InfoWorld reports Toshiba to launch a national, seamless, integrated Wi-Fi and 3G cellular network: Expected to be announced at PC Expo on June 25, Toshiba's network has few details yet available, like speed, locations, and cost.

Other News

Part 15 Smackdown: amateur radio association gets hit by the big boys: in what appears to be an overreaction (in the view of ARRL, the amateur radio association), a number of industry players filed comments objecting to the ARRL's petition regarding Part 15 operation in the 24 GHz (that's 24 not 2.4 GHz) band. The ARRL objected to the FCC's intention to allow higher-radiating unlicensed devices under the Part 15 rules which allow users without license to use certified equipment. These are the rules under which Wi-Fi and other consumer and enterprise networking systems work, as well as 2.4 GHz cordless phonse.

The ARRL categorized their petition as limited, but it's interesting to see how strong the response was by the group of companies selling and supporting Wi-Fi and related networking. Not only are these companies paying attention, but they're paying cash money to defend their turf, which happens to be our turf as well. More analysis is needed to understand whether the ARRL's stance would have weakened overall Part 15 rules (the industry's contention), or whether ARRL was attempting to draw a distinction between licensed and unlicensed uses in a single band (the ARRL's assertion). [via Scott at Bluetooth.weblogs.com]

Secure Digital Wi-Fi cards on the way: the Secure Digital (SD) format is not only gaining popularity, but it's small and low-power.

Knight-Ridder general audience overview of wireless networking: my modesty forbears me mentioning the quote from my blog that appears in this article, but it's a nice, short, clear description of the current Bluetooth and 802.11 family protocols.

Apple tool for Windows users to manage AirPort Base Stations: I was completely unaware until reading this article that Apple offered this unsupported Windows utility to manage an AirPort Base Station. You can get a similar (or is it identical?) program from Orinoco, a free Windows program in the open-source world, or use a free Java utility, too, on any platform.

HP offers internal Wi-Fi print server for...$450?: don't ask me what lighter fluid the HP folks are sniffing, but they offer an internal Wi-Fi print server that fits in the slot of several models of printers. Now, $450 seems like a ridiculous sum, but I'm guessing that in the enterprise world, buying an all-in-one solution that has a single management interface and HP's world-class support makes it somehow more worthwhile than buying a $150 standalone Wi-Fi print spooler from any of a number of other companies.

Reuters reports on Bluetooth with a little bit on Wi-Fi: an interesting piece on the state of Bluetooth. What's fascinating about this piece is that it's a member of a category of articles on Bluetooth in the last few weeks in major publications that show the turning of the tide. With Bluetooth adapters and devices now shipping, its real utility is starting to show up, so reporters and tech columnist (like moi) can write about what it does, not what it's marketed as doing. I received a 3Com Bluetooth PC card today, and other devices are on the way. I should offer a real Bluetooth report in the near future.

Get Sharp! Wi-Fi projector?: I missed this story when it came out in March, but apparently these units are now shipping. For over $5,000, you can get a Wi-Fi equipped extremely bright and compact projector which, with the addition of Mac and PC software, can receive presentations in real-time over a network obviating the need to plug in individual devices. Keen. More recently, a few days ago, NEC announced a similar series that will ship this fall.

Singapore: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPRS: work is underway in Singapore to ensure seamless access across all three standards for maximum availability. Singapore has 40 hot spots according to this article.