Ultra-wideband (UWB) data products are coming to market at last. Last month, Alereon (Facebook, Twitter) announced that their UWB “NoWire(TM)” technology will be used in Imation’s Wireless Video/Audio Extender providing an up to 220Mbps link. Here’s a review. Alereon chips will also power Toshiba’s Wireless Dynadock W20. Now, Alereon’s competitors are joining the fray.
EZAir is offering a variety of UWB video/USB extenders powered by Wisair UWB chips. This review reports ranges up to 20 feet with generally good performance, although an intervening wall kills system performance.
Two of the early leaders in UWB wireless data, Staccato Communications and Artimi, joined forces in a 2008 merger to form a company called “VeeBeam” (Twitter). I was unable to find an independent third party review of the newly released product.
I’ll be keeping my eye out for a comprehensive review and comparison of all three offerings.
There are other wireless technologies advancing on this technology space, however. WirelessHD is a 60GHz technology employing 7GHz of bandwidth up at 60GHz. UWB proponents downplay the competition (see, for instance, Alereon CEO Eric Broockman’s blog post: “Where for Art though oh 60 Ghz?“). Perhaps the best and most detailed survey I’ve seen lately comes from Brian Dipert who surveys the contemporary wireless landscape in this EDN article and a companion blog post.
Previously on ÆtherCzar:
- RTLS: The First Ultrawideband Wireless System (10/20/2010)
- Extra Innings for Ultra-Wideband (UWB)? (10/13/2010)
- FCC Terminates UWB Docket-UWB Communications Products Emerging (9/8/2010)
- Early Radio: Narrow Band in Conception – UWB in Practice (6/8/2010)
- A Comprehensive, Yet Readable Introduction to UWB (6/3/2010)
- The Rise and Fall of UWB (6/1/2010)
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