WIFI on steriods coming to Wilmington, NC next month.

 

Last year the FCC voted to open up unused frequencies previously reserved for broadcast television for use in implementing "super wifi" also known as White Spaces. Wireless broadband offered in White Spaces will be faster, better and farther reaching than anything we have seen thus far. Because it will use the same spectrum as broadcast TV, any area that can receive OTA broadcast can potentially receive this wireless signal as well. This new spectrum also boasts stronger signals, allowing for deeper pentration thru walls and ceilings. With more speed and a stronger signal, deployed in a more universally accessible spectrum, this technology should finally allow for easier roll-out to previously unserviceable areas of the country.

White spaces brings with it tons of potential for new devices and applications. It is faster than WiFi so it can handle more data. It can bring (nearly) free Internet access to the most remote areas of the country, places that can’t get WiFi.

It can aid in education. It can improve medicine. It can even make your favorite team win on Sundays (well, maybe not).

Because it uses broadcast television signals, any place that can pick up a broadcast TV signal should be able to tap into White Spaces. A large range of wireless frequencies have always been reserved for broadcast television, much of it unused. Researchers at Microsoft, Google, Dell and other companies, like Spectrum Bridge, developed methods to let data devices like PCs use those blank frequencies.