Comcast To Deploy Femtocells - To ease congestion and costs of WiMax offerings...
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Comcast To Deploy Femtocells
To ease congestion and costs of WiMax offerings...
(old news - 02:14PM Monday Jun 23 2008)
tags: business · wireless · hardware · alternatives · bandwidth · cable · networking · Comcast
As part of their participation in the new ultra-mega-Clearire consortium, Comcast says the company will be exploring the idea of putting femtocells into customer homes. Femtocells essentially create a micro cell tower in your home that improves wireless coverage and allows you to make calls over your broadband connection. "As part of the WiMax consortium, we have to buy bits and minutes of use," says Comcast's Dave Williams, senior VP for wireless and technology. "If we build our own femtocell network we don’t have to pay for that. So, we have a vested interest in building out femtocells."

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danclan @ 23rd Jun 02:29PM:
Are they going to pay me to run it

well...are they?
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neufuse @ 23rd Jun 02:29PM:
wait..

So comcast is pushing for shareing bandwidth? that's kinda what it sounds like with the " we build our own femtocell network we don’t have to pay for that." quote
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hottboiinnc @ 23rd Jun 02:30PM:
Re: Are they going to pay me to run it

NOPE! it will end up being complied into a product of theirs. Or allow you to use the service away from home.
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anon @ 23rd Jun 02:33PM:
What would we do with the femtocells?

As a Comcast user, What would we do with the femtocells?

I just don't understand!
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tshirt @ 23rd Jun 02:46PM:
Re: wait..

I think you're not understanding what a femtocell is.
Very limit range, and usually only supports 2-5 devices and will likely (in Comcast's case) to require some login/authentication to sign-on. This isn't your basic open wi-fi AP, more like a personal range extender to be sure you get coverage in your home/business space.
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fcisler @ 23rd Jun 02:54PM:
Vaporware

I keep seeing this. I think it's the buzzword of 2008, so far.

I don't wanna hear anything about them until a (US) company actually starts using them.

We have a cell phone repeater system here. $60k+ - not including nextel. They gave us a deal for nextel, $8k if installed at the same time.

The thing is f'n amazing, except for AT&T keeps doing something stupid to where we have to call usually once a month - they go "everything's fine on our end", then miraculously it works for another month...

Each provider (we have 6 amps, 3 1850 and 3 850 - IIRC) requires their own amp too. As far as I'm told, it's AT&T, Sprint and Verizon.
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quetwo @ 23rd Jun 03:02PM:
Re: Vaporware

We have some femtocells in testing with Verizon and Nextel right now on our campus. This is not the same style that would be deployed in the home (still about the size of my old CRT monitor), but the function would be the same.

Ours are used for CDMA/EVDO and iDEN in very high-population to get additional timeslots to our students. They estimate each one can do about 32 students, or about 6 conversations. The models we have support data, but they are shared over all the cells in the fiber ring.
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flyingjoey @ 23rd Jun 03:03PM:
Re: wait..

So, does this mean that Comcrap customer will get a discount because they are sharing their connections for Voice services.
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patcat88 @ 23rd Jun 03:31PM:
comcast cap

Will this go against your cap? :D
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hottboiinnc @ 23rd Jun 03:35PM:
Re: Vaporware

I worked for a company that had Nextel deploy them in their stores. The things were a POS. Service still never worked with an actual antenna on the roof and about 40 repeaters in the building.

Dropped NexHELL for Alltel.
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digitalfreak @ 23rd Jun 03:35PM:
Re: comcast cap

said by patcat88 :

Will this go against your cap? :D
LOL. Same thing I was thinking.
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Warmachine99 @ 23rd Jun 06:18PM:
Re: comcast cap

Of course it does. Data is data. Maybe they will even charge you more for the privilege!!
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rahvin112 @ 23rd Jun 06:29PM:
Re: comcast cap

They will likely put it in it's own spectrum with QOS just like they do with Comcast phone which is VOIP but isn't carried on the same channel as your internet. What this will do if implemented using moderate power femtocells is make Clearwire internet available anywhere Comcast has customers. Could be HUGE for Clearwire and might make them a truely third competitor to lower prices. Because WiMax as built is an all IP network internet and voice are the same thing so Comcast won't be able to restrict it.
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NOCMan @ 23rd Jun 06:32PM:
Re: Vaporware

4Q 2008.
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patcat88 @ 23rd Jun 07:58PM:
Re: comcast cap

said by rahvin112 :

They will likely put it in it's own spectrum with QOS just like they do with Comcast phone which is VOIP but isn't carried on the same channel as your internet. What this will do if implemented using moderate power femtocells is make Clearwire internet available anywhere Comcast has customers. Could be HUGE for Clearwire and might make them a truely third competitor to lower prices. Because WiMax as built is an all IP network internet and voice are the same thing so Comcast won't be able to restrict it.
Hmm, so these will sorta be free, and not taken directly against your account and will be free to all devices (unlike current femtocells where you enter in their config pages what fone #s are allowed to use them). Much smarter idea. Plus the host of the femtocell won't have to worry about slowing down his connection since the bandwidth comes from the whole DOCSIS channel/node rather than his cable modem.
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wildcat man @ 23rd Jun 09:02PM:
Re: Vaporware

The femtocell deployment that Sprint has put in for Denver, Indy, and Nashville customers is legit. Saw it in action in a home in Fraser, CO which is about 70 miles from downtown Denver. All CDMA devices work on it - we tried 3 simultaneous conversations and that worked too. I like it, as to make Femtocells work very well in the broadband environment, it sure doesn't hurt to have the High Speed Internet provider directly connected to the underlying wireless provider (Clearwire for next gen, Sprint for current gen). Sprint's solution documented at www.sprint.com/airave.

Does anyone in Denver, Indianapolis, or Nashville have femto and how does it work?


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anon @ 24th Jun 08:51AM:
mmmmkay

I wish they would first finish building out their network so that ALL customers are on digital cable systems.

THEN they can upgrade the speed, technology, etc.

They still have too many cable systems in their network that are analog and can get less than 50 channels, and are not broadband capable.
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ztmike @ 25th Jun 12:13AM:
Re: comcast cap

said by digitalfreak :

said by patcat88 :

Will this go against your cap? :D
LOL. Same thing I was thinking.
Pretty damn sad, isn't it?
--
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdYueIC1pjM
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