Shortrange WiMax
What is shortrange WiMax?
The Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) is a telecommunications technology aimed at providing wireless data over long distances in a variety of ways, from point-to-point links to full mobile cellular type access. It is based on the IEEE 802.16 standard, which is also called WirelessMAN.
In practical terms, WiMAX would operate similar to WiFi but at higher speeds, over greater distances and for a greater number of users. WiMAX could potentially erase the suburban and rural blackout areas that currently have no broadband Internet access because phone and cable companies have not yet run the necessary wires to those remote locations. Requiring no cables means it can be cost effective to be installed in low population density areas where cost is a major factor.
Speed of Access
The fastest WiFi connection can transmit up to 54 megabits per second under optimal conditions. WiMAX should be able to handle up to 70 megabits per second. Even when this 70 megabits split up between several dozen businesses or a few hundred home users, it should achieve transfer rates similar to cable.
WiFi's range is about 100 feet. WiMAX will cover a radius of roughly 30 miles with wireless access. The increased range is due to the frequencies used and the power of the transmitter. However, distance, terrain, weather and large buildings will act to reduce the maximum range in some circumstances, but the potential is there to cover very large areas of land.
How to receive WiMax
To receive WiMAX a user just needs to use a PCMCIA size adapter. The signals are transmitted using towers or base stations just like the mobile phone network. At present WiMAX is not widely available in laptops, however, all this is set to change later this year. Acer, Asus, Lenovo, Panasonic and Toshiba have all committed themselves to offering Centrino laptops with on-board WiMAX wireless broadband support.