Why is it a turkey?
Ultra Wideband was supposed to replace those tangled messes of cables that link PCs to printers, monitors, keyboards and other peripherals as well as show up inside mobile phones, cameras and printers to deliver wireless broadband at speeds up to 480 Mbps for distances up to 3 meters and 110 mbps at 10 meters. Seemingly in perpetual development [1], UWB won't be coming to a retailer near you in a big way as expected this year.
In fact, UWB's promise is more of a dream now that UWB chip maker WiQuest went out of business at the end of October. And few chipmakers, such as Intel, are emphasizing the technology. Alereon, which recently announced it would acquire the USB assets of Stonestreet One, appears to be the only chipmaker dedicated to making a product.
The FCC gave its blessing to the UWB back in 2002, but to date, Toshiba and Lenovo are the only manufacturers offering wireless USB, a UWB-enabled version of the standard USB technology found in PCs today.
Links:
[1] http://www.fiercebroadbandwireless.com/story/uwb-shows-signs-of-life/2007-01-02
[2] http://www.fiercewireless.com/special-reports/helio
[3] http://www.fiercewireless.com/special-reports/theyre-cooked-wireless-turkeys-2008
[4] http://www.fiercewireless.com/special-reports/motorolas-handset-strategy