A Microsoft led consortium has embarked upon a new kind of trial in Cambridge, involving next generation Wi-Fi system. The USP of
the new trial is its ability to use 150 MHz spectrum, which is maintained by terrestrial Televisions for avoiding signal interference. However, now this unused spectrum or "White Space" as it is generally known will now be used for providing Wi-Fi access. Though, this trial is not the first of its kind in the UK. BT is already rolling out similar trial in Scotland. Microsoft led consortium includes major players like BBC, Sky and Nokia.
The trial is scheduled to go live this Wednesday and would mainly work to ensure that the new program does not cause any TV signal interference. If successful, the program is likely to become a viable alternative to traditional Wi-Fi networks. This should come as a happy news for the bandwidth hogs in us. With the proliferation of smartphones and tablets, the demand for mobile bandwidth is increasing at fast pace.
The White Space concept is being put to tough tests before making it public. The consortium said that Cambridge has been chosen as the trial spot for its "dense mixture of buildings, including the historic stone buildings of its colleges." The existence of these buildings will ensure that White Space signals are capable of penetrating through them. White Space broadband is also expected to have wider range than traditional Wi-Fi. You can look forward to achieve up to 16 Mbps of data speed on this spectrum. The concept, though, yet has to be officially recognized by Ofcom.