GadgetReview

WiMax’s fate hasn’t been sealed just yet, but based on its success so far, or lack there of, I’d say that’s it demise is only a matter of time.  But contrary to popular belief Sprint is plugging ahead with their WiMax rollout, that is assuming this leaked roadmap is accurate.  Next on the list is Portland, OR, which is already seeing street team marketing in full affect, so big yellow will have some catching up to do.  As far as the remaining roll out schedule, I’m just surprised to see the list devoid of any major metropolitan coasts cities.

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How the Samsung Mondi Wimax enabled MID will be a success is anyone’s guess, but Samsung, via Lets Talk is now selling the device for a cool $450.  To refresh your memory, the Mondi is Samsung’s foray into the Wimax world and offers not only blazing fast connectivity speeds, but a 4.3-inch touchscreen, 4GB of storage, GPS, 3 megapixel camera, HDMI output, Bluetooth, DivX playback, Bluetooth, WiFi and a Windows Mobile 6.1 OS.   Unfortunately, Wimax is currently only available in select markets (Baltimore, Portland, Ore., Atlanta and Las Vegas) throughout the US.  If you prefer a hands on before purchase, the device is also set to go on sale August 1st at Best Buy and Clearwire stores in the aforementioned locals.

[via Sidecutreports]

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Samsung, whom is making it a habit of leaking out imagery of upcoming products but providing little to no detail, finally firmed up some details about their Wimax dedicated device, the Mondi MID.  Packed inside is a 4.3-inch touchscreen display, Windows Mobile 6.1, 4GB of RAM, slide out QWERTY keyboard, 3MP camera, GPS, Bluetooth 2.0 +EDR and an HDMI out (this one seems odd).    Anyway, there is still no word on a price or street date, but since CTIA is in full swing I’m sure they’ll drop that info in the days to come.

[TFTS]

Clear Wimax has hit Portland like a kamikaze swarm of locusts in a hijacked crop dusting plane.  I recently heard a horror story testimonial of how a subscriber in Seattle last year was told by a customer service rep that they should sublet the rest of their service contract on Craig’s List if they wanted out.  Plus they said that the service was so slow it was unusable.  That was a year ago so I’m sure things have changed for the better.

Recently confirmed for a sometime in April release is the ClearWire manufactured WiMax Wifi Portable Wireless Router. The router will house up to eight 802.11 b/g-compatible devices at speeds of 4Mbs for the hot price of $139.  Bloop.  That is not taking into account your normal service fees.  As I have posted before, Oregon’s 10% unemployment rate will have a great impact on the success or failure of this service.

[Engadget]

Wooops.  Samsung slipped up today and showed off what is probably the first Wimax dedicated MID, the SWD-M100 Mondi.  Resembling the Nokia N810, the Mondi appears to have both a touchscreen and slide out keyboard – that should satisfy both ends of the spectrum – and a front facing camera for late night nefarious video chats.  Pontification appoints the Mondi to Clear’s Wimax network first, but no one really knows.

[Phonescoop]

A couple weeks back I posted on the huge Clear marketing truck driving around the streets of Portland.  As of last week, Comcast, who has invested a billion dollars in the Seattle based Clearwire, has announced they will start bundling the WiMax service.  Portland will be the first city to get the bundle come mid year.  As one of Clear’s major financial backers, Comcast will buy the WiMax service wholesale and then resell under the Comcast name.  No word on pricing and exact availability.  Doesn’t that make it harder for Clear to succeed on its own?  Hopefully I can get on a promotion when it comes out!

[OregonLive]

WiMax isn’t exactly breaking world records when it comes to adoption rates.   A new product from the minds of Clearwire might change that soon.  The idea, which we’ve seen before (Novatel MiFi and Huawei D100), utilizes a portable WiFi router that can accept a WiMax USB dongle.  In other words, products such as the iPhone or laptops that don’t have a WiMax chip will be able to sit within a certain proximity of the device and achieve super fast download speeds over WiFi, that is assuming WiMax escapes the confines of Baltimore.

The above product image is not final, but expect the device to cost around $125 and launch in Oregon this February.

[Sidecutreports]

It’s been not more than a week or so, and a flood of Wimax enabled products are hitting the market.  Today, Toshiba added to the mix with the introduction of their Satellite U405-ST550W Wimax laptop.  The 13.3-inch lappy sports an Intel Centrino 2 Processor, 4GB of DDR2 RAM, an eSata and USB combo port, webcam with face recognition, 320GB hard drive and a 13.3-inch LCD with TruBrite technology.

No word or price or availability

Official page here

Staying ahead of the curve, unlike their cell phone operations, Motorola unveiled the World’s first WiMax USB adapter for laptops.  The USBw 100 is available in three versions: 2.3GHz, 2.5GHz and 3.5GHz enabling worldwide compatibility with today’s approved 4G networks.  If you recall, Sprint is set to officially unveil their Wimax network next month.

The USBw 100 will be available Q4 2008.  Price is unknown.

Full release after the ‘leap’ …Continue reading: Motorola Unveils USBw 100, World’s First WiMax USB Adapter

According to a source via Gearlog, the Sprint Wimax network is already up and running.  Commercially, it’s not yet available, but Sprint and their partners have set Ocotober 8th as the official launch date.  Expect pricing and all the details next week.

[Gearlog]