WiMax

Doubt on the prospects of WiMax are being driven by:

1. delays in certification testing
2. lack of definite carrier commitment
3. competition with other wireless technologies
4. expensive equipment.

Supporting User Hardware

Intel Corp. is leading a group of companies that continue to be WiMax champions. A Centrino notebook chip set that supports WiMax is due in 2007,

With LTE not anticipated to be ready as soon as WiMax, hardware availability may just help progress the cause of WiMax.

Connectivity

The road map for WiMax calls initially for wireless, fixed last-mile connectivity and then eventually for mobile broadband connectivity that allows roaming among base stations.

Sprint is putting a lot of money behind Mobile WiMax due to the TD Spectrum.

Range

Both fixed WiMax and mobile WiMax promise a range of several miles between client and base station and an average speed of as much as 40M bps per channel.

Commercial Viability

The bottom line for WiMax is money, with many doubting it will be profitable. "The challenge that we face over the next three to four years in the WiMax area is that we have to drive the price down," Maloney added. "All of us have to drive the deployment costs down so we can bridge that digital divide."

Initial fixed WiMax modems are expected to cost between $350 and $750.

Mobile WiMax will need to be under $100 to get into embedded computing devices

WiMax and 3G becoming more and more competitive, driving prices lower.

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