ABI Research Makes Bold Predictions for the Future of Wireless HDTV Technology

According to ABI Research, wireless HDTV technology will enjoy a significant increase in demand by 2012. In fact, the research company predicts that competing technologies will be duking it out by this time in an effort to fulfill the demand for over a million installs. The three technologies that will be fighting for the lead position include 56Hz, 60GHz, and ultra wideband (UWB).

This year, less than 100,000 wireless technology HDTV devices are expected to be shipped out. By 2012, however, this is expected to change because all three types of technology are capable of broadcasting HD programming from a variety of sources. These sources include Blu-ray players as well as cable boxes.

“5 GHz technology is better understood and more prove,” said Steve Wilson, principal analyst for ABI Research. “But, achieving the required data rates requires new approaches and more complex solutions. UWB technology has bandwidth advantages at in-room distances but drops rapidly at greater ranges. 60 GHz allows high data rates, but so far only one company is even close to a viable solution.”