Internet for Your Car, Your iPod -- in the Middle of Nowhere

Jan. 10, 2008 — -- If you've ever wanted to shop online and stream music from your car or be connected to the Internet on a cross-country road trip, companies like Intel, Sprint and Motorola believe your wildest Web fantasies may be about to come true.

All three companies have contributed to the development of WiMax, a technology that delivers strong wireless signals across miles instead of feet, probably even faster than the Internet connection you're using to read this article right now.

"WiMax is this new technology that allows for consumers to be connected to the Internet, much like the way they're connected today in their homes over a broadband DSL or a cable connection, and have high-speed connectivity to the Internet," said Sriram Viswanathan, general manager of Intel's WiMax business, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. "The difference here is that you're able to actually take that on the go."

Intel's WiMax business developed the chips that enable the technology.

For people with a smart phone or Global Positioning System, being connected to the Internet while away from home is nothing new. But with a WiMax connection, users would be able to download movies and music directly from their device's Internet connection to their device in minutes — with no desktop middleman required.

"Connection speeds on a phone or a smart phone or a mobile device are much slower," Viswanathan said. "We're getting very excited about it."

While the WiMax technology already exists, manufacturers are just starting to create gadgets that can accommodate it. Motorola introduced a device to use WiMax in the home this week at the Consumer Electronics Show, while Sprint announced plans to launch nationwide service of WiMax called Xohm in April. Computers will begin carrying WiMax-enabled chips by the middle of this year, according to Viswanathan.

When that happens, users of the Sprint service should be able to open up their laptops anywhere and have Internet access. But WiMax isn't limited to just the United States.