“4G” Gimmick Is So Uncool

When iZZi announced their first and only “4G” product, I quickly doubted that. iZZi’s “4G” wireless broadband is actually the iBurst technology, a pre-4G or post-3G technology (whichever do you prefer) that applies multi-input & multi-output theme which operates on a similar premise as GSM or CDMA2000 for cellular phones. iBurst is not under IEEE 802.16 standards which inlcude WiMAX, but is actually registered as IEEE 802.20 standard.

iBurst or technically known as HC-SDMA (High Capacity Spatial Division Multiple Access) is a wireless broadband technology developed by ArrayComm. ArrayComm is a wireless communications software company based in Silicon Valley, San Jose, California and was founded in 1992. ArrayComm provides multi-antenna signal processing (MAS) software for wireless communications systems which often referred to as “Smart Antennas” or “MIMO”. Today, the software is running in more than 275,000 base stations, in 15 countries around the world. Smart antenna array improves wireless subscriber experiences and the economics of radio networks. The solution is independent to the network system and supports industry standards including WCDMA, HSPA, GSM, WiMAX, PHS, and of course the HC-SDMA. iBurst optimizes the use of its bandwidth with the help of smart antennas. Kyocera is the leading manufacturer of iBurst devices.

4G technology is actually not yet released not only in Malaysia but the whole world. The IEEE 802.16n is preferredly the strongest candidate that might be the next 4G technology. It is expected to deliver data rate from 100Mbps up to 1Gbps for future wireless broadband and not 1Mbps as claimed by iZZi. In my opinion, it is unethical to fool end users with such as unacceptable gimmick. Even if it is just a product name, iZZi should consider other names. Besides, the data rate is not even as fast as HSDPA and HSUPA of 3G technology family.

Posted in Technology.

7 Comments

bard January 28, 2008, 1:30 am

Agreed, memang unethical practice by this telco company. Kalau kat us tu dah tentu kena saman dah atas sebab misleading advertisement.
Nampaknya uncle lim kita dok pejam mata untuk local players walaupun depa tu guna taktik kotor. Kalau foreigners, hmm cepat jer nampak dan ambik tindakan cam kes digi.

ashraf January 28, 2008, 2:00 am

oh ye..one more thing is, bearrr in mind that iZZi’s PCMCIA datacard or USB modem is completely incompatible with other telco’s sim sebab iZZi bukanlah provider 3G.technology pun memang tak sama.so kalau rasa nak subscribe 1 year n then terminate just because nak dapat datacard or modem usb free, it is highly recommended to forget it.speed dia kira ok la jugak sebab 1Mbps.tapi kalau nak refund 100%, kena within 7 days n must not limit 3Mb.huh..nak surf apa camtu..update antivirus je la kot..