As we have known that in Q1 2010 Intel start to introduce its latest WiMAX/WiFi Link 6250 internal chipset for notebook to access WiMax networks.

The chip set should provide faster data transfers than its predecessors WiMAX/WiFi Link 5150 and give longer battery life to laptops than external cards, said Tim Sweeney, an Intel spokesman. The second-generation WiMAX silicon is more compact and has a high level of integration that boosts its performance.

Recently Computer World had opportunity to use Dell Inspiron pre-production notebook with the WiMAX/WiFi Link 6250 chip set to test the data transfer rates and battery life.

This is what they said :
The data transfer rates were impressive when the chip set was connected to CLEAR’s WiMAX network in Las Vegas, but the laptop’s battery life was short of expectations when the service was running.

Download speeds outpaced even my AT&T DSL connection at home. I watched a streaming video from Netflix, without choppy images, from multiple locations three miles apart. Even video from ESPN360’s Web site, usually broken when viewed from my DSL home connection, was smooth on the WiMAX connection.

But the fast transfer speeds took a toll on the laptop’s battery life. The battery indicator dropped down to around three hours when the Netflix video was playing, and jumped up to more than four hours when the WiMAX service was idle. That said, battery life goes down under active WiFi usage as well, which is very common with laptops.

The decrease in battery life with WiMAX depends on the data transmission rates and the distance of a connection from the base station, Sweeney said.

“The farther away the client is from the base station, the more transmit power it must put out for the base station to receive or ‘hear’ it. It has to ’shout’ louder to be heard by the base station due to the increased distance,” Sweeney said. This is true for WiFi as well, but in general the transmit power for a WiMax client will be higher, he said.

But tight integration and software help the chip set perform better than an external device in power consumption, Sweeney said.

It seems using notebook equipped with WiMAX/WiFi Link 6250 will be better in performance and its simplicity than regular notebook with additional USB WiMAX modem.

Notebook manufacture develop longer life battery for example the new built-in Apple Macbook battery lasts up to 7 hours on single charge. So power consumption will not big issue.

Via Computer World

Related Posts:

• Intel Unveiled Intel Centrino Advanced-N + WiMAX 6250 Adapter (0)
• CLEAR and Intel Offer More Than 20 WiMAX-enabled Notebook/Netbook (0)
• Intel Unveiled 3.5GHz WiMAX-enabled Notebook (Video) (6)
• The WiMAX-enabled Intel Centrino 2-Notebooks to Support UQ WiMAX (Video) (0)
• Yota and Intel Provide More Than 30 WiMAX-enabled Netbook/Notebook (0)
• Intel to Accelerate WiMAX-enabled Centrino 2-Notebook to Support UQ WiMAX in Japan (0)
• Intel to Launch Centrino WiMAX 6250 Codenamed Kilmer Peak in Q1 2010 (2)
• CEATEC JAPAN 2009 : WiMAX Highlights Photos (3)
• The New Intel Centrino’s Wireless Product Get Certified from WiMAX Forum (3)
• Intel Show Prototype for Next-Gen WiMAX 802.16m (0)