Wireless USB kit could be on sale within weeks

Next-generation ultra-wideband links could be on sale within weeks following a little-noticed EC approval of the technology shortly before Christmas.

Belkin says a Wireless USB hub and dongle using the technology could be on the shelves as soon as March, once the regulatory position has been clarified. We are waiting for a comment from Ofcom

The dongle plugs in a PC's USB 2.0 and connects with the four-port hub wirelessly at up to 480Mbit/sec. The pair together have a US price of $129.99 (£67).

The technology replaces the usual USB cable with an ultrawideband (UWB) wireless link at a power that restricts its use within a room.

This is actually an advantage, or will be networking infrastructure matures, because it avoids shouting down the neighbours as Wi-fi does, allowing many more people to use it in a given area.

UWB spreads data across a wide range of frequencies at below the noise floor, so that receiving it is like picking out a distinctive whisper from a crown of loud talkers.

It can share frequencies already being used for conventional wireless. Belkin showed a wireless USB hub at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show, and it demonstrated an ultrawideband wireless implementation of an HDMI link at this year's CES. Philips showed a similar device.

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group is drawing up a specification for a UWB version of its technology. This essentially uses standard Bluetooth for device discovery and negotiation, and calls up UWB for fast data delivery.

The December approval of UWB by the EC's Radio Spectrum Committee was opposed by France and Sweden but got the nod from Britain's Ofcom, according to consultant Arc Chart.

It means UWB is allowed to operate between 3.1-10.6GHz in the US, 6-10GHz in Britain, and 7-10GHz in Japan. This kind of disparity is not uncommon: there are slight differences in permitted Wifi frequencies worldwide. Arc Chart comments in a newsletter: "Hopefully, this disparity in bands will not disrupt the global harmonisation of UWB-based products."

It concludes: "The UWB Great Wait is over. Devices will trickle onto the market over the course of this year, initially leveraging USB dongles to provide connectivity, followed by full integration within PCs, peripherals and consumer electronics devices."

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