When Sprint Nextel stated last year that it had chosen WiMAX as its next-gen wireless network (4G), many were excited by the proposition. Well, it's 2007 and the carrier has unveiled the first markets that will get the service -- Chicago and Washington, D.C.. If you're lucky enough to live in either of those cities, you'll be getting Sprint Nextel's WiMAX network first. It's expected that Sprint Nextel will be covering 100 million people by the end of 2008 -- but for us still stuck in 2007, the Windy City and the nation's capital will see some fast, mobile data speeds soon.
The timing? Well, Sprint hints that both networks will be operational by the end of 2007 -- roughly 11 months from now I'd guess (or sooner). As just announced last week, Nokia will provide the network equipment for the WiMAX networks and Motorola will be developing chip sets for devices. Other equipment vendors like Samsung and LG have also committed.
