Computex Watch: Mobile Gadgets, Laptops and WiMAX

posted by Ken Kaplan on May 31, 2009

Many eyes are turning to Taipei for this week’s Computex, the largest IT trade show in Asia that runs from June 2-6.

Every year, this is where new mobile technologies are unveiled, and this year I’m looking for the latest in laptops, netbooks, mobile Internet devices and WiMAX.

Here are a few Intel-related things I’ve seen blogged about prior to the show:

• New devices by Viliv
• Metrological’s Mediaconnect TV — the digital entertainment set top box Intel CE 3100 processor inside

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WiMAX Gets a Rocketboom Tech Treatment

posted by Ken Kaplan on April 23, 2009

A week prior to getting Intel Insiders inside the Intel WiMAX labs in Hillsboro, Oregon, Rocketboom's Ellie Rountree took time during her Great Northwest visit to get a more in-depth, inside-the-labs experience of what WiMAX really is, how it works and why they call it 4G.

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March Madness - WiMAX Style

posted by Bill Kircos on March 18, 2009

What a month for wireless broadband news...and it's only just after St. Patrick's Day.  The press sure loves a controversy, and within the last 20 days or so, we've seen a slew of news ranging from LTE planning some 30 or so cities by 2010 to Clearwire initially facing some press scrutiny -- but then following up with an 80-city rollout plan, including Vegas, Chicago and even Honolulu to many more in 2010. And, bringing a telecom veteran to run the company.

The good news here is, if LTE can get its technology specification done -- and get the money and engineering to start testing and rolling out its network on top of just deploying 3G -- those who crave a super-fast wireless connection will be super-pleased as LTE catches up. 

And the final touches on WiMAX "version 2" around 2010 will further boost things.  No doubt some of the success of WiMAX, and reviews that have exceeded expectations, have played a role in seeing the LTE folks move up their delivery times some 3 or more years.  This is a good thing.

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What do beer and WiMax have in common?

posted by Michael Brito on February 02, 2009

Well, nothing really unless you are drinking a cold one and surfing the Internet using a WiMax connection somewhere in Baltimore or Portland. Really though, you have to check out this funny ad by Clear; a WiMax service provider that illustrates the differences between Wifi connectivity and the super fast WiMax network! Enjoy.

 

 

My Hotspot is Following Me Around

posted by Jeremy Schultz on February 01, 2009

Greetings, dear readers! I'm a software developer turned writer/reporter/social media disciple and I write news stories on Intel's intranet. My friends in marketing hooked me up with this featherlight Lenovo ThinkPad X301—with built-in WiMax connectivity—to give WiMax a shot and share my adventures.

I'm writing from Hillsboro, Oregon, a few miles from Portland and I'm hooked up to the Clear WiMax network just launched widely a couple weeks ago.

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Wonders of WiMAX at CES

posted by Ken Kaplan on January 20, 2009

WiMax was something I really tuned into during the noisy tech bliss that is CES. Maybe because the demonstrations were better compared with what I saw at [CES 2008](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akr-OnVF4fc), or maybe because the high speed wireless technology is really hitting mainstream.

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Intel MID Man Joins Sarah Austin on Techku from CES 98

posted by Ken Kaplan on January 12, 2009

Intel's Uday Keshavdas shows Sarah Austin the new OQO mobile Internet Device live on Techku, the technology video channel on Mogulus that premiered from the Intel booth at CES 2009.

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WiMAX Inside a Netbook at CES 2009

posted by Ken Kaplan on January 10, 2009

I got my hands on an Acer AirOne netbook to our engineers added the Intel Link 5150 Wi-Fi-/WiMAX chip. I'd seen Centrino 2 laptops with WiMAX and I followed the launch of WiMAX service now available in Baltimore and Portland, but I had never seen a netbook connect to WiMAX.

