There are many different wireless broadband technologies currently in use as well as poised for deployment in the near future. The big question is: which of these technologies is the best for any given consumer? The answer depends a lot on the needs of any particular consumer, but taking a look at the top three families of technology could help consumers answer that question in a much more informed manner. Even if no procurement or purchase is likely in the near future, sometimes it is simply nice to know what is on the market and to be able to make sense of all the different terminology being used.
Introducing the Reigning Champion: 3G
3G, short for third generation, is the term applied to a wide range of standards already deployed throughout the world. 3G wide-area wireless networks are currently used by wireless carriers, but can also be used by residences and businesses for a variety of purposes. The biggest problem with categorizing 3G for the purposes of making an informed purchasing/procurement decision is that 3G is not a single standard, but actually an entire family of standards. 3G is now slightly past its prime, but it still has the potential to serve a large customer base for years to come as a comparatively low-bandwidth wireless broadband service.
A Question of Standards
EDGE, DECT, and different flavors of CDMA are all part of the family of 3G standards, some of which have even been upgraded to what carriers are calling pre-4G. With download speeds of up to 14.0 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 5.8 Mbps, 3G is certainly fast enough for mobile devices, but whether or not it is fast enough to provide wireless broadband to consumers and businesses is another matter entirely. Individuals and small households looking for wireless data access may find the various 3G standards acceptable, but larger businesses looking into a backup data service to ensure smooth operations may find current 3G services insufficient for high-volume data needs.
In This Corner: 4G
As with the 3G family of standards, 4G is also not a single unified standard but rather a set of fourth generation standards. Again, some of the standards that comprise the 4G wireless standards are evolutionary or revolutionary extensions of 3G standards which are often extensions of 2G standards. 4G systems using cellular technologies offer bandwidth of around 1 Gbps for fixed location devices and approximately 10% of that. For home users, 4G networks are likely to be split by neighborhood, meaning that network architects can reduce projected overhead by reducing the need for cabling; simply set up cabling in each neighborhood to be serviced and a single mini-4G tower to communicate with other portions of the network without the need to install and bury wiring. This approach is referred to as ‘last-mile’ by industry insiders, and it is easy to understand why.
4G Has Serious Legs
This approach is similar with home and business class 3G, but the volume and performance of 4G is dramatically better thanks to advanced multi-spectrum/multi-antennae arrangements used by many of the different 4G technologies. Multi-spectrum communications means that data is transmitted on multiple frequencies, which reduces the chances of interference and thus increases overall performance. Multiple antennae are useful for this purpose as well as ensuring overall improved bandwidth. The old expression about many hands lightening the load might need to be paraphrased to multiple antennae make for better data transmission when discussing wireless broadband technologies, and is referred to as multiple-input/multiple-output, or MIMO for short. All 4G technologies use some form of MIMO as can be seen in the antennae arrays by 4G devices. The extra bandwidth offered by the various 4G standards makes 4G a real contender for business continuity plans.
In This Corner: WiMAX
WiMAX, also known as IEEE 802.16d-f, is designed to serve the same data-related markets as 4G: residences and small business via ‘last-mile’ deployment, and larger organizations in a very direct manner. There are key differences between WiMAX and the various fourth generation (4G) cellular-communications based technologies, but it is generally safe to say that WiMAX offers greater range. That range does come at a cost, but it might be one customers are willing to live with; the greater the distance between the WiMAX hardware of a consumer and the base station it communicates with, the lower the overall performance will be. In fact, the situation is somewhat similar to local WiFi networks where signal degradation takes place whenever distance and/or obstructions take place, but WiMAX has the potential to serve customers in excess of 40 miles away from a powerful base station in real world situations. That is some very serious reach to be sure, and no current 4G system can match it.
Different Flavors of WiMAX
Of course, distance is a problem for portable devices and 4G networks were primarily designed to serve the data needs of mobile devices with ‘last-mile’ and business service as a secondary consideration. That does not mean that WiMAX is better for business than 4G, but it certainly has its uses. For example, corporations with multiple offices may be able to set up a completely closed ultra-wide area network with their own WiMAX hardware that would be impractical with 4G or 3G due to the distances involved. On the other hand, if the provider’s tower is more than a dozen miles from the receiver unit, current WiMAX technologies may not live up to their full performance potential.
Place Your Bets
One thing is clear: it matter little whether WiMAX or 4G dominates the future of wireless broadband, or even if 3G manages to stick around a little bit longer; the winner will be the consumers. Those who find 3G acceptable are likely to find that 3G prices will decline perceptibly as 4G and WiMAX become more common. Consumers who are never far from the city center and are constantly mobile may prefer 4G or mobile WiMAX, while both 4G and WiMAX may also help reduce costs by enabling service providers to easily handle ‘last-mile’ installations without going through the hassle and expense of running countless miles of cabling. Such cabling costs will undoubtedly be passed on to consumers in the form of higher monthly service charges.
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