WiMax
What is WiMax?
WiMAX, also known as IEEE 802.16, is an alternative to wired and fiber optic data networks. There are actually two different types of WiMAX technology being deployed, and the lack of clear differentiation in nomenclature may be the cause of some common misconceptions. The IEEE 802.16-2004/802.16d WiMAX specification is for a fixed-location service, while the IEEE 802.16-2005/802.16e WiMax specification is for mobile devices. There are clear advantages to being mobile, but there are also advantages to having a dependable, fixed position.
Originally envisioned as a way to connect tens or hundreds of thousands of citizens and visitors of large, population-dense metropolitan areas, WiMAX has undergone a number of changes to appeal to a much wider audience. The goal of WiMax is to allow for data rates comparable to wireless networking over much greater distances but with significantly less interference.
WiMax: a Last Mile Solution
Many ISPs are considering and evaluating WiMAX for ‘last mile’ usage, which allows them to strategically deploy WiMAX towers to service suburbs or other areas and thus eliminate or reduce their infrastructure costs and maintenance needs. Furthermore, customers may be enticed by the possibility of simply going down to their local electronics store, picking up a WiMAX receiver and being able to set it up at their own leisure instead of waiting for a service crew to come out and handle the situation.
WiMax: Reliable Backup Solution
Those consumers and/or organizations that have zero tolerance for downtime may also be interested in a WiMAX connection to help guarantee constant connectivity regardless of issues with a provider. That is to say that if a provider of DSL or Cable internet services were to experience technical difficulty for anything short of a major natural disaster or act of war/terror, having a wireless connection such as WiMAX on standby might be prudent. Many manufacturers of high-end networking products already offer multi-segmented gateways that allow for multiple routers that connect to different modems for just such a purpose.
Practical Uses for WiMax:
Organizations and businesses may also want to use WiMAX to create their own wide area network. A chain of convenience stores or fast food restaurants could stream their surveillance video as well as inventory and sales data in real time to a local corporate office in order to provide additional security and promote better decision making processes with frequently updated information. There are nearly endless possible applications for a closed WiMAX network, and the idea of a private WiMAX WAN might appeal to organizations that are concerned about their existing VPN infrastructure.
Fixed Location WiMax:
While fixed-location WiMAX (IEEE 802.16-2004/802.16d) may be a viable alternative to cable, DSL, or even fiber optic networks in some cases, but that depends on the importance an individual or organization places on speed. Speeds vary from one fixed WiMAX service to the next, but most top tier WiMAX providers are currently offering between 5 and 10 Mbps download speeds and between 512 Kbs and 3 Mbps upload speeds with promises of greater performance in the future. Numerous reviewers have tested various WiMAX setups in various parts of the country, and the results seem to be very favorable but the speeds of fixed WiMAX solutions compete only in the lower-pricing strata at this time. Fiber optic solutions with 50 Mbps and higher data rates top the performance spectrum while VDSL and DOCSIS 3.x compete in the value, mainstream, and lower end of the performance spectrum in many markets.
The fastest fixed-location WiMAX implementations in the field at this time compete in the value and mainstream market as well as the very low end of the performance market that most providers would loosely define as being 10 Mbps downstream and at least 1 Mbps upstream data speeds. Fixed-location WiMAX does have an advantaged in the performance department: a remote WiMAX station can be easily upgraded. There are finite electrical limitations to wires of all kinds, even those feeding remote WiMAX terminals, but upgrading wiring to residences and businesses is far more expensive than upgrading wiring to a remote fixed-location WiMAX unit. Additionally, fixed-location WiMAX units can be placed intelligently, allowing for greater flexibility when it comes to wiring; a residence or an office complex cannot be moved around obstacles that make wiring difficult or more expensive. Only fiber optic is easier to upgrade once deployed, which would allow one to posit that at some point in the future, VDSL and coaxial cable networks will occupy the low-end of the broadband market while fiber optic networks and WiMAX cater to a wider range of performance needs.
Future Speed Increases
The promise of future speed increases also seems likely if the technology catches on, but there would seem to be a potential downside to this as well. Just as wireless networking devices can become inundated when serving too many wireless connections, it would seem likely that WiMAX would also see performance degradation of some kind when too many customers use a single tower. Offsetting this concern is the fact that WiMAX is innately multi-spectrum and the hardware used by ISPs is usually professional grade and designed with such concerns in mind.
Mobile WiMax:
Mobile WiMAX (IEEE 802.16-2005/802.16e) is generally a little slower than fixed-position WiMAX for a few reasons. Interference is an issue in some cases, though rarely a signal killer, but the biggest problem is that of the hardware. Mobile devices have very narrow power and thermal profiles that cannot be exceeded, and thus their ability to send data, even packet checksum data, is limited. This does not mean the Mobile WiMAX is not practical, because several major cities have already proven that it is, but it is generally not as fast or reliable as fixed position WiMAX.
Mobile WiMax Speeds
The speeds of Mobile WiMAX are often rated at 3 to 5 times that of 3G and several times that of edge technologies, but this comparison seems unfair because both 3G and edge often have dropped packets that need to be resent as a product of interference. In real world tests, many reviewers note that laptops connecting to various Mobile WiMAX networks around the country offer significantly faster performance than 3G or EDGE based cards.
Mobile WiMax Downsides
The downside to Mobile WiMAX is that many service providers are offering capped data plans with per-megabyte fees once the monthly limit has been exceeded. Given the speeds Mobile WiMAX is capable of, consumers should be very wary of data plans with caps. A great analogy would be a company selling a high performance V12 powered supercar with a 2-gallon fuel tank. Unlimited plans are available, but are often costly, which is certainly understandable; providers of mobile WiMAX want to discourage users from logging in and using data all day long with bandwidth caps. If they failed to do this, they would need to make expensive infrastructure upgrades and/or deal with upset customers that complain of poor performance.
The bottom line is the both fixed-location WiMAX and Mobile WiMAX are very viable solutions for many common problems faced by consumers and providers.