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Why Max?

posted by Annie Frost on January 07, 2009

This week in Portland, Clear launched it's WiMAX service. A few months ago, XOHM launched it's WiMAX service in Baltimore, MD. With these two companies merging, WiMAX service should be pretty interesting to watch in 2009.

As part of the general WiMAX roll-out, Intel sponsored a Customer Experience Program in Baltimore, Maryland from October 20 through December 5, 2008. Some of the videos are in! In the following video, meet Toby Cornish, a medical resident who really pushed WiMAX to the limits, downloading and streaming movies and music, and making VOIP calls:

If you are out there using an Intel Processor, we'd love to hear your story!

 

WiMAX Anticipation High in Portland

posted by Becky Emmett on January 06, 2009

I'm writing from the Portland launch of WiMAX using a WiMAX enabled notebook from Lenovo. The real story here is around making wireless fast, affordable and accessible - everywhere. You'd think this is simple enough but it's really quite complicated. Thankfully, Clear and Intel together have achieved giving Portland the fastest wireless in the west.

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Portland: Wake up to WiMax!

posted by Kiesha Cochrane on January 05, 2009

Tomorrow will be an exciting day here in Portland as Intel and Clear (the company formed by Sprint and Clearwire) launch the brand new WiMax network! Portland joins Baltimore MD as one of the first two cities nation wide outfitted with the new technology. Thanks to my Intel connections, I'm taking a sneak peak of the new WiMax network as I type.

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Contest Continues - Triple Booting leads Community Votes

posted by Annie Frost on December 15, 2008

The community voting is active! Last week, we had a run between Andy Poland and lplasch for first place. This week, Triple Booting is racing into the lead. Voting is open through January 22 and only leads into the Official Judge voting. Please read through the Official Contest Rules & Regulations for more information on how the voting and judges work.

Triple Booting is pretty interesting and it seems the lplasch has chimed in through the comments on a little more insight into his entry: "For the curiously minded: I am running OS X 10.5, Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex), Windows Vista, Windows XP. If anybody is interested in the setup process then I can post it as well. Cheers!"

On a side note, I'd like to be transparent that we are finding some technical issues with some stories as they are submitted and we are working through them. If you find that you submit a story and it does not appear, please feel free to pipe up in the comments. Right now, there are two stories that we are actively pursuing bugs with - Andrew Lockhart and BOHN - which will be published later today for all to see.

Centrino 2 laptops are on the line... Submit your story today!

http://www.intel.com/go/whatsinsideyoucontest

 

On the Road to Mobility 2.0

posted by David Angell on October 22, 2008

I've been living in the era of Mobility 1.0. I connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi. I use it at home, at Intel, and on the road. Wi-Fi is great stuff, but a Wi-Fi hotspot is like an oasis in the desert. When I'm at one, my notebook and I replenish our Internet thirst, but in between and beyond these wireless watering holes are vast wireless deserts.

My notebook is my place of business and my playground. It's how I stay connected to my work, my online life, my finances, my shopping. The Internet isn't a luxury. It's a necessity. So why do I have to seek it out? Why can't broadband Internet travel with me and my notebook? My notebook wants to go "free range" with broadband Internet, roaming the wide open spaces beyond the confines of Wi-Fi cages. If my notebook could talk, I'm sure it would say, "Why can't I connect to the Internet like that little cell phone punk does for voice?"
But now I can tell my jealous notebook that our mobile freedom is on its way.

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Hello WiMax, Goodbye Broadband Cables!

posted by Michael Brito on October 13, 2008

Yup, you heard it right.  The RJ45 Ethernet cable is standing on its last legs and it's just a matter of time before they will be piling up at the local recycling houses. Not sure what an RJ45 is? Well, take a look behind your computer, modem or router and you will notice a thick plug - see here for a picture of it - that is required to connect to the Internet.

