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Rover Puck WiMAX hotspot gets FCC'd, traction on ice subject of fierce debate
The pool of choices for WiMAX hotspots continues to expand, and thanks to the FCC, we now know of another up-and-comer. The Rover Puck -- trademarked by Clearwire and previously unheard of -- joins the ranks Sprint's Overdrive and its various rebrandings by providing pocketable 4G WiFi service. Unlike its predecessors, however, we finally have a new, more aerodynamic form factor. There isn't much to the glean from the user manual at this point, and the oft-referenced Rover website still isn't live -- a WHOIS lookup reveals it was last updated via GoDaddy on July 2008 with no other details disclosed. So, until we get some word from the official news pipelines, a plethora of external / internal photos and user manual screenshots are only a mouseclick away. %Gallery-98561% %Gallery-98562%
Clearwire ships Spot 4G and Spot 4G+ WiMAX portable hotspots
It's not like you couldn't snag an Overdrive from Sprint or an IntelliGo from Time Warner Cable, but if you're dead-set on nabbing your WiMAX gear directly from Clearwire, we've good splendiferous news to share. The 4G-only Spot 4G and 3G / 4G Spot 4G+ (which is just a rebadged Overdrive, shown here) were up for pre-order prior to today, but now both are available in-store and online nationwide. In case the prices have slipped your mind, the Spot 4G will run you $99.99 (or $4.99 per month on a lease) with service plans starting at $40/month, while the Spot 4G+ goes for $224.99 (or $5.99 per month on a lease) with service plans starting at $55/month. Surf on, surfers.
TWC rebadges Sprint Overdrive, offers it as IntelliGo mobile 3G / 4G hotspot
And then, there were three. Three ways to snag an Overdrive, that is. Months after Sprint issued the original 3G / 4G mobile hotspot, Clear came along and introduced a rebadged version of the same thing. Now, Time Warner Cable (who is also in cahoots with Sprint and Clear) is following suit by tossing its logo on the all-too-familiar device and christening it the IntelliGo. Functionally, it's the same as ever -- there's a built-in battery that'll provide 3G / 4G mobile internet to a smattering (read: five) of nearby devices via WiFi, a microSD slot and USB connectivity. The difference here, though, is that it'll run you $49.99 on a two-year contract, and the fee will "vary by region." Speaking of regions, it'll be available wherever Road Runner Mobile is offered, which means Texas, North Carolina, Hawaii and Kansas City for now.
Sprint ships dual-model 3G / 4G 250U USB WWAN modem, invites Mac to the party
Remember that cute-as-a-button 3G / 4G dual-mode WWAN stick that Clearwire outed a few days back? That little guy just made its way over to the Sprint side of things, giving folks yet another option when it comes time to pull the trigger on a device to get you onto the WiMAX superhighway. The Sierra Wireless-built 250U is available now through Business Direct and Business Solutions Partners followed by full channel availability by mid-July, with this bugger being the first in Sprint's arsenal to offer native dual-mode support in OS X as well as twin antenna ports. Naturally, Windows machines are also compatible, and the minuscule design sure makes it more attractive than those prone-to-snapping alternatives. It's available for precisely nothing so long as you sign a two-year data plan.
Clearwire intros new WiMAX mobile hotspots, Mac-friendly 3G / 4G USB WWAN modem
Lookin' for yet another avenue to hop on the 4G superhighway? Fret not, as Clearwire has just doled out a trio of new products intended to help you do just that. Prior to today, you had only a smattering of options to actually tap into Clear's WiMAX network, but the Clear Spot 4G (WiMAX only), Clear Spot 4G+ (dual-mode with 3G / 4G support) and Clear 4G+ Mobile USB stick have all arrived to give choosy moms more choices. The prior two are simply mobile broadband hotspots (think MiFi, but for 4G), with the 4G+ offering support for Sprint's 3G network if you happen to leave one of those few WiMAX zones already lit. The USB stick is particularly interesting, as it's the first dual-mode device hawked by Clear that's fully compatible with Apple OS X. The Clear Spot 4G will be made by InfoMark and available to purchase for $99.99 next month; those who hate committing can also lease one for $4.99 per month. The Sierra Wireless-built Spot 4G+ (a rebadged Overdrive; shown left) demands a hefty premium for that 3G support, with an MSRP of $224.99 (or least for $5.99 per month) and a similar July ship date. The 4G+ Mobile USB stick (shown right) will support OS X 10.5.x and 10.6.x (along with Windows, of course), and can be snapped up today for $114.99 or leased monthly for $5.99. Head on past the break if you're thirsty for more. %Gallery-95571%
Sprint's WiMAX service teases EVO 4G-toting New Yorkers (update: LA and SF, too)
We'd figured that Sprint and partner Clearwire were going to have a devil of a time rolling out WiMAX this year in New York City; urban canyons are always tricky, of course, but their oddball 2500MHz spectrum allocation isn't the best at penetrating buildings and other structures, either. On that note, we'd been tipped earlier this week that a reader was seeing some weak WiMAX reception for the first time on his EVO 4G near Coney Island (see a shot after the break), and now, we've been able to independently confirm it on one of our own units -- in saturated Midtown, no less -- though we weren't able to do much with it beyond get a notification that a "4G network is available." Clearly this isn't ready for primetime use, but it's a good sign that these guys have officially started lighting up a few cells here and there. 1080p streaming, anyone? [Thanks, r0ckstar_23] Update: We're getting tipped that folks are seeing some occasional 4G action in LA and San Francisco, so keep a close eye on those EVOs!
