Archive:

As the new high-speed kid on the block, fixed wireless is not always fully understood by the people it could help most.

The short version: If you need carrier-grade, high-speed connectivity, and you need it ASAP, fixed wireless is in a league of its own – with speeds that rival fiber, very high reliability, and the shortest implementation time available.

Yet fixed wireless is often overlooked because of four persistent myths. Let’s examine the truth behind them:

• Myth #1: Satellite Internet is better. We’re talking apples and oranges here. Satellite Internet requires communication with a geostationary satellite 23,000 miles from Earth; fixed wireless communicates with a radio antenna a few miles away. That means satellite has latency issues that fixed wireless doesn’t have. Fixed wireless also offers far greater speed – it can deliver gigabits per second, comparable to fiber optic Internet. Give satellite Internet its due: It is currently more widely available than fixed wireless, making it preferable in certain situations. But when both are valid solutions, fixed wireless is generally the better performer.

• Myth #2: Mobile wireless is better. Again, fundamental differences in transmission affect performance. Mobile wireless coverage offers shared capacity over an expansive footprint; fixed wireless connects two specific locations with dedicated, symmetrical capacity. That enables fixed wireless to offer much higher transmission speeds with much lower latency. As with satellite Internet, mobile wireless broadband is more widely available – but when both are candidates, fixed wireless offers greater value.

• Myth #3: Fixed wireless is unreliable in bad weather. It’s true that early fixed wireless implementations were vulnerable to “rain fade” during heavy storms, but technology improvements eliminated that threat years ago. We explored that issue in an earlier blog post that provides examples of well‑known disasters in which fixed wireless offered great performance in extreme conditions, with the ability to be rapidly restored if it does go down.

• Myth #4: Fixed wireless is not secure. It seems intuitive that wireless data transmission is inherently less secure than wired, but that absolutely is not the case. Advanced fixed wireless systems typically feature encryption of all data in flight plus zero-trust security, making it as challenging to hack as any competing technology.

Unquestionably, there are situations and locations where fixed wireless isn’t viable. But when it’s available, fixed wireless can offer an unbeatable combination of rapid deployment, resilience, scalability, and affordability. For a thorough exploration of the possibilities, partner with a fixed wireless provider who can walk you through its suitability to your specific needs.

Comments closed

NFL teams require a tremendous amount of manpower, and not just on the field. The Tennessee Titans today employ some 225 people at the team’s Nashville HQ, with responsibilities ranging from football operations to communications, facilities management, finance, legal, marketing and more. Their staff actually grew so fast they needed more space. Which they were fortunate to find just across the street.

While the location was convenient, moving a substantial number of people there posed an IT challenge: Everyone would need to function just as they did in the original building, which meant reliable IP voice and Internet traffic between the two locations. What made this especially challenging was that connecting the two buildings had to happen very quickly, and the budget had no room for a traditional point-to-point solution. Windstream Fixed Wireless, which is often thought of as a secondary connection, provided the perfect answer.

Connecting two campus locations – no wires attached

The customized Fixed Wireless system with MPLS VPN Windstream implemented for the Titans is built on digital microwave technology designed to deliver carrier-grade Ethernet and IP traffic point-to-point over short distances. By going this route, rather than the more common practice of linking two buildings with fiber, Windstream was able to get the annex site up and running within a few weeks–at a cost savings of about $1,500 per month.

More importantly, quick deployment and cost savings came without sacrificing quality of service or speed. Communications and collaboration run smoothly between the two buildings, and those who moved to the annex continue to work just as they had before, without any IT-related compromise–even in bad weather.

An ideal offensive call for campus-expansion needs

When an organization succeeds at what they do, rapid expansion of facilities will be a fact of life. In those instances where the new space is located nearby within potential line of sight, Fixed Wireless can ensure that extending the existing network can easily support the move, without breaking the budget.

It’s just one way among many Windstream leverages advanced technology to assist customers with agility and economy that wasn’t achievable with traditional technologies. For the Tennessee Titans, “wireless communications” isn’t limited to the free customer experience enhancing WiFi enjoyed by the 70,000 fans who pack Nissan Stadium on game day. Wireless also serves the Titans’ behind the scenes team, helping keep the entire organization running at its peak.

Comments closed