This one's been a long time in the making, but the deal is finally done. Clearwire and Sprint Nextel have gleefully announced that the transaction to combine their next-generation wireless internet businesses is complete, and beers are on the two of 'em this evening. On the real, the agreement dictates that Sprint hand over all of its 2.5GHz spectrum and WiMAX-related assets (including XOHM) to Clearwire; additionally, Clearwire has received a $3.2 billion cash infusion from Comcast, Intel, Time Warner Cable, Google and Bright House Networks. Details beyond that are scant, though we are told that the terms "originally announced on May 7, 2008" are the ones being abided by, and the new company will retain the Clearwire name and its Kirkland, Washington headquarters.

Hey Sprint, you listening? Granted, GSM doesn't do Sprint a whole lot of good in the States, but swapping a CDMA radio into HTC's first WiMAX effort here would make for a downright mighty response to the Touch HD. The previously-seen T8920 has turned out to be the MAX 4G, an 800 x 480 monster with 8GB of Flash on board, two cameras, an FM radio, GPS, WiFi, triband EDGE, and -- most importantly -- WiMAX support, making it the first GSM / WiMAX handset anywhere in the world. It'll be launching on Scartel's Yota network in Russia, and if you have friends cool enough to have a MAX 4G of their own, calls between the two of y'all will automatically be routed over the WiMAX airwaves using VoIP. A launch date hasn't been announced, but unless you're in Russia, there's probably not much point in even bothering to lust after this one.

With Sprint snagging the vast majority of the WiMAX limelight of late, we aren't going to complain with a similar network halfway across the globe yanking it back. Out of absolutely nowhere comes HTC's first WiMAX-enabled handset, the sure-to-be-delightful T8290. Reportedly, this bugger packs a 3.8-inch 800 x 480 resolution display, 802.11g WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, GSM and WiMAX radios and is expected to launch soon on Russia's Yota. Granted, we can't take this as hard truth or anything quite yet, but the images that reside in the read link are more than convincing. Oh, and HTC -- given that you're passing on the US with the Touch HD, do you think it'd be possible to get this over here for use with XOHM? We'd really, really appreciate it.

[Via Slashphone, thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Never one to settle, Art Lebedev's design shop is trying its hand at handset design, and we like the looks of it. Art is teaming up with Scartel, a Russian carrier which just launched a WiMax network in Moscow and St. Petersburg, for a flagship handset of sorts, and has left no spec unturned -- at least in the wishful-thinking conceptual stage. In addition to a WiMax radio, the device has WiFi, tri-band GSM, microSD, dual cameras, 3.5mm audio, an A/V plug and a gargantuan 850 x 480 screen. There are minimal buttons at the base: a five-way joystick and call / end, and no keypad, so we're going to assume that we're looking at a touchscreen device. Now all that's left is to pick an OS -- would Android be too much to ask? Another shot is after the fold.

[Via Pocket-lint]

A little URL hacking by Engadget fan Leo, has revealed Sprint's new My Xohm site and loads of service information. The site is clearly in a preparatory state with plenty of dead links and Latin dummy-text holding the pre-launch site format together. Nevertheless, there is quite a bit of detail here, some of which is certainly more than just idle filler. For example, based on the current text, we can expect the following at service launch in September:

• Nokia's N810 WiMAX Edition -- looks like a lock based on the liberal use of its image (above) across the pages.
  
• XOHM USB (ZTE's TU25) modem.
  
• XOHM Express Card (Samsung's SWC-E100) modem with optional PCMCIA adapter.
  
• XOHM Modem (ZyXel's MAX-206M2) Ethernet hub / router with optional 4-hour battery -- unfortunately, XOHM will not offer static IP addresses at this time.
  
• The XOHM portal (whatever that is) supports both Windows and OS X. However, the modems listed above and Sprint's XOHM Connection Manager software are PC-only, sorry Mac owners.
  

