Sooner than expected, telcos are now gearing up to provide wireless broadband speeds at a blazing speed of 10Mbps (megabits per second) or five times the current speed of 2Mbps. Thanks to the amazing technology called WiMAX or Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, it is now possible to access the internet at more than 2Mbps!
The name “WiMAX” was created by the WiMAX Forum, which was formed in June 2001 to promote conformity and interoperability of the telecommunications transmission standard. The forum describes WiMAX as “a standards-based technology enabling the delivery of last mile wireless broadband access as an alternative to cable and DSL.”
According to a friend of mine who was lucky enough to try out the service, the speed is really impressive even at 2Mbps. This might be because nobody else is using the system. According to an article on GoingWiMAX.com, Globe Telecoms has already rolled out 900 WiMAX sites in selected urban areas where there is demand for more bandwidth.
Update (02/16/2010): Liberty Telecoms, a subsidiary of San Miguel, is now offering WiMAX service within Metro Manila under the brand name Wi-Tribe. The standard 1Mbps unlimited access package starts at P900+/month which already includes the customer premise equipment (CPE) with service locked in for 2 years. Unfortunately, you cannot bring the plug-n-play Motorola CPE since it’s too big to be lugged around. The USB dongle is going to be available by mid-March of this year.
Comments on this entry are closed.