Clearwire WiMAX to cover 120 million prospective HTC EVO 4G owners by end of year
With the HTC EVO dual-mode 3G/4G handset launching this summer (and nearly ready for pre-order) with built-in hotspot capability, we've got a pretty good idea what all you US Americans are wondering: is WiMAX available in my city? Well, buried inside the Clearwire financials is mention of the 19 additional cities scheduled for WiMAXing this summer, joining the 32 markets (pictured above) and 41 million people already served by its 4G network offering 3Mbps to 6Mbps average downloads with an occasional 10Mbps peak: Clearwire also today announced plans to launch 4G mobile broadband service in 19 additional cities this summer, including previously announced markets Kansas City, KS; St. Louis, MO; Salt Lake City, UT, and the core area of Washington, D.C. and newly announced markets Nashville, TN; Daytona, Orlando and Tampa, FL; Rochester and Syracuse, NY; Merced, Modesto, Stockton, and Visalia, CA; Wilmington, DE; Grand Rapids, MI; Eugene, OR; and Yakima and Tri-Cities, WA. Things will get really interesting later in 2010 when Clearwire and Sprint take their 4G mobile broadband network to New York City, Los Angeles, Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, the San Francisco Bay Area, Miami, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Pittsburgh for a 120 million person strong data footprint. LTE who?
Clearwire promises Clear-branded HTC and Samsung WiMAX phones this year
Without going into much detail, Clearwire mentioned on its first quarter earnings call today that WiMAX-capable phones bearing the Clear name from both Samsung and HTC are "expected" to be available before 2010's out, which is a pretty optimistic affirmation of comments the company made earlier this year. It describes the Sammy as "an Android-based 3G/4G/WiFi device optimized for heavy video and video communications use," while the HTC's language leaves out the platform -- it's just called "a 3G/4G/WiFi enabled phone," leading us to believe that this puppy could very well be running Windows Phone 7. If that's the case, we can understand why HTC wouldn't want Clearwire spilling the beans since they've yet to officially announce any plans for jumping into the WinPho 7 game. In fact, Clearwire went so far as to say on the call that the HTC device would not be the EVO 4G, so yeah, we can totally buy that there's some Microsoft action going on behind the scenes here. As for Clearwire's health, it has seen a 94 percent year-over-year boost in total WiMAX subscribers for a total just shy of a million -- and interestingly, the overwhelming majority of those are retail, not wholesale, meaning that folks are running Clear-branded equipment. We expect that to change dramatically once Sprint's Overdrive gets a little more penetration and the EVO comes into play, but for now, some 814,000 customers are familiar with the Clear logo. They lost a hair over $94 million in the quarter, but hey, in the scheme of things, that's peanuts -- building out networks isn't a cheap endeavor, after all.
Clear security lanes storming back to airports, principled travelers high five one another
Don't call it a comeback. Or do, because that's precisely what this is. After Clear shuffled its final incorruptible passenger through a speedy security lane in June of last year, the company closed up shop and forced even the nicest of travelers to re-join the herds. Thankfully for us all, Alclear has decided that life's simply no good without a hasty security option at airports, and it has plopped down $6 million in order to acquire the assets of Verified Identity Pass out of bankruptcy protection. According to our hombres at Gadling, that purchase price doesn't include individual airport contracts, so it'll be an uphill battle getting these lanes back into the places in which they're needed. If all goes well, we could see the first Clear avenues reopen this fall, with pricing set at $179 per year for unlimited individual use or $229 per year for unlimited family use. Head on past the break for more details on reactivating old subscriptions and the full presser.
