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Rick
Premium,MVM
join:2001-02-06
Waterbury, CT
clubs: 
| With all the debate going on as to whether the cable co's or telco's will be the "winner" of the broadband race, I can't help but to wonder whether wireless broadband will wind up surpassing them all in terms of the number of people using the service.
While Verizon is trying to dig up neighborhoods all over to lay their fiber and Cable Co's are promoting their 43.00 to 60.00 service as the best option I wonder who is going to come along and blanket the airwaves with a wifi service that just makes sense for the majority of internet users.
We've been reading the tidbits of news of some communities getting their systems online and while the performance may be less than spectacular to these other options, who's to say that stays that way?
What if communities everywhere start to adopt a policy like this and start to offer something like 1500k speeds for free (taxpayer funded)...or for just a few dollars per month? Or, something more probable, one company comes along and makes these services seemless between cities and towns all across large regions of the country.
I think that verizon could be left holding their fiber in their hands looking puzzled as to what ever happened to their grand ideas and the amount of customers subscribing to cable broadband could fall thru the floor.
I know that this concept doesn't appeal or even seem likely to many who visit this site and who constantly want and see the need for more speeds but i wonder whether this is really representative of what the masses really think and want, and would ultimately pay for?
Many years after broadband became available for many, many people out there STILL find dialup to be enough for them.
In doing my own private little surveys with some of those people, I really find that what they'd like is something a "little" bit faster, something that's always on...
something that lets them surf the web and check their email.
When you put them in front of a system with broadband, they like it but really couldn't ever distinquish whether it was 1500k or 10,000k.
All they know is it's fast and it meets their needs.
To sum it all up, it would seem to me that Wifi can do just that. And do it much cheaper and faster than anyone else with the right plan and backing behind it.
This doesn't mean that cable and fios would ever go away because there are those who'd always want something faster.
But what i'm talking about here is who and what kind of technology could ultimately become the real winner of the masses of people out there.
And no one just yet should discount Wifi.
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The life you help save just might be your own Team Discovery | |
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dadkins
Can you do Blu?
Premium,MVM
join:2003-09-26
Hercules, CA
 ·Comcast
| Re: With all the debate going on as to whether Some WISPs are hitting customers with 8/8? 10/10? right now!
Personally, I would be happy with 5/5 from whomever. Sure would make my offsite backups alot easier.
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Think outside the Fox... Opera | |
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pa grape
Premium
join:2003-12-28
Columbus, OH
| Yes, I also think fixed wireless broadband has the potential to out-do cable and dsl in the future. It might not... but I can see the possibility.
For ISP's the cost of maintaining a wireless network seems like it would be relatively less expensive than wired last-mile connections. There would need to be a lot less "truck-rolls" to come out and splice, replace, and repair lines on poles or underground.
Fixed wireless technologies will have to continue to advance of course, but the potential is there to be sure. | |
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Jack34
@qwest.net
| I think you hit the nail on the head. Speed is great but the masses don't know the difference between 10meg and 1 meg. I used to install wireless antennas in rural mn and people were excited just to get 256k down 128 up for 45$. That is why I think companies like Clearwire will have a much bigger impact then what many people think. 1.5 service for 20-30$ a month and that is what the masses will care about. Not 30 meg service for 50$. | |
| cmaenginsb
Premium,MVM
join:2001-03-19
Palmdale, CA
| You have a rather simplistic view of what's going on.
Verizon isn't just laying fiber for faster broadband. It's laying it for the ability to provide video as well so that you get all three items on the same bill from the same provider. When you have a problem you call 1 phone number.
Wireless doesn't have the capacity in the near future that either the cable TV plant or fiber would provide not just for data but video and voice as well.
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CCNA, Comtrain Certified Tower Climber | |
| ctachme
join:2003-11-29
Traverse City, MI
| Meh, the thing is that Fiber has much more potential than wireless. As long as the FTTH providers don't actually use the maximum speed of Fiber wireless might look good... but when Verizon offers 2.5Gbps symmetric, I doubt anyone will be able to say wireless is the best option. | |
| | cmaenginsb
Premium,MVM
join:2001-03-19
Palmdale, CA
| Re: With all the debate going on as to whether Actually for about 1/2 or more the broadband customers out there speed isn't all that important compared to pricing. Of course fiber has more potential but the issue is what are people willing to pay for the faster speeds.
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CCNA, Comtrain Certified Tower Climber | |
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