tall buildings, things that usually are problems for wireless networks. The network will probobly require $15 million and 36 nodes per square mile. It… Continue Reading
Meru Makes A Wi-Fi Backbone
Meru Networks has added wireless backbone support to it’s lineup. The technology allows for accesspoints to no longer be chained to a wire. The technology bonds multiple WiFi channels together to allow for more bandwidth on the backhaul, while reserving channels for clients to use. This should allow for more bandwidth in between building backbones… Continue Reading
Lock Out Wi-Fi Users With Fingerprint Reader
Silex Technology unveiled a new device that will require fingerprint identification to gain access to a WiFi network. According to a Silex spokesman, the Silex Bio-NetGuard will likely be sold for $499. It contains a Fujitsu MBF200 fingerprint sensor, which when touched, will prompt the device to scour its database of 27,000 unique fingerprint key… Continue Reading
Philly Takes Another Step In Wi-Fi Net
Philadelphia’s municipal Wi-Fi network is soon to be a reality; a city subcommittee recently signed off on the new project, with Earthlink being awarded the network contract. Wi-Fi connections are hoped to reach throughout the city, but it’s a no-go until the project passes full city-council approval. Via [wirelessweek.com]… Continue Reading
WiFi Is Us
Japanese chip giant Renesas Technology Corp. is cooperating with Israeli company, Metalink, to develop a high-speed video transmission solution for domestic consumers’ wireless networks. Renesas, in control of a 33% share of the global embedded cip market for semiconductors in elecronic entertainment, cellular phones, automotive navigation devices, and more, plans to integrate Metalink’s 802.11n compliant… Continue Reading
802.11n Standard Fails To Gain IEEE Approval
With the draft of 802.11n back on the drawing board, vendors who jumped the gun and produced so called ‘pre-n’ gear are now faced with the difficult challenge of what to do if thier products are not sompatible with the final standard. It will now be interesting to see if the devices live up to… Continue Reading
Moscow Wi-Fi Network To Reach 4 Million Homes
Nortel and Russian Internet service provider Golden Telecom have joined forces to establish a Wi-Fi mesh network in Moscow. The network, according to the companies, will utilize 5,000 Nortel-supplied access points to service some 3.9 million homes in the city. The partners assured that the network will be secure and can support VoIP and location-based… Continue Reading
The New Wireless Wars
The wireless industry, which was down to just three major players, is on the verge of expanding. The FCC kicks off its wireless spectrum auction in June — now named Auction 66, and worth an estimated $8 billion to $15 billion — and more than the usual suspects are expected to line up for a… Continue Reading