Here are some Wi-Fi predictions from the team at Ruckus Wireless:
Wi-Fi Ramps Up in 2012
Sales of wireless devices, such as smartphones and tablets continue to outpace sales of static devices dependent on fixed line connections, such as PCs. Research firm Gartner recently reported that although PC shipments in Western Europe totalled 14.8 million units in the third quarter of 2011, shipments were in decline by 11.4 per cent from the same period last year. Conversely Investment Bank JP Morgan estimates that sales of tablets will soar to 99.3 million in 2012 driven by Apple’s iPad, the Amazon Kindle and Android supported variants. This is matched by ever-increasing sales of smartphones, which will result in more fixed line and wireless service providers, enterprises and public sector organisations adopting Wi-Fi to cater for the insatiable demand for wireless connectivity. Earlier this year Chris Bruce, Chairman of the Wireless Broadband Alliance, stated that 2011 marked the beginning of ‘the golden age of public Wi-Fi’.
Arnaud le Hung, EMEA Marketing Director at Ruckus Wireless, a leading provider of advanced wireless systems for the mobile network market, believes that as the demand for Wi-Fi increases the market will experience the following specific developments during 2012.
Capacity will Matter as Much as Coverage 2012
Wi-Fi capacity will become just as important an issue as Wi-Fi coverage in 2012 and service providers will have to deploy Wi-Fi networks with the bandwidth to cope with highly populated and dense environments, such as the crowds of spectators expected at next summer’s Olympic Games in London.
This will become apparent as more wireless operators offload data traffic onto Wi-Fi networks and Wi-Fi hotspots become universally accessible thanks to the adoption of 802.11u standard, which will allow users to roam seamlessly between hotspots without the need for constant authentication. It is estimated that service providers will spend up to $1 billion worldwide on Wi-Fi network expansion to support the need for greater capacity.
Three Wi-Fi Devices Per-Person
As sales of smartphones and tablets with Wi-Fi capabilities continue to increase at a rapid rate we estimate that the average number of Wi-Fi enabled devices per person will reach three in 2012. Tablets have been adopted by consumers and businesses alike and they are optimised for entertainment consumption and corporate use. Apart from smartphones and tablets other Wi-Fi enabled-devices include laptops, games consoles and printers. Many users are now taking their devices into the workplace, and into schools or universities, to act as a substitute for a PC to conduct a range of different tasks.
No comments yet.