Thanks to the launch of WiMax (only in Baltimore so far  ... booo), most people, including myself, will have the luxury of connecting to the internet without worrying these darn cables. Check out this pic where Executives from Sprint/Nextel and its partners ceremonially cut the broadband cord last Wednesday with the launch of the first mobile WiMax network in the U.S.

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WiMax, we've been waiting!

posted by Kiesha Cochrane on October 09, 2008

I'm still semi-delirious from my trip to Baltimore for the WiMax launch this week. The buzz has been building around WiMax for years and on Wednesday, we finally got to see it in action as the citizens of the city of Baltimore became the first users!

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XOHM's WiMAX Service Changes the Rules

posted by David Angell on October 06, 2008

Sprint's XOHM WiMAX debut in Baltimore this week is a historic event. It marks the beginning of a new era of next-generation mobile broadband service. But XOHM's WiMAX network is delivering more than just the latest in wireless broadband technology-it's changing the rules for mobile Internet service. We as consumers will finally have a real choice in our mobile data service plans and terms.

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WiMax is one reason I want to be in Baltimore right about now!

posted by Michael Brito on September 29, 2008

Not because I enjoy the weather in the northeast. Not because I am Baltimore Ravens fan either. If you haven't heard, those who live in Baltimore will be the first to have access to the evolution of wireless connectivity built by a major wireless company, Sprint (now called Xohm). What this will do is turn the entire city into a "hot spot" for those people like me who like-to-be, want-to-be, have-to-be connected to the Internet at all times. The network has been open to beta testers for quite sometime; but is now available for everyone in the area.

So, tell me Michael, how can this be?

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California bans texting while driving - will computing be next?

posted by Annie Frost on September 26, 2008

I've been sitting back imagining all the possibilities which WiMAX will bring...  Being able to take my laptop absolutely anywhere and use it will be really nice.  Today, my personal computing is limited to my house, my backyard hammock, and a few local coffee shops that provide free internet access.  To be perfectly clear, I'm not a gadget geek, the fewer devices I have, the better.  My budget for technology just isn't that high - I don't even pay for cable TV.  That's just my style.

At the Open Oracle World conference in San Francisco, the Intel WiMAX car was present once again.  This car has toured along with Intel for the last few months since CES:

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Catching the WiMAX Wave

posted by David Angell on September 17, 2008

I just got back from vacation, spending my days boggie boarding in the sun and surf. Now I'm back in the Intel cube farm, baggies and board hung up for the season. Or so I thought. No sooner had I got back, when I got a chance to catch the Big Kahuna of wireless waves, WiMAX. What is WiMAX? Think of it as the mother of all wireless rides. This 4G (fourth generation) wireless combines the familiarity of WiFi with the mobility of cellular to deliver real broadband Internet. Check out Sean Maloney's WiMAX video for an inside look.

To catch these WiMAX waves, I was handed a new kind of boggie board, an Intel^® Centrino^® notebook with an Intel^® WiMAX/WiFi Link 5350 onboard. I grabbed an Intel buddy Sanjiv Gupta (he doesn't get out of the lab much)and headed out to catch WiMAX waves from a trial WiMAX network that covers almost 150 square miles. Excitement was in the air.

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Living life Unwired: My MID life crisis

posted by Michael Brito on September 17, 2008

I am addicted to the Internet, seriously.  I am online about 18 hours a day; at work, at home and on my Blackberry en route to one of the two.  No kidding.  Email me and I'll respond in milliseconds. Poke me and I'll super poke you back. Add me as a friend in Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter and I'll reciprocate faster than you can say "dang, that was quick".

I'm addicted and I need counseling; and the launch of MIDS isn't going to help me any.  All it will do is contribute to my insomnia, carpals tunnel and LCD blindness. So unless you are "cool geek" and "in the know" like me, you may be asking yourself what a MID is or what it stands for.  Sounds kinda weird, I know ... but a MID is an acronym for Mobile Internet Device.  It's similar to an iPhone but has no phone functionality.

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