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Novatel Wireless has expanded its MiFi personal hot spot line with the addition of the MiFi 2372 with multimode operation, making it available for use on HSPA, UMTS, EDGE and GPRS networks.
It joins the MiFi 2200, for CDMA 1xEVDO RevA networks, and the MiFi 2352, for HSPA networks, in offering what Novatel likes to call “Wi-Fi in your pocket”-though it’s not yet available to consumers. That will depend on a carrier picking up the device. Verizon Wireless, for example, offers the MiFi 2200.
The MiFi devices-slick and attractive, under 3 ounces, and measuring approximately 2.4 by 3.8 by 0.6 inches-create a high-speed Internet cloud wherever there’s a compatible cellular connection. The cloud can be accessed by five users, or five devices.
Novatel says data speeds on the 2372 are 7.2M bps on downlink and 5.76M bps on uplink, and that it works even in moving vehicles. It comes with Novatel’s proprietary NovaSpeed technology, which is said to enhance video and gaming performance and the simultaneous, uninterrupted uploading and downloading of large files.
The new MiFi additionally features an on-board application processor and internal (ROM) storage plus a microSD slot for adding up to16GB of additional memory-enabling the hot spot to act as a storage device for videos, music, etc. GPS capabilities are built in, and it’s compatible with Windows 2000, XP and Vista; Mac OS X 10.4 and later; and Linux operating systems.
Sprint also offers the MiFi 2200, which figured largely in its stated hopes-during its second-quarter 2009 earnings call-for a smooth transition to 4G. As Sprint CEO Dan Hesse explained, consumers with dual-mode 3G/4G phones can access 4G through a mobile hot spot like the one the MiFi provides.
Unlike previous incarnations, with the MiFi 2372 Novatel says greater personalization and mobile access to services is possible. IT managers can “extend and enhance mobile work force solutions and better secure, control and manage broadband connections, together with the ability to host vertical applications,” the company wrote in a statement.
Novatel has also opened the MiFi’s software interface to developers, who are encouraged to leverage its processing capabilities. (Application programming interfaces and guides are available at the Novatel Developers Lounge.)
“We are very pleased to announce the continued evolution of the MiFi Intelligent Mobile Hotspot product line,” said Peter Leparulo, CEO of Novatel Wireless, in a statement.
“The availability of the MiFi 2372 HSPA will significantly expand the addressable market for MiFi technology, as well as offering users unrivaled high-speed access to multiple devices virtually anywhere they go around the globe.”