If forecasts are to be believed, in less than two years WiMax, or wireless Internet broadband, will have a mass market.

A forecast for India says that WiMax users in the country reach 27.5 million by 2012. The figure comes from the WiMax Forum India, an industry body.

The moot point though not just for India but also for the rest of the world is, are there enough devices to support the boom?

Different inventions by companies relate to dual band dual mode (DBDM) mobile communication terminal, which can perform stable roaming between synchronous and asynchronous mobile communication networks and WiMax as well.

WiMax Forum India believes by mid 2009, there will be some dual-band-dual-mode devices available in the market. As BWA spectrum is getting auctioned in 2.3 GHz and 2.5 GHz bands, operators may end up getting spectrum in multiple bands.

For, terminal size equipment, most of the chipset vendors has single chipsets which support 2.3-2.7 GHz bands. So, developing dual-band devices is technically feasible but not yet available in the market.

As for mobile WiMax devices, there are simply not enough WiMax devices and products in the market too.

WiMax Forum India believes that with more than 80 suppliers, providing a range of 480 devices from stations and CPE, to PC cards and handsets, the majority of vendors worldwide are committed to building WiMax devices and infrastructure.

Research firm In-Stat in a report says that the first round of WiMax devices will likely be embedded in mobile PCs or external laptop clients in 2009. These technologies would benefit from WiMax's relatively cheaper costs and, in some cases, no service-contract requirements.

Intel has recently announced that the chip-maker is working with Indian service providers and device manufacturers to help bring WiMax-ready notebooks and netbooks to the India market by mid-2009. Additional information on specific OEM systems and devices will be announced in the coming months.

Intel vice president and general manager of the WiMax Program Office, Sriram Vishwanathan, outlined an alliance focused on delivering affordable devices to Indians that take advantage of upcoming 4G WiMax networks.

The group was established by Intel and the WiMax Forum India to gather key global WiMax company participants in India to collaborate with WiMax service providers, as well as local government and businesses to deliver affordable devices.

Vishwanathan said, "This is a very exciting time for India and WiMax as it has the ability to help bridge the digital divide with the most cost effective and highest-performing wireless broadband technology available today. The availability of low cost devices for end users forms an essential part of the promise and capability of WiMax."

"These efforts are in line with Intel's focus of connecting Indians to the Internet and enable them to leverage its unlimited potential. WiMax is a major component in Intel's goal to shift the industry and consumers to a "mobile Internet" added R. Sivakumar, managing director, sales and marketing, Intel South Asia.

The WiMax Forum India chairman said, "The WiMax ecosystem, as well as excitement for the technology, has grown significantly over the past five years,"

Rao further added, "WiMax is viewed as the best wireless broadband technology for India - with a diverse and complete ecosystem ready to deliver affordable, lightning-fast wireless Internet." X