Intel, Motorola, Samsung and more join forces to support WiMAX 2
You probably have yet to experience its original incarnation, but with mere months left before the IEEE finally decides on the standard for the improved 802.16m version of WiMAX, a group of companies has finally stepped forward to support the new protocol, and solidify that nice, marketable "WiMAX 2" name while they're at it. Dubbed the WiMAX 2 Collaboration Initiative (or WCI for short), Alvarion, Beceem, GCT Semiconductor, Intel, Motorola, Samsung, Sequans, XRONet, ZTE and ITRI intend to, well, collaborate to make sure the new protocol can compete with LTE, while our old friends Sprint and Clearwire -- who are keeping their options open in the 4G wars -- simply cheer them on. Hit the source link for invigorating quotes from each company involved.
Franklin Wireless intros U600 WiMAX modem, R526 and R536 mobile routers
Franklin Wireless supplies modems (primarily of the CDMA variety) to a number of carriers across the Western Hemisphere, and they've introduced a handful of rather interesting new products in that vein here at CTIA this week. First up, the U600 is an EV-DO Rev. A / WiMAX hybrid USB modem with a 270-degree swiveling USB connector for those ridiculously hard-to-manage ports (ahem, Apple), integrated GPS, and zero-CD installation -- all pretty standard features these days, and we saw a Sprint-branded unit at Franklin's booth which leads us to believe we'll be seeing it at retail shortly. Much more interesting, though, was a pair of pocketable WiFi routers -- the R526 and R536 -- that support EV-DO and EV-DO / WiMAX, respectively. Most of the units were unbranded, but we did spy an R536 done up in snow white with a Clear logo slapped up top, so you can pretty much gather that this thing will be filling a glaring hole in Clear's lineup (right now, the best you can do is a USB modem plus the Clear Spot, which is basically a branded Cradlepoint). What intrigued us about the R536 the most was the fact that it's got the functionality of an Overdrive packed into a smaller, more MiFi-esque form factor without any of the Overdrive's bells and whistles, so it'll be a great alternative as long as it performs well and has enough juice to last a couple hours off the power grid; the 3G-only R526, meanwhile, had an Ethernet jack stuck on the side, which is kind of cool in the rare event that you need to connect a WiFi-less device and you don't want to go through the hassle of installing a new driver. The R526 launches in April (with what carrier, we're not sure) -- as does the U600 -- while the R536 should start to trickle out in May. %Gallery-88966%
Dell Inspiron Mini 10 shipping April 1st with integrated Clear WiMAX
Dell's vanilla Atom N450-based Mini 10 just started shipping a couple of months ago, and if you'll recall, we spotted one slip through the FCC's oh-so-vulnerable database with WiMAX built-in. Today at CTIA, Clearwire spilled the news that it'll be providing the service for a 4G-infused version of the netbook come April 1st. What's interesting is that Clearwire only mentions it being for sale "through select Clear retail locations, telesales and Clear.com," so it's still unknown if it'll be offered up through the Round Rock powerhouse itself (as the Studio 17, Studio XPS 1640 and Latitude E4300, etc. are). The machine will be sold for $249.99 after an instant rebate, though no specifics were mentioned concerning a per-month data plan price. If we were the betting type, we'd say it'll probably run you 40 bones for every 30 days based on existing rates.
New Sprint ad shows iPhone using WiMAX... via Overdrive
Your existing iPhone (yeah, even the original) can surf the information superhighway at 4G speeds. Today. Who knew, right? Sprint's Overdrive -- which creates a WiFi hotspot that enables nearby devices to cruise on Clear's 4G (or 3G, if you're not in a 4G locale) network -- can theoretically enable any WiFi-capable phone to surf on WiMAX, but Sprint's taking a pretty bold approach by actually touting the feature in a new spot. Befuddled? Hop on past the break and mash play. Too bad this is about as close the iPhone will ever get to Sprint's shelves...
T-Mobile and Clearwire mulling 4G partnership
Looks like the kids at T-Mobile USA are well aware that their company's future will depend on offering both compelling handsets and a competitive network for them to ride on. Reuters reports that the Deutsche Telekom subsidiary has been exploring all its options with regard to the provision of 4G services, including potential joint ventures with cable companies and even spectrum sharing with AT&T, though the likeliest candidate for the moment remains Clearwire's WiMAX infrastructure. Asked about a potential merger with Sprint, who controls more than 50 percent of Clearwire, T-Mobile's CEO Robert Dotson declined the idea, explaining that "what you never want to do is take one company that is going through challenges and take another company going through challenges." Reports of ongoing discussions between Clearwire and T-Mo have been around since last September, and the latest from Dotson suggests that his company is keen to get a resolution either way as soon as possible.
