Chicago is finally in the Wi-Fi game
  ThanX to ePrairie.com

  CHICAGO – If your usual lunchtime routine finds you hurrying through
Daley Plaza or zipping past City Hall, you might want to take your PDA
with Wi-Fi or laptop out of your backpack when you're next in the area.
Perhaps you can even snag some extra time in the sun by sending a few
e-mails before heading back to the office.

  Yep. Chicago is finally in the Wi-Fi game.

  Without a lot of fanfare, the city has created a hot zone between
Clark and Dearborn streets. It encompasses Daley Plaza and spills over
into Block 37. During my informal testing, I was able to wander
throughout the coverage area (both during the day and at night) while
staying connected to a surprisingly strong and speedy wireless network
known as “WIZ” (a temporary name, presumably).

  The network was also available in front of the Cook County Building
and the Clark Street side of City Hall. Users aren’t encumbered with
pesky user names or passwords (not even a welcome screen). The network
hasn’t been promoted as of yet and isn’t even listed on the City of
Chicago’s Web site.

  Kudos should go to Chicago CIO Christopher O’Brien and his team for
recognizing the need for public Internet access in the central business
district. Hopefully, over the coming weeks and months, we’ll see the
city partner with the private sector. The inevitable user communities
are then bound to pop up to support and promote the initiative.

  I’d personally like to see less hype than other cities have given to
initial municipal-backed Wi-Fi projects. I say this not because Wi-Fi
and hot spots aren’t to be take seriously (they are) but because it’s
much too late in the hype curve to gain any credibility by such an
effort. Let’s go beyond simply setting up a network to figuring out how
to leverage services on top of it.

  As the prospect of omnipresent wireless high-speed Internet access
appears more likely by the day, there will be no shortage of products
and services to capitalize on the opportunity anywhere broadband lives.

  Wi-Fi Cameras

  While manufacturers of cell phone cameras are sure to grab the lion
share of profits during the initial phase of the wireless camera
market, traditional camera makers aren’t far behind. Nikon will soon be
offering a wireless attachment to its D2H professional-grade digital
camera that enables users to shoot pictures and send them over an
802.11x network. Who needs a computer?

  Professional sports photographers can utilize increasingly available
on-site wireless networks without ever having to download pictures to a
PC. Within 12 months, this type of wireless option is sure to filter
down to the mid-range digital market.

  For those of you who are camera buffs, by the way, click here for a
thorough review of the product by camera expert Rob Galbraith.

  Voice Over Wi-Fi

  Back in March 2003, Qualcomm’s CEO downplayed the advent of Wi-Fi and
brushed off his peers who were smart enough to hedge their bets and
give Wi-Fi a tepid reception. Just six months later, Qualcomm is
singing a different tune. The company recently announced they would
begin including Wi-Fi features in millions of the company’s patented
CDMA phones.

  Qualcomm joins a growing list of carriers that have made Wi-Fi part of
their 2004 strategy. One such company is Nextel.

  I think Nextel has the best chance to make Wi-Fi work right from the
start. Why? Instead of taking the public hot spot approach like Sprint
and T-Mobile, Nextel will capitalize on their loyal push-to-talk users
in the health care, building maintenance and construction industries
and build a “private Wi-Fi” service.

  For example, a hospital could install an in-building WiFi system that
acts as an extension to Nextel’s wide-area network. A user could access
the Nextel public network via a local Wi-Fi access point.

  Follow the Money

  While tracking the VC money trail may not be a sure sign of things to
come, it definitely gives some clues. This week, a company called
Kineto Wireless announced it has received $24 million in venture
financing. The company’s first product is targeted at the mobile over
wireless LAN (MoWLAN) carrier-class infrastructure market. Basically,
the company sees a market in providing mobile voice and data services
over WLANs that are located within homes, offices and hot spots. The
company believes that carriers can deliver these services at a lower
cost than existing 2.5G and 3G mobile network technologies.

  They cite research from the Yankee Group and the FCC: “More than 30
percent of mobile use is indoors and subscribers now use their mobile
phone for nearly 20 percent of their total home calling.”

  Back in Daley Plaza

  A year from now, a Picasso-gazing tourist who’s snapping
high-resolution pictures and sending them back home via a public WLAN
will no doubt leave this city with positive feelings. A city resident
who otherwise might not have access to broadband may find a public hot
spot critical to getting ahead in work or school.

  There are countless examples of how providing wireless public LANs
will have a positive impact on the city. It’s important we get this
right.

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