 - Fixed wireless refers to the operation of wireless devices or systems in fixed locations such as homes and offices. Fixed wireless devices usually derive their electrical power from the utility mains, unlike mobile wireless or portable wireless which tend to be battery-powered. Although mobile and portable systems can be used in fixed locations, efficiency and bandwidth are compromised compared with fixed systems. Mobile or portable, battery-powered wireless systems can serve as emergency backups for fixed systems in case of a power blackout or natural disaster.The technology for wireless connection to the Internet is as old as the Net iteself. Amateur radio operators began "patching" into telephone lines with fixed, mobile, and portable two-way voice radios in the middle of the 20th Century. A wireless modem works something like an amateur-radio "phone patch," except faster. High-end fixed wireless employs broadband modems that bypass the telephone system and offer Internet access hundreds of times faster than twisted-pair hard-wired connections or cell-phone modems. Some of the most important assets of fixed wireless are as follows. - Subscribers can be added or moved (to a certain extent) without modifying the infrastructure.
- Subscribers in remote areas can be brought into a network without the need for stringing new cables or optical fibers across the countryside.
- Broad bandwidth is possible because there are no wires or cables to introduce reactance into the connection (reactance limits bandwidth by preventing signals higher than a certain frequency from efficiently propagating).
- As the number of subscribers increases, the connection cost per subscriber goes down.
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Learn more about WiMax, 3G and Wireless Broadband |
| WiMAX tutorial: This tutorial explains WiMAX technology, applications and terminology. It also provides an overview of WiMAX services, performance, security and devices. |
| 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G: 3G wireless overview and history lesson. |
| Definitions: CDMA, TDMA and GSM: Definitions: CDMA, TDMA and GSM |
| 3G wireless: The long and winding road: In this tip, Lisa Phifer sorts out the cellular alphabet soup and looks at the complex history behind today's 3G wireless. |
| Mobile and Wireless Protocols: This Mobile and Wireless Protocols Guide explains the various mobile protocols and offers tips and advice for selecting and using them in your organization. |
| WiMax or LTE: Which is the future of wireless?: 4G wireless vendors are developing a competitive marketplace for the future by choosing two different technologies -- WiMax and LTE. |
| Using 3G phones for laptop Internet access: Learn how to use a 3G phone for laptop Internet access. |
| CDMA2000: A 3G mobile technology: CDMA2000 is a 3G mobile technology that includes 1xRTT, EV-DO Rev 0, EV-DO Rev A and EV-DO Rev B, and it competes with GSM technologies. |
| CDMA technology: An understanding of CDMA technology is critical for mobile managers when they are trying to select the best cellular solution for their enterprise mobile strategy. |
| Mobile Radio Systems: This chapter is an intro to the various mobile radio systems. It provides a foundation for comparing competing mobile radio access systems for supporting mobile broadband services. |
| WiMAX tutorial: This tutorial explains WiMAX technology, applications and terminology. It also provides an overview of WiMAX services, performance, security and devices. |
| Smartphone user review: Apple iPhone 3G: After much anticipation, Apple released its updated iPhone on Friday, offering a device that operates on a 3G network. |
| CONTRIBUTORS: |
Ben Mann |
| LAST UPDATED: |
17 Oct 2008
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