WiMAX-enabled HTC Supersonic rumored to debut on Sprint at CTIA
There's hardly anything here that we didn't already know, but an unveiling date of "next week" sure catches our eye. A new report over at The Wall Street Journal confirms earlier details that were fed to us over Sprint's first-ever WiMAX smartphone, and now we're learning that the HTC Supersonic will be officially revealed to the world at CTIA next week. We've heard before that the carrier anticipates selling a 4G phone "this summer," but you can bet we'll be digging for a hard ship date and price tag when we hit the scene in Las Vegas in just five short days. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Sprint promises 'many' new 4G markets in 2010; New York, SF included
With LTE onslaughts from Verizon and AT&T (not to mention countless carriers around the world) drawing near, Sprint's wasting no time beefing up its WiMAX network ahead of its competitors' 4G launches in an effort to give WiMAX the best chance it can. Without giving a hard figure, the company says that it expects to launch WiMAX service in "many" markets this year, with several notables among the lot: Boston, Denver, Kansas City, Houston, Minneapolis, New York, San Francisco and Washington, DC are all called out by name. SF and the Big Apple in particular will be huge wins -- assuming the deployments go smoothly -- thanks to abnormally high concentrations of geeks (including yours truly, of course) that will immediately appreciate faster wide-area broadband. They're not listing dates just yet, so it's unclear just how soon we can expect these to light up.
WiMAX will cover one billion people in 2011, coming soon to NYC and San Francisco
Thought WiMAX was just beaming high-speed internets to a very few lucky technosapiens in far-away lands? Think again! If all goes according to plan, more than 800 million people from the future will be wrapped in its soothing vibrations by the end of this year, and over a billion worldwide in 2011, surpassing expectations. That's an impressive spread given that Sprint just got things rolling domestically in Baltimore about a year and a half ago. Next up will be stops in New York City and San Francisco, good news for urban folks, but will it be enough to hold off the progression of LTE? Don't you love a good wireless format war? We don't. [Thanks, COCOViper]
Samsung's transparent OLED laptop could hit retail, IceTouch PMP will get the ball rolling
So um, remember this crazy 14-inch transparent OLED display Samsung was showing off perched atop a laptop at CES? Yea, that might be in the shops within the next 12 months. If that doesn't get you tingling with excitement, we don't know what will. Samsung will start its big push toward translucency with the IceTouch PMP, which we found to have a gorgeous 2-inch display in our earlier hands-on, but it's already working away in the labs on turning the prototype above into a concrete retail product. The IceTouch is slated to make its US arrival early in the first half of this year, priced at around $332. European availability is as yet unconfirmed, but the Korean's company is being very ambitious about its technology, suggesting that windscreen-mounted SatNav units could be next on the agenda and ruling nothing out as it strives to bring its transparent AMOLED displays into the mainstream.
Clear WiMAX USB modem impressions
Clearwire (along with Sprint and Comcast, just to name a couple) has been fiercely expanding its WiMAX network across America for months on end now, and while select citizens in select cities have had access to the 4G superhighway for just over a year, we haven't actually had the opportunity to find ourselves in one of those locations for any amount of time. Until recently, that is. The Clear 4G service was lit up in Las Vegas late last year, which gave the Engadget squad just enough time to scrounge up a gaggle of Motorola 4G USB sticks and really test out the network while at CES. Meanwhile, the North Carolinians among us were also able to test the boundaries of the 4G patches that have been setup here, and we're finally ready to dish out a few opinions on the fourth generation of cellular data. Eager to know if it's the best thing since sliced bread the invention of the MP3? Read on to find out. %Gallery-84164%
Clearwire in no rush to move to next-gen WiMAX Release 2
If consistently pulling down a fistful of megabits per second isn't causing the hair on the back of your neck to stand on end... well, first, we strongly recommend you get that looked at by a professional. Secondly, though, you might have a bit of a wait before you get another hair-raising boost in throughput, because Clearwire -- you know, the company that runs the WiMAX network shared by Clear and Sprint -- is looking to take a laid-back approach on the migration to WiMAX Release 2. The underlying standard, 802.16m, looks destined for IEEE approval some time this year with the promise of 120Mbps down and 60Mbps up in an effort to wage 4G war with LTE Advanced, but Clearwire's CTO is saying that he's not looking to trial the tech this year -- even though Russian carrier Yota is on track to make it happen using Samsung hardware. Instead, 2011 is a "much more likely" target for these guys, apparently, with commercial deployment plausible by '12. With the updated standard capable of speeds that put even high-end cable and fiber broadband connections to shame, you've got to wonder if backhaul isn't the real concern here -- or, even juicier, if they're not just trying to keep all the options on the table for a little while longer.
