Tests Start For First Certified WiMAX Products

With several WiMAX firms crowding the starting gate for formal introduction of the wide area wireless technology, equipment from at least five firms are being evaluated by the WiMAX Forum's Cetecom Labs in Spain.

At the same time, several companies not seeking certification are testing WiMAX at locations around the world. Most of the firms offering “pre-WiMAX” product are guaranteeing that their solutions will be WiMAX-compatible when the Forum issues its standard.

The firms being examined for certification include Airspan Networks, Aperto Networks, Proxim, Sequans, and Wavesat. Other firms including Alvarion and Navini Networks are installing and testing pre-WiMAX gear.

“The interoperability testing is starting this month,” said Adlane Fellah, CEO of Montreal, Canada-based Maravedis, a WiMAX market researcher.

WiMAX is expected to be rolled out in different spectrums in different countries. In an interview, Fellah said he expects the 3.5GHz bandwidth to represent the largest market opportunity for vendors.