Last week we discussed Sprint’s plans to roll out WiMAX. It won’t be an easy task. They have to introduce it market by market, meaning there won’t be nationwide coverage. This can be a deterrent for travelers, presumably a large part of Sprint and Clearwire’s target demographic, since they won’t be able to use the service in areas absent WiMAX networks. So yesterday the company introduced a dual-mode modem which can pick up both WiMAX and EVDO signal. New customers can now take advantage of 4G WiMAX signal when available, and switch to the slower but more universal 3G EVDO signal when WiMAX is not available.
Nationwide WiMAX rollout isn’t expected until 2010, so those buying the modem will not be doing so for naught. Which is a good thing, considering the $150 price tag, which comes after a $50 mail-in rebate and the signing of a two-year agreement. By the end of that agreement WiMAX should be available in most major markets.
“Sprint intends to be the leader in 4G and bring the wireless Internet to life,” Dan Hesse, Sprint CEO, said in a statement. “This first-of-its-kind device allows our customers to take the Internet with them essentially wherever they go by gaining enhanced speed and capability in 4G markets and the nationwide coverage of our 3G network across the rest of the country.”
Sprint will begin selling the device in January through Best Buy in Baltimore. When within range of a WiMAX network, the modem can download at speeds of 2-4 Mbps, while EVDO speeds range from 600 Kbps to 1.4 Mbps.
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