Fujitsu and KDDI are coming out with a high-efficiency mobile WiMAX amplifier that could pave the way for cheaper and less energy consuming base stations. After optimizing the amplifier circuits of a gallium-nitride (GaN) HEMT device, Fujistu went on to build a prototype transmitter amplifier that can attain power efficiency of about 30 percent with… Continue Reading
Author Archives: Eliza Villarino
Staking Out WiMAX
After Sprint Nextel, other carriers have announced that they also plan to venture into WiMax. According to TeleGeography Research, over 200 operators worldwide are now testing the technology or have deployed commercial WiMax networks, with the most recent being Horizon Wi-Com and CTC Telcom in the U.S., the national Hellenic Telecommunications Organization in Greece, and… Continue Reading
Wireless Cures Hospital Bottlenecks
Sydney Children’s Hospital at Westmead has wrapped up a year-long trial of integrated wireless networking technologies to boost patient care and improve the efficiency of its manual processes. The project involved the installation of 40 Cisco 1200 series wireless networking access points, 40 Vocera hands-free communication badges, 10 Dell notebook computers, which used customized, battery-powered… Continue Reading
Tesco Expands Into VoIP Market
Tesco has begun offering VoIP service, allowing subscribers to call each other for free. Calls, however, to U.K. landlines and select international destinations entail a fee of as little as 2p per minute while those to U.K. mobile numbers require payment of 10p per minute except for Hutchison 3G, which is costlier by 15p. Costs… Continue Reading
The Killing Of Wi-Fi
According to John C. Dvorak, cellular service companies are out to kill Wi-Fi, being their largest threat in the long term. The technology’s popularity, as indicated by a Pew Internet & American Life Project survey, has grown significantly over the last two years: about 34 percent of Internet users secure online access via Wi-Fi connections,… Continue Reading
Dual-mode Service Won’t Interest US Consumers
Research firm Ovum expects the uptake of dual-mode phones to be minimal – only about 2 percent or 5.5 million people in the U.S. As such, it is urging equipment vendors and carriers to concentrate more on other opportunities for fixed-mobile convergence such as identity convergence and remote access. Identity convergence enables customers to keep… Continue Reading
NetStumbler: The Best Wi-Fi Tool Money Can’t Buy
Kirk Kirksey, author of Computer Factoids: Tales From the High-Tech Underbelly, called NetStumbler as “one of the greatest freebies of all time.” The downloadable program is a tool that sniffs WiFi signals and informs users if their wireless network is properly configured. But prior to downloading, users need to check if their wireless cards are… Continue Reading
San Francisco Turns Free Wi-Fi Into Long Battle
San Francisco residents may have to wait longer to get free WiFi access. Although Mayor Gavin Newsom signed the contract with Google and EarthLink, building the network has yet to start as the Board of Supervisors refused to consider the contract and is now studying how to convert the facility into a city-run public utility.… Continue Reading
Stealing Starbucks’ WiFi Customers
Starbucks clients need not pay the usual $10 per day to connect wirelessly. The said fee is charged by T-Mobile for each customer who wants to sign onto its 5,100 hotspots while they stay at U.S. Starbucks. Madrid-based Wi-Fi provider FON is offering a cheaper plan of $2 per day. The scheme allows owners of… Continue Reading
How Skype Is Collecting Private User Data
Kurt Sauer, Skype’s Chief Security Officer, has issued a statement clarifying the company’s process for collecting private user data. According to Sauer, Skype has a license for an EasyBits plug-in manager software framework, which manages the Extras Gallery of Skype for Windows. The EasyBits software houses digital rights management functionality that allows for protection of… Continue Reading
Two Vendors Bridge Cellular And Wi-Fi Nets
Siemens Communications and DiVitas Networks have launched solutions that enable seamless call switching between corporate cellular and wireless networks. The Siemens HiPath Mobile Connect Appliance maintains an SIP registry of all client handsets like dual-mode phones or Wi-Fi VOIP handsets, thus allowing for round-the-clock monitoring of these devices. The appliance links with SIP-based PBX, which… Continue Reading
Music And Video Players Add Wi-Fi Access
Although having Wi-Fi features, sales of Microsoft’s Zune have not taken off. Part of the reason is the lack of networking capabilities like an online store that can be accessed sans a PC, wireless syncing and Internet radio. Sandisk’s 4GB Sansa Connect device provides an alternative to Zune. The $250 gadget uses Zing to allow… Continue Reading
People With WiFi Spend More Time Online
A new study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project showed that people with home wireless networks go online more often than those with a wired broadband connection. In a survey of 798 Internet users, 72 percent of WiFi users check their email at least once daily while only 63 percent of wired broadband… Continue Reading
Vodacom Looking At WiMax And WiFi Services
Vodacom announced it will expand its offerings to include WiMax and WiFi services. The company recently made an investment in Wireless Business Solutions (WBS) or iBurst, one of only four firms that own a WiMax spectrum. Vodacom has earned a reputation of being unafraid to readily adopt new technologies – it is among the first… Continue Reading
Your Wi-Fi Can Tell People A Lot About You
According to David Maynor, chief technology officer at Errata Security, computers are “leaking all kinds of information that an attacker can use” once they connect to a Wi-Fi network, particularly in public areas such as airports. Existing tools can obtain important details like usernames and passwords for e-mail accounts and instant messengers. To address this… Continue Reading