Some apps that require me to be on Wi-Fi will work over 4G, but not over 3G.
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Is WiMax essentially Wi-Fi blanketed across a large area?
- Thread starter FreakyLocz14
- Start date
Wifi and Wimax are complementary but not identical or interchangeable and were designed for different applications. Wifi inherently is susceptible to interruptions (why other wifi devices, cordless devices, and microwaves can sometimes break or interrupt wifi signal). Wimax is more stable once connected as it is specifically designed not to have signal breaks while in range.
Without getting technical, another important distinction is that Wimax was designed to be an end of the line wireless data distribution where cable and other signal providers find it less financially or physically feasible to continue to build out infrastructure.
Without getting technical, another important distinction is that Wimax was designed to be an end of the line wireless data distribution where cable and other signal providers find it less financially or physically feasible to continue to build out infrastructure.
I have some free time so brace yourself for a good old fashion ROI rant. As always free feel to fact check me.
Ok, so lets us talk about wifi, 3g, wimax, and lte.
I will try to break this down into categorizes.
1.) What are they in general terms?
2.) How do they differ in general terms?
3.) Why should we care?
Wifi/wimax....
1.) What are wifi/wimax in general terms? Wifi is very closely related to wimax. They share the same protocals, they suffer from the same benefits and limitations. They have very wonderful acronyms, like 802.16 and mimo. Wifi is simply a wireless internet connection for your home, ie wlan (wireless local area network). Wimax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) is a wireless internet connection for a city, ie Wman (wireless municipal area network).
2.) Iin the wifi and wimax really don't differ in any terms from the consumer point of view. Which is all we really care about. They just simply connect the user device to the internet. Wifi and wimax don't care if the user is using a phone, car, home pc, or laptop, pretty much like your home router does not care if you are on your phone, pc, or laptop. It is all treated the same. Apps and data sources are also treated as equal. The same traffic flow controls that you see in wifi is the same as in wimax. To the user, wifi and wimax are the same and you should not expect any difference in experiences.
3.) Why should we care? Wimax is built on this ideology that data is data no mater where it comes from. It is all equal. This is why alot of people that want net neutrality also like wimax. Because to wimax, everything is treated equal. To understand why that is important, we need to look at the lte model.
LTE/3g.
1.)LTE is generally an upgrade to 3g network. To the end user you will see a lot of differences. For example, it is now ip protocol based, which means a lot more programs and apps will work with it. But lte is an upgrade from 3g, which means it is for your mobile device. LTE is not for home internet, nor is it made for continues and active internet streaming, just like 3g is not made for it. Everything that is done with 3g is in the works with lte.
2.) In general terms, lte differs greatly from wimax. LTE has built in protocols to limit, control, and shape internet traffic. For example, lte can block specific sources of data, completely. It also has the ability to give higher priority to some functions while throttling others. For example, Voip requires very little interruptions between callers, or the experience becomes unbearable. So when you use voip, lte can transform the traffic to give the voip a better connection. Video is the same way, if it stops and reloads often, it becomes an issue. So LTE can make sure that is given a faster connection. LTE can also block harmful sites and unwanted internet connections. LTE can also limit the apps that can connect to the internet. Making sure that the user experience is as the carrier needs it to be. By doing this, lte gives the carrier enough control to make sure that the app you use for instant messaging is a safe and secure one, and also block those apps that may not be safe. Think apple user experience here.
3.)What does this mean for the user. Well LTE offers a experience a lot like the iphone. Everything is controlled in a manner that makes the user experience as pleasant as possible. It allow the carrier complete control over the internet connection allowing and safe and almost magical experience.
Bottom line, wimax and wifi are the same to the user, just differences in distance. LTE is an upgrade from 3g and will allow a more wifi like experience, while allowing the carrier to have control over the network to ensure a good customer experience.
Both are wonderful technologies.
Ok, so lets us talk about wifi, 3g, wimax, and lte.
I will try to break this down into categorizes.
1.) What are they in general terms?
2.) How do they differ in general terms?
3.) Why should we care?
Wifi/wimax....
1.) What are wifi/wimax in general terms? Wifi is very closely related to wimax. They share the same protocals, they suffer from the same benefits and limitations. They have very wonderful acronyms, like 802.16 and mimo. Wifi is simply a wireless internet connection for your home, ie wlan (wireless local area network). Wimax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) is a wireless internet connection for a city, ie Wman (wireless municipal area network).
2.) Iin the wifi and wimax really don't differ in any terms from the consumer point of view. Which is all we really care about. They just simply connect the user device to the internet. Wifi and wimax don't care if the user is using a phone, car, home pc, or laptop, pretty much like your home router does not care if you are on your phone, pc, or laptop. It is all treated the same. Apps and data sources are also treated as equal. The same traffic flow controls that you see in wifi is the same as in wimax. To the user, wifi and wimax are the same and you should not expect any difference in experiences.
3.) Why should we care? Wimax is built on this ideology that data is data no mater where it comes from. It is all equal. This is why alot of people that want net neutrality also like wimax. Because to wimax, everything is treated equal. To understand why that is important, we need to look at the lte model.
LTE/3g.
1.)LTE is generally an upgrade to 3g network. To the end user you will see a lot of differences. For example, it is now ip protocol based, which means a lot more programs and apps will work with it. But lte is an upgrade from 3g, which means it is for your mobile device. LTE is not for home internet, nor is it made for continues and active internet streaming, just like 3g is not made for it. Everything that is done with 3g is in the works with lte.
2.) In general terms, lte differs greatly from wimax. LTE has built in protocols to limit, control, and shape internet traffic. For example, lte can block specific sources of data, completely. It also has the ability to give higher priority to some functions while throttling others. For example, Voip requires very little interruptions between callers, or the experience becomes unbearable. So when you use voip, lte can transform the traffic to give the voip a better connection. Video is the same way, if it stops and reloads often, it becomes an issue. So LTE can make sure that is given a faster connection. LTE can also block harmful sites and unwanted internet connections. LTE can also limit the apps that can connect to the internet. Making sure that the user experience is as the carrier needs it to be. By doing this, lte gives the carrier enough control to make sure that the app you use for instant messaging is a safe and secure one, and also block those apps that may not be safe. Think apple user experience here.
3.)What does this mean for the user. Well LTE offers a experience a lot like the iphone. Everything is controlled in a manner that makes the user experience as pleasant as possible. It allow the carrier complete control over the internet connection allowing and safe and almost magical experience.
Bottom line, wimax and wifi are the same to the user, just differences in distance. LTE is an upgrade from 3g and will allow a more wifi like experience, while allowing the carrier to have control over the network to ensure a good customer experience.
Both are wonderful technologies.