Getting Connected: The coming of age of Wi-Fi

vIndianz.com (26 April, 2010) — Wi-Fi technology, synonymous with laptops till now, has started to make considerable inroads into the world of mobile phones as well, with mobile giants having kick started a Wi-Fi-enabled phone-manufacturing spree.

wi-fi Even though Wi-Fi has been in existence for quite some time, cell companies were reluctant to tap it to its fullest potential. This is because Wi-Fi was widely regarded as a competitor to their other networks such as 2G and 3G.

Today, Wi-Fi is fast becoming an important component of any smartphone and consumers are constantly enquiring about the availability of Wi-Fi capability in smartphones.

The introduction of 3G has seen mobile phone users clamoring for data and this has led to an increased amount of data usage. Mobile carriers are now finding it difficult to manage this surge in data usage. Since the networks are increasingly getting jammed due to excessive traffic, Wi-Fi is being seen as a solution to this problem. Traffic is being offloaded from such networks to Wi-Fi to alleviate the pressure on licensed spectrum. Add to this, the cheaper browsing rates and higher bandwidth offered by Wi-Fi, and the increasing number of consumers flocking to buy phones equipped with the technology will spell more profit for companies.

In 2009, 55 percent of all smartphones shipped were Wi-Fi enabled. The figure is expected to rise to 65 to 70 percent in 2010. Although Wi-Fi phones made up only 12 percent of the total number of phones manufactured in 2009, the Wi-Fi phone market is expected to increase to 183 million in an estimated 1.2 billion cellphone market in 2010.

Wi-Fi can be used for making local distance calls over VoIP. Multimedia downloads such as films and songs are easier and faster through a Wi-Fi connection. However, statistics indicate that 90 percent of the existing Wi-Fi usage via mobile phones is for data. The surge in usage has also prompted Wi-Fi service providers to pledge to extend their connectivity in various areas. Free Wi-Fi connectivity is already being provided by some service providers in certain food and beverage chain stores.

Wi-Fi technology is also evolving to sweeten the deal. A faster and more efficient version of Wi-Fi named 11n is in the pipeline. With better multimedia support and security features, this technology is expected to be a standard feature in many Wi-Fi enabled mobile phones by the year 2012.

The Apple iPhone is credited with popularizing Wi-Fi enabled smartphones. Today, companies such as Motorola, Samsung, HTC, Nokia etc have jumped onto the Wi-Fi bandwagon with Nokia capturing the highest market share.

But it’s not just the phones that stand to benefit from the newly discovered potential of Wi-Fi technology. Producers of chips and Wi-Fi equipment will also gain from the booming Wi-Fi cellphone market.

Chip manufacturers like Broadcom, Qualcomm Inc, Atheros Communications Inc, Marvell Technology Group are expected to be some of the highest gainers. The rising number of Wi-Fi phones will inevitably lead to a rising demand for wireless bandwidth as well. Sellers of access points such as NetGear Inc and Aruba Networks will profit the most indirectly from this aspect of Wi-Fi.

But like every new technology, Wi-Fi is not without its own set of drawbacks. Integrating Wi-Fi networks with cellular networks still remains a challenge. The technology will also use up a lot of the phone’s battery stamina and thus is not very power efficient. There have also been many issues regarding the reception of good quality Wi-Fi signal in the past. There are also many people who are unaware about the benefits and sometimes, even the existence of Wi-Fi technology. There might also be certain places where Wi-Fi connectivity may never become a reality, thus rendering Wi-Fi phones useless for internet usage in those areas.

Yet, the technology continues to garner positive votes from many quarters. Besides consumers being able to do more using the mobile phone and Wi-Fi, in the bigger picture, the emergence of Wi-Fi in the mobile phone arena also increases the chances of the mobile phone becoming a direct competitor to the laptop.

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Getting Connected: The coming of age of Wi-Fi

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