Smart set to offer WiMAX internet
Thursday, 27 January 2011 15:01 Jeremy Mullins
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SMART Mobile is in the testing phase to launch WiMAX at “practically 4G” speeds on its network, its chief executive officer Thomas Hundt said.

WiMAX is a method of “last mile” internet delivery, where the internet is accessed using wireless technology. The technology – to be accessed by computers only – is likely to be the first of its kind launched in Cambodia, said Hundt.

He declined to reveal a pricing plan yesterday, but said that the service would be available from a USB dongle as well as a portable modem.

Speeds will reach 40 megabits per second.

The service could be used at home, but also can be operated from a computer from places such as cafes – provided it is within range of the WiMAX signal.

“At the end of the day for the users, what matters is the user experience.

“And what the users want is internet,” he said yesterday.

The firm – which had its merger with Star-Cell approved earlier this month - intends to launch the service in Phnom Penh at the end of the first or beginning of the second quarter.

It will also be available in Siem Reap and Battambang..

The same type of WiMAX is currently operated in Malaysia by Packet One Networks, and had proven successful, he said.

Smart held its first live test of the system during the ASEAN Tourism Forum on Koh Pich last week, with “excellent” results, according to Hundt. Source: phnompenhpost