Intel Completes WiMax Chipset Design

By NewsFactor Network | December 8, 2006

Intel says it has completed the design of its first mobile WiMax chip, which it hopes will begin appearing in notebooks as early as 2008. Notably, the chipmaker said it plans to integrate that chip with Wi-Fi to create a chipset it calls WiMax Connection 2300.

By most accounts, the new chips will move Intel closer to its goal of creating a total mobile WiMax platform. The idea is to provide a wireless Internet connection over a large area at faster speeds than current cellular networks are capable of delivering. The chipset design was demonstrated during a keynote speech delivered by Intel Vice President Sean Maloney at the 3G World Congress and Mobility Marketplace in Hong Kong.

Maloney predicted that WiMax Connection 2300 will help speed the deployment of mobile WiMax and accelerate the availability of a new wave of “personal broadband” for laptops and mobile devices. Maloney also noted that Intel wants to eliminate the “seams that prevent ubiquitous wireless connectivity.”

Wireless Integration

Many look to WiMax as a promising networking technology that will deliver wireless broadband access over a range much greater than that of Wi-Fi. While there are test installations of WiMax rolling out now in various places around the world, it could take a few years for this technology to replace cable and DSL broadband connections around the U.S.

Moreover, WiMax could be eclipsed by the rollout of high-speed cellular technologies. But with the design of the new WiMax chip, Intel has moved one step closer to its goal of creating an all-in-one platform that can handle several different wireless protocols. And at a certain point down the road, offering WiMax and Wi-Fi connectivity in a laptop — in addition to the latest high-speed cellular options — would give mobile users several options for accessing the Internet while on…

Bookmark and Share :-)