Clearwire sticking with WiMAX until at least 2012

Clearwire always seems to have commitment issue. Despite going steady with WiMAX, the company keeps saying that they might eventually part ways for different pastures -- namely LTE, should WiMAX turn out to be a dead end (talk about relationship pressure). That's still ongoing, as CEO Bill Morrow recently explained to CNET that its contract with Intel has been amended so that "either party can terminate the technology agreement within 30 days" but later adding that it definitely wouldn't hop on the LTE bandwagon before 2012. He strikes down some false hope a question later: "we won't be upgrading to LTE, if we do that, for a long time." Granted, time is a relative construct, and two years may be a "long time" to Bill. Oh, why do you keep stringing 'em both along?

[ryan74701 Posted May 10th 2010 11:46PM]

@N900

i hope so!

[Shemploo Posted May 10th 2010 10:47PM]

So, looks like going with a EVO 4G will be a Win/Win situation, if WiMAX Fail they will jump the boat and the same phone will get LTE.

Am I understanding this right?

[acraplegend Posted May 10th 2010 11:03PM]

@Shemploo
From what I understand, yes. Simple firmware update.

[scorpeo Posted May 10th 2010 11:15PM]

@Shemploo, not the LTE 700Mhz Verizon and At&T are launching, which has far less spectrum than LTE 2Ghz. Clear wants LTE 2Ghz.

[Shemploo Posted May 10th 2010 11:21PM]

@scorpeo

Am I to understand the 2Ghz is the better choice and Sprint has the option to pick up the better option of WiMax does not work out for them?

>.

[scorpeo Posted May 10th 2010 11:39PM]

@Shemploo, current Wimax is 2Ghz, if Clear were to pick up LTE it would have to be LTE 2Ghz. Make no mistake about it, Wimax is here to stay, if LTE 2Ghz proves to be superior in voice to Wimax, then expect to see LTE/Wimax devices in the future. Wimax is optimized for heavy data, etc. One of the main problems with LTE, there is no clear owner, Qualcomm owns most of the LTE patents. Also, keep in mind, LTE has yet to show it's teeth. No one knows how LTE will fair in the real-world.

[Shemploo Posted May 10th 2010 11:51PM]

@scorpeo

Thank You.

One thing I might add is that from what I read is that the further away from the tower one is, the faster the quality of speed degrades, so from what I understood, you need to have a lot of towers, which Clearwire does not have yet.

[scorpeo Posted May 11th 2010 12:08AM]

@Shemploo, you're welcome, hey, it has to start somewhere. When 3G was first launched, there weren't that many towers, I believe Sprints 4G rollout will outpace their 3G rollout. Look at it this way, who else has 4G?

[Shemploo Posted May 11th 2010 12:15AM]

@scorpeo

Yea, I haven't have a phone for about 2 years now.

I simply hated paying ~$100 a month for a phone that became outdated the minute I got it.

So, seeing Sprint come out with EVO 4G with wimax and a backup plan to do LTE, with one of the most affordable phone/data plans around.. I'm all aboard this one. Finally looking forward to owning a phone again.

[saddam3 Posted May 10th 2010 11:07PM]

for those asking what happens to sprint. If clear wire switches to lte n what happens to the evo 4G. Sprint ceo dan hesse n clear wire have stated that switching to lte frm wimax shld be really easy do the very matching technologys witch is like 80 percent I think. They claim that it wld be mre like a software update for it's towrs n the devices they provide servace for.

[Johnny Rockets Posted May 10th 2010 11:10PM]

I never understood: Who is Clearwire and why do we care about them?

Why do they have any control over whether WiMAX or LTE get adopted?

[saddam3 Posted May 10th 2010 11:29PM]

@Johnny Rockets clear wire is a company that was made frm sprints xhom company n old clear wire whitch did wireline internet. The new company was agreed to recive funding frm sprint. Comcast. Intel. Time warner cable. Warehouse networks. N google in exchange for a stake on the company n acess to the 4g network they're building. But because clear wire itself is a seprate entety it can choose what path to follow. Weather lte or it's current technology. Wimax. N it's hole sale partners. Which include majorty stake owner. Sprint nextel. Have to follow what clear goes with because there borrowing or using clears network. Makes sense?

[Johnny Rockets Posted May 10th 2010 11:33PM]

@saddam3

So you mean Clearwire is the only holder of all 4G physical "wire" in the US?

[saddam3 Posted May 11th 2010 5:00AM]

@Johnny Rockets at the moment. There the only ones with a 4G network in the us. But there nt the only physical holder of all wire in the states.

[Maxipad Posted May 10th 2010 11:54PM]

If Wimax is apparently better then why are AT&T and Verizon moving to LTE?

[PhuturePete Posted May 11th 2010 12:08AM]

@Maxipad Because LTE is a natural evolution to existing GSM infrastructures whereas WiMAX requires new investments in infrastructure that AT&T and Verizon are not interested in undertaking given the scale of their existing network infrastructure. Sprint has decidedly less infrastructure to install WiMAX onto making it "affordable" for them.

[Maxipad Posted May 11th 2010 12:46AM]

@PhuturePete I forgot that LTE was GSM. So Verizon will still have to invest more than AT&T since they're going from CDMA to GSM.

[Seany76 Posted May 11th 2010 12:26AM]

I still want an EVO! ditching this incredible as soon as it comes out...

[Minions Posted May 11th 2010 1:05AM]

I already talked to a clear rep about the EVO. They said more than likely if there was a switch to LTE there would be similar software to upgrade on the EVO allowing it to connect to LTE. At least as far as the clear people understood. This was at a clear launch event in Houston.

[Po Posted May 11th 2010 1:49PM]

Panda hates European commissions who try to set the standards for rest of world...

Panda also hates confusion about LTE/WiMAX. LTE=GSM mobile phone upgrade? WiMAX= Mobile WiFi upgrade? Ugh! :(