WiBE Shared Hotspot Pitched For Rural Broadband

A British company claims to have solved the problem of delivering a reliable broadband connection to people in rural communities.

Deltenna has developed a small, self installable gadget called the WiBE (Wireless Broadband Enabler), which uses the 3G mobile network to create a 2Mbps web hotspot. The device sounds similar in concept to devices like Novatel’s MiFi – but Deltenna claims it works even in places where a 3G mobile phone wouldn’t register a signal. The WiBE has five-times the range of a 3G dongle, and can deliver 30-times data throughput as well compared to a 3G USB modem dongle, Deltenna believes.

The secret’s in WiBE’s patented antennas and alignment algorithms, says Peter Claydon, vice president of sales and marketing at Deltenna. Using these, the WiBE automatically identifies the mobile cell mast that has the fastest available download speed and configures its aerials to achieve the best possible connection.

Multi Directional Antennas

The WiBE’s maximum throughput is 7.2Mbps and “extensive rural usage tests in the UK demonstrated an average download speed of 2.8 Mbps.”

The WiBE’s arrival comes as figures show that the UK is falling out of love with the dongle. Recent figures from UK mobile broadband price comparison site, Broadband Expert, found that the boom in mobile broadband sales is over as consumers now realise the technology falls short of the hype. It found that there has been a 57 percent drop in the number of people it helped sign up for mobile broadband in the last twelve months. Moreover, it said sales have crashed by over 50 percent year-on-year.

“The problem with 3G dongles is that their antenna is small and not multi directional, so you do not get throughput, said Claydon, speaking to eWEEK Europe UK. “Our WiBE works far better and always give much better performance than a dongle.”

Claydon admits that some rural communities struggle to get even a decent 3G signal, especially indoors where 3G signals struggle to penetrate, but he insists that the WiBE is a very stronger receiver, with a connection range up to five-times that of the 3G dongle. “There are some places where you cannot get a 3G signal, which is why we are selling this device through the mobile operators, OEMs and the reseller market,” Claydon said.

User Installable

“But there are some operators that see mobile broadband as an opportunity of pushing broadband into rural areas without having to put up more infrastructure,” he added. “In certain locations you get a extreme benefit from the WiBE.”

He said that Buzz Networks would be launched their own branded version of the WiBE sometime after the summer. Deltenna is also working on LTE version of the WiBE.

Claydon said the device is easily installed by plugging it into the mains, and placing it on a windowsill. Users have the choice of either using an ethernet connection to physically connect their laptops to the device, or they can access it via the configurable Wi-Fi (b, g and n) network.