[q] configuring wimax for other areas?

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Hi,

I have a business trip coming up to Saudi Arabia next week. I know that my cdma evo won't work there, but there are quite a few WiMax providers in Saudi Arabia. Can the EVO be reconfigured for a different wimax provider if I was to pay for a plan with them? Would love to have data while out there..

Thanks,
-mark

If i'm not mistaken, wimax functions like a broadspectrum Wi-Fi, It should automatically find the signal, but you would need your phone to be registered in their system for it to accept the connection request. I could be completely wrong, but that is how i believe the connection works.

You should be able to edit the network settings through EPST if you're running a Sense ROM. I don't remember what dialer code it is.

The main issue would be the radio frequencies. Do you know if they're the same as Sprint's/Clear's?

Originally Posted by Noxious Ninja

You should be able to edit the network settings through EPST if you're running a Sense ROM. I don't remember what dialer code it is.

The main issue would be the radio frequencies. Do you know if they're the same as Sprint's/Clear's?

So after researching the functionality of WiMax, it wont be a frequency issue, WiMAX works like WiFi, in the sense that any WiMax device can pickup any WiMax signal, it then falls on the carrier's side to allow the device to connect. WiMax runs on IEEE 802.16, similar to Wi-Fi which uses 802.11.

www.wimaxforum.org, and a full sitemap of Wimax locations can be found at www.Wimaxmaps.org

Now what this has also been able to let us know is that Saudi Arabia does not have a Mobile Wi-Max infrastructure, they have Fixed/Nomadic Wi-Max which requires a person to be stationary in the vicinity of the signal. 802.16e is Mobile Wi-Max, and 802.16d is Fixed/Nomadic Wi-Max. Now I don't know whether or not the EVO is capable of receiving 802.16d wireless signals, just like some 802.11 cards are labeled a/b/g/n because not all cards are capable of viewing the same revision.

If the EVO is capable of receiving 802.16d signals, then it should only be a matter of finding out from the Wi-Max provider in SA as to what they require for you to be able to access their WiMax network, if anything at all.

The attached Images show the Mobile WiMax frequencies that are broadcast in the US, and the Fixed/Nomadic Frequencies that are broadcast in SA.

Originally Posted by Khilbron

Now what this has also been able to let us know is that Saudi Arabia does not have a Mobile Wi-Max infrastructure, they have Fixed/Nomadic Wi-Max which requires a person to be stationary in the vicinity of the signal. 802.16e is Mobile Wi-Max, and 802.16d is Fixed/Nomadic Wi-Max. Now I don't know whether or not the EVO is capable of receiving 802.16d wireless signals, just like some 802.11 cards are labeled a/b/g/n because not all cards are capable of viewing the same revision.

Thanks for the clarification. You're right - I hadn't seen any mention of mobile wimax - just wimax @ home there..

cheers,
-mark

There are more reasons it won't work:

- WiMax can be deployed on multiple frequencies. If they don't match, it won't work.
- I don't know the exact details of how this is implemented, but when you connect to Sprint's WiMax, there's an encryption key exchange. I don't know if that's just intended to keep other WiMax devices off of Sprint, or if it also prevents your phone from negotiating a connection with something off Sprint. In other words, even if the carrier isn't trying to negotiate with a key, is the fact that our phones are programmed to use that key in the connection process going to cause a problem? I don't know the answer to this.
- If the carrier you're trying to connect to requires a similar handshake, you wouldn't have the right key on your phone to do that.
- There aren't any global roaming arrangements for WiMax as far as I know. That carrier doesn't intend to let you use it if they can't get paid, even if no technical restrictions prevent it.