Techs & Trends
Is Sprextel going to Wimax?
They have joined the Wimax forum, and are abandoning iDen. Seems like a logical choice to me, but isn't jumping to a 4G technology a little risky? 😳
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Nevermind, just found out Sprextel stopped 4G research and is dumping money into EVDO. Maybe WAY in the future they will go to Wimax.
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CDMA EV-DO is the next step for 3G for Sprint-Nextel.
The two companies do have a lot of MMDS spectrum, though, which would be perfect for WiMax. They may opt to launch WiMax that way, in addition to the current CDMA offerings.
Then EV-DO would be their offering for mobility, while WiMax would be their fixed (home) offering, to compete with DSL and cable providers. Then they just need to team with DirecTV or Dish Network to offer a complete bundle for consumers - all on one bill.
That's basically the end game for everyone these days. The cable companies are already trying to do this. They offer TV, of course, and Internet. Now they are getting into phone service with VoIP, and soon they will be leveraging wi-fi/mobile phones in comb...
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The two companies do have a lot of MMDS spectrum, though, which would be perfect for WiMax. They may opt to launch WiMax that way, in addition to the current CDMA offerings.
Then EV-DO would be their offering for mobility, while WiMax would be their fixed (home) offering, to compete with DSL and cable providers. Then they just need to team with DirecTV or Dish Network to offer a complete bundle for consumers - all on one bill.
That's basically the end game for everyone these days. The cable companies are already trying to do this. They offer TV, of course, and Internet. Now they are getting into phone service with VoIP, and soon they will be leveraging wi-fi/mobile phones in comb...
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Is MMDS spectrum what Nextel uses for iDen? I don't know too much about iDen except that it has a kind of GSM basis.
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swamp_donkey said:
Is MMDS spectrum what Nextel uses for iDen?
No. The spectrum Nextel uses for iDEN is called SMR. It's near 800-900 MHz, but it's separate from the 800/850/900 MHz bands that are used for GSM, etc.
I don't know too much about iDen except that it has a kind of GSM basis.
Actually, it doesn't. On a technical level, iDEN is very different from GSM, CDMA, and all other digital wireless standards.
The GSM-iDEN relationship is a common misconception, due mostly to modern iDEN phones having SIM card slots. But that's actually a recent development. iDEN phones from 3-4 years ago did not have SIM cards. They were added just to ease international roaming (so you can us...
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Thanks for the clairification!! Everyone seems to know about GSM and CDMA, but iDEN seems to be a mystery. Too bad they are dumping it, it has worked well for them so far. They had better get something VERY good to replace it. I imagine they will take a good deal of time trying to merge several technologies, similar to the GAIT phones. It will be an interesting couple of years for the wireless industry... 😁
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