Intel and Rural WiFi
Could you ever imagine going back to dial-up? Well, in case you don’t know, there are still millions of people that can’t get broadband because of the places they live. I am one of those, I hate to admit. For years, I enjoyed broadband speeds, and then, my wife and I moved to a remote area of Texas, where we were lucky to get even cell phone coverage.
A lot of companies are exploring options for bringing wireless connectivity to rural areas, and Intel is one of them.
“According to Technology Review, the company’s so-called “rural connectivity platform” (or RCP) is able to beam WiFi signals from one antenna to another located more than 60 miles away, and at data rates up to 6.5 megabits per second, no less. To do that, Intel whipped up some software that effectively rewrites the way the two radios communicate with one another, in particular by eliminating the extra data sent confirming transmissions. Of course, those high-powered antennas also come into play considerably, but Intel says the entire system is both inexpensive (it’s aiming for below $500 when it starts selling it in India later this year) and low-power, with two or three radios in a link requiring just five or six watts”
