WiMAX still faces major hurdles

Anyone who's involved with networking knows what's on the horizon: a totally connected, totally wireless world. The only questions that remain are when and how. A technology that a lot of people are betting on is WiMAX, especially for its potential applications in rural areas and developing nations. But how close is WiMAX to being a workable alternative to cable and DSL internet? Not very, according to eWeek's Lisa Vaas, who came away unimpressed from the WiMax World conference in Boston yesterday. The conference, which was supposed to demonstrate WiMAX's viability, was plagued by technical problems. According to Vaas, WiMAX still faces two major hurdles: getting enough spectrum and agreeing on a standard.

For more on WiMAX:
- check out this article in eWeek
- or take a look at our sister publication, FierceWifi

ALSO: Nokia is planning to launch WiMAX-capable mobile handsets