WiMAX getting closer

Fujitsu Nokia and Nortel have all announced dates to when their WiMAX products will be shipping.

Nokia announced its mobile WiMAX base station, the Nokia Flexi, saying it would be commercially available for the 2.5GHz band at the end of 2007 and for 3.5GHz in 1Q 2008 and adding: "WiMAX-capable Nokia mobile devices are expected to be available in 2008."

Fujitsu said it did not expect to have it available in commercial quantities until Q3 2007: a timetable it said was " determined by the market". It is billing its offering as a one-stop shop for carriers planning WiMAX offerings. "the Fujitsu WiMAX solution will allow carriers to work with one strategic partner for broadband wireless networks, helping them offer the leading-edge services consumers are demanding for anytime, anywhere voice, video and data communications."

Nortel announced it is "the industry's first end-to-end mobile mimo-powered WiMAX solution to deliver 4G mobile broadband content - including Internet-everywhere, mobile video, VoIP, streaming media, data applications and mobile electronic commerce." Nortel also announced its collaboration with chipset maker Runcom to deliver MIMO chipsets that will enable the WiMAX ecosystem of network technologies and devices. Nortel says its WiMAX solutions are being trialled with carriers in Asia, Europe and the Americas - and have been deployed by Netago Wireless with the Special Areas Board of Alberta in Canada and Craig Wireless in Greece. It has not indicated when these products will be commercially available.