What is Wi-Max and how does it compare with Wi-Fi

This article elucidates on what is Wi-Max technology, what are the basic parameters for Wi-Max, bandwidth and coverage for Wi-Max, how Wi-Max is presently being used, how it can be used in the future and how Wi-Fi and Wi-Max compare with each other. Are they competitors or do they compete with each other. Of course, we also see why Wi-Max is exciting.What is Wi-Max:

Wi-Max is the short form for Worldwide interoperability for Microwave access. It is a wireless connectivity technology which could give internet access, data connectivity and VOIP services over the wireless over a higher range of distance (spanning many miles).

Why is Wi-Max technology exciting?

¤ Wi-Max has a higher area of coverage. A single tower could cover a few miles of radius. A whole city could be covered by few towers.
¤ The bandwidth and the speed of connectivity of Wi-Max is considerably higher and could be compared with wired broadband speeds. But that depends on the density of the users as well as the density of the towers.
¤ The cost of the Wi-Max towers, Wi-Max receivers or adaptors for clients etc. is not very high. With mass production capabilities, they could come down even more.
¤ The Wi-Max towers could connect with each other through wireless (Point to Multi-point or mesh) and hence the cable laying, trenching costs are not associated with Wi-Max.
¤ Wi-Max is a good technology for back haul connectivity and last mile connectivity as it supports both line of sight and non line of sight implementations.
¤ Wi-Max could reach services like internet to rural areas or remote locations where wired broadband have not reached.

Technology:

Wi-Max is standardized by IEEE as IEEE 802.16 protocol. Wi-Max supports 70 Mbps per tower with a a range of 30 Miles radius (50 Km per tower). There are two modes of operation for Wi-Max:

NLOS Service: This non line of sight service is generally used for client connectivity and last mile services. In this mode, the Wi-Max tower propagates wireless signals at a lower frequency range (2 Ghz to 11 Ghz) as the lower frequencies are not easily disrupted by physical obstacles – but they can be).

In this mode, Wi-Max receivers with antennas can be directly installed in the PC’s or it can be installed at roof tops from which a cable comes to connect to the PC. In dense areas like cities with huge buildings, the Wi-Max signal can be extended by the use of Wi-Max relays or relay stations. These relays implement the minimum functionality necessary for relaying signals between subscribers and base stations and are much cheaper than the base stations.

LOS Service: This is used more in the interconnectivity mode (Eg. between two Wi-Max towers etc.). In this service, the Wi-Max tower propagates at a higher frequency (Up to 66 Ghz). This mode is generally stronger and more stable due to the higher frequencies involved. But it requires a line of sight between the two towers).

In this mode, the Wi-Max towers connect with the ISP on one side and connect with each other for extending the reach of the ISP through Point to Point, Point to Multi-point or even Mesh technologies. Wi-Max supports all of them. In fact one tower can be associated with multiple other towers in its range and even if one of them goes down, the data can actually flow through an alternate route using other towers in the range.

Wi-Fi Vs Wi-Max – How they compare with each other:

Wi-Fi is a wireless technology which has a range of around 100 meters and common models support about 54 Mbps of bandwidth. Wi-Max is a wireless technology which has a range of around 50 Kilo Meters and support around 70 Mbps of bandwidth (The bandwidth supported could be higher in recent models).

In our opinion, they compliment each other rather than support each other. There could be exceptions to this based on the situations.

In corporate companies: Wi-Max could be used to deliver the bandwidth (last mile application) but would definitely not replace Wi-Fi as an internal network. For a lot of reasons. The top ones being – Bandwidth limitations (Wi-Max shares the bandwidth with a lot more people) and Security (Wi-Max being a shared public network).

In educational institutions: Wi-Max has the potential to replace Wi-Fi but only in those places where bandwidth is not a criteria. But the bandwidth requirements and the applications are growing day by day and with Wi-Fi technologies like 802.11n supporting up to 600 Mbps, Wi-Max may not replace all the Wi-Fi networks of the educational institutions.

In Public Hot-spots: Wi-Max could replace Wi-Fi in this area as the public hotspots offer only internet or maybe voice, for both of which wi-max could cost lesser than the Wi-Fi installations to cover huge spaces.

But the real threat to Wi-Max is from technologies like 3G/4G and the non availability of Wi-Max client receivers for most of the laptops being shipped. But with mobile Wi-Max gaining momentum, things could change fast. Depends on what the service providers depend on.

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