Sprint Says Hello to Baltimore
Last week, Sprint became the first commercial network in the U.S. to use mobile WiMax technology when it launched a 4G network in Baltimore. The network, called Xohm, beat LTE to the punch, and WiMax coverage is expected to roll out in additional cities including Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas and Washington, D.C. over coming weeks and months.
This roll out promises 4G speeds and eventually nationwide coverage - all of the benefits of WiMax that proponents have been waiting for - and so far reviews have been positive. Moreover, the price is right, and Sprint seems to be positioning itself to take the lead in broadband in coming years.
But as other big vendors line up behind LTE (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile - even Aircell, which provides inflight Internet access), it will be interesting to see who wins the standards war. Which 4G will be the wireless version of Betamax and HD-DVD?
