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WiMAX : The future of broadband Internet access?

Originally published on Thursday, August 25th, 2005

As you read this article, you’re likely connected to the Internet via a cable or DSL broadband connection. If you’re lucky, you’re enjoying a T-1 connection at your place of work or college campus. If you’re unlucky, you’re still using AOL and this page took 20 minutes to load (really, it’s time to upgrade :) ). It’s time we opened our hearts to a new type of Internet access.

Pros and cons of various broadband Internet alternatives

All forms of Internet access have advantages and disadvantages. With cable, you share your speed with everyone else connected to your local network. This can be one person, or, usually when you REALLY need to download a song, it can be your entire neighborhood. DSL is suitable for most users, and businesses, for that matter. With DSL, bandwidth is not shared (meaning consistent upload/download speeds), but speed deteriorates the further a customer is from the hub, or central phone office. Also, the highest advertised download speed for basic DSL service is less than the highest speed of a cable connection. An outdated or bad phone line can hurt DSL speeds even more. A shared problem of DSL and cable is that sometimes consumers are unable to purchase Internet access services. This is because cable and phone companies are still expanding their broadband networks. Depending on where you live, high-speed Internet may not be available.

Wi-Fi (802.11 wireless) Internet access

Wi-Fi (geeks refer to it by its technical name– 802.11) is the wireless technology used in homes and businesses. It allows people to roam free of wires with their laptops and still use the Web. As a result, wireless “hot spots” continue to pop up in major commercial establishments like restaurants and coffee shops, making the Web an even larger part of everyday life from many people. In downtown metropolitan areas, you can probably walk around with your laptop and choose from dozens of wireless networks to use for checking email or surfing the Web. All of this is made possible by Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi gets implemented over an existing hi-speed wired Internet connection. While it’s big on convenience, it does have shortcomings. For one, it’s not really wireless. You needs a wired broadband connection coming into your home/building before you can set up your wireless access (unless you steal your neighbor’s!). Wi-Fi is also susceptible to interference from common electronics, such as cordless phones, that use the same frequency to send information. Additionally, the further you move away from the wireless access point, the slower and less reliable the Internet connection becomes. The maximum advertised distance of 802.11 is 100 meters. This is a stretch at best.

Is there a true wireless Internet access option that’s also fast?

Yes. Well, almost. It’s not widely available to the general public yet, and only in the last year or so has it been offered to businesses, but WiMAX, technically known as the IEEE’s developing 802.16 standard, is a wireless technology that is quietly building interest. In short, WiMAX (which stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) is a Wireless Metropolitan Area Network (WMAN) technology. Through the use $20,000 base stations, WiMAX could replace wired networks entirely in buildings and on college campuses. Furthermore, it may do so at transfer rates of 70 MB/s, and distances up to 30 miles. What does this mean? At least 2 things. First, the advertised top speeds of WiMAX would far exceed those of cable, DSL, cellular, and of course, dial up (do I even need to mention this?) Second, people who previously could not get DSL or cable Internet services (because it wasn’t offered in their area) will have an additional, and perhaps better, option for accessing the Web.

Who owns WiMAX? Will it catch on?

Though WiMAX isn’t really “owned” by anyone, the technology’s development is funded by plenty. Currently, the WiMAX technology is supported by the WiMAX Forum, whose most notable members include Intel, Nokia, AOL, Nextel, Time Warner, and Motorola. With backers like these, it’s definitely not disappearing anytime soon.

WiMAX vs. cable, DSL, and Wi-Fi Internet access

In contrast to Wi-Fi (the 802.11 standard), cable, and DSL, WiMAX offers several advantages. First, its advertised speed is much higher than 802.11 wireless, as is the distance with which it can support users. WiMAX broadband will eliminate the tremendous costs of wiring buildings for Internet access. Also, there are many people who are unable to receive DSL or Cable Internet access in their homes. WiMAX could provide a viable alternative to these other broadband options. Simply put, WiMAX would be the world’s first TRUE high-speed wireless Internet access.

WI-MAX sounds great… so what’s the catch?

There is one key obstacle that could prevent WiMax from becoming popular– cost. Currently, 802.11 wireless has a stronghold on consumers and businesses alike. Since the implementation of 802.16 would require users to purchase new hardware for their computers, it is a strong possibility that people will not want to switch at first. There are countless homes, businesses, and college campuses, for example, that have already implemented 802.11 wireless networks over their existing LANs (local area networks). It will be hard to convince them to switch to an entirely different solution after incurring the costs of creating their current one.

What’s the latest on WI-MAX and when can I get it?

Currently, there are some businesses that are using WiMax, and it’s getting positive reviews. Towerstream, an Internet Service Privder (ISP) with offices in Middletown, RI, Boston, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago, offers 1.5 MB/s connectivity for $600 per month. This is an affordable solution for businesses, especially considering the savings as a result of eliminating hard wiring costs in buildings.

Recently, Vonage (an Internet telephony company) formed a partnership with Towerstream to offer broadband Internet / telephone service packages. The Vonage / Towerstream team presents a legitimate competitor against phone and cable companies who, up until this point, have been the sole providers of high-speed Internet/calling packages.

While ISPs like Towerstream already offer WiMAX services to businesses, consumer should get their first look in 2006.

Additional WiMAX reading

This article was written by Christopher Jason and published on Thursday, August 25th, 2005. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

2 Responses to “WiMAX : The future of broadband Internet access?”

  1. Faatima Muhammad Says:
    November 28th, 2006 at 11:55 am

    wanted to know what is the advantages and disadvantages of just WiMax broadband access?

  2. anthonyx26 Says:
    April 30th, 2007 at 11:40 pm

    > With cable, you share your
    > speed with everyone else
    > connected to your local
    > network. … With DSL,
    > bandwidth is not shared
    > (meaning consistent
    > upload/download speeds),
    > but speed

    This idea that DSL users enjoy some sort of dedicated fastlane to the Internet is a bunch of baloney. DSL operators have been trying to convince the public that this is the case ever since they started competing with cable 10 years ago. The truth is that all connections Internet connections are shared. The convergence point of shared data traffic lanes (the bottleneck) just happens at different points along the line.

    Real world experience with both connection types over the past 10 years has consistently shown that this alleged advantage of DSL over cable simply doesn’t exist in any form. Cable has and always will be the faster and more reliable connection type.

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