I love the idea of WiMax. In fact, when get out of college I hope to start an ISP based on the tech. I also love Sprint. But come on guys, roll out the network and do it quickly so you can beat the competition to the punch. Y’all already have a network that is just as fast as Verizon’s, and much faster than AT&T’s…and you’ve got more coverage than either of them. now take the next step…
Yes, I’m talking about Xohm, the purported $40-a-month non-contract, non-subsidized, device-centric (very cool from a cell phone carrier) WiMax network powered by Intel &co. Problem is, aside fromthe price it’s a disappointment as of yet. There are only three pilot cities so far (Chicago, Baltimore, D.C.) and the tech has to be augmented with other stuff if you want to go elsewhere and still have ‘net access. I’m absolutely in favor of $40-a-month wireless access with no contract required…especially if it’s low-latency, reasonably fast and can be used by whatever for whatever (all this is fulfilled by WiMax) but I want it where I am, and it looks to not be going that way for awhile. I mean come on, they say 100 million people covered by the end of the year or something like that. We’re talking coverage that makes AT&T’s lousy HSDPA network look good.
Oh, and the speed isn’t that great compared with current offerings. It is better, but not a ton better. We’re talking Xohm here, not the WiMax tech itself. WiMax can speed up to 70 Mbps, or about 10 Mbps at 10 km. Both ways. My idea for an ISP could thus pump 20 Mbps out of a WiMax link with no problem, assuming ample amplification or a nearby tower. Heck, you can even get a signal out at dozens of km, though the link quality would be lousy enough to make the connection unattractive as real broadband.
But Xohm? 2-4 Mbps down, 1-3 Mbps up. Not horrible, but a large proportion of cell phones today on Verizon and Sprint can download at megabit-plus speeds and upload at 100k+. I tether my smartphone to my computer and got 1.6 Mb/s down and about 130k up. This is from the original EVDO technology, which has since been replaced by Revision A in data cards. The maximum speeds there? 3.1 megabits down, 1.8 megabits up. Real-world speeds can get up around 2 Mb/s down, 500 kb/s up, with 200 ms latency. Okay, so Xohm halves ping times, drives up download speed a little, and at least doubles upload speeds. Anything else, while we’re waiting? Maybe more backbone lines so that the true potential of WiMax will be realized? Oh wait…that would also put EV-DO on very good footing relative to WiMax, since the real speed limit for EV-DO in many areas is how much backbone there is at a particular tower.
So maybe Xohm will start that wireless revolution and internet revolution we need so badly. Sprint can pll out all the stops because it isn’t a landline carrier anymore. But I wouldn’t bet on it at the feature and coverage level were seeing at the moment. Interesting how they’re being very conservative on how well internet video will play back on various speed connections. I know YouTube will work fine over a megabit, but they’re right about the other stuff.
All that said, I can’t wait for Xohm.