Unfortunately, we can't find any specific pricing information but the site does tell us that access will be sold by the day or by the month without binding contracts or cancellation fees. It also promises speeds between 2-4Mbps for downloads and 1-3Mbps for uploads. Not sure that's worth the move to Baltimore but it's certainly given us cause to pause at the thought. See the modems pictured after the break.

[Thanks, Leo S.]

Read -- General Support FAQ
Read -- Pricing and Speed
Read -- My Xohm
Read -- Devices

Just over a year ago, we were all making bitter beer faces at FCC chairman Kevin Martin for not going along with a delightful sounding "free internet" plan. Now, it seems the main man's tune has changed. During a recent interview, Martin stated that there was a "social obligation in making sure everybody could participate in the next generation of broadband services because, increasingly, that's what people want." He's reportedly looking to attach a free mobile broadband requirement to the AWS-3 spectrum that's set to be auctioned next year, which would require the winner to allocate 25% for gratis access. 'Course, we wouldn't get our hopes us for this to actually go down like it surely is playing out in your mind just now, but we won't fault you for dreamin'.

[Via phonescoop]

We're still waiting for our little ol' 3G femtocell around these parts; only Sprint has put any serious effort into bringing a unit to market with its Airave from Samsung, but even they're restricting it to just a couple markets at this point (lame). Be that as it may, the Femto Forum -- an industry group promoting the tech -- is already pushing ahead into the LTE and WiMAX realms with the hope of being "ready from day one." To that end, it has teamed up with the Next Generation Mobile Networks Alliance to make sure everyone's on the same page about how femtocells can and should be use in 4G networks. That's all well and good, and we're definitely glad these guys are on top of things, but can we just pause for one hot second and get a few more 3G cells in customers' hands, please?

Far from being the first dual-mode handset we've seen (heck, it's not even the first WiMAX-friendly dualie), Qsida's recently showcased slider is still quite intriguing. The currently unnamed cellphone supports both 802.16e WiMAX as well as GSM / GPRS / EDGE networks, and just in case you're hankering for another way to get connected, there's a built-in WiFi module too. Reportedly, the smartphone is a test device used in the M-Taiwan initiative to promote WiMAX, and aside from handling voice calls via (almost) any flavor of wireless protocol, you'll also find Windows Mobile 6.1 running the show. Granted, this particular unit wasn't down with 3G, but a spokesperson was adamant that such a handset would be added to its portfolio eventually.

We're not exactly willing to sign up for even more punishment at the hands of Comcast, but all you masochists in the crowd should take note: GigaOm is reporting that the cable giant is "serious" about offering wireless services and has hired former Telefonica O2 Europe CTO Dave Williams to make it happen. It's not clear what type of wireless is being considered, but it's a good bet Sprint will be involved somehow: Comcast is still in that goofy partnership with Sprint called Pivot that hasn't gone anywhere, the two companies are rumored to be talking about a nationwide WiMAX network, and GigaOm thinks there's a chance it could up and buy the struggling carrier outright. That would be quite a move, but it's all just speculation for now -- we'll let you know if we hear anything solid.

It's April, do you know where your WiMax service is? Unfortunately, S.Korea as Sprint backtracks on the planned April launch of its commercial Xohm service. This according to an official company spokesman. Sprint says that the launch has been delayed to "later in the year" which many expect to be as early as summer. Even then we're likely only talking about Chicago, Baltimore, and D.C. areas. Time to start making room for LTE in our sad, jaded hearts.

Not too long ago, we gave you loyal Cloudbook owners a chance to voice your opinion on how you'd change things. Fast forward a few weeks, and take a gander at what Everex has put together. Debuting today at CTIA 2008, the Cloudbook MAX not only boasts an 8.9-inch WVGA (1,024 x 600) display, Windows Vista, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth, integrated GPS receiver, 2-megapixel webcam and a battery good for four hours, but it also features an 80GB HDD, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, audio in / out and an S-Video output. Beyond all that, this thing gets energized by a 1.6GHz VIA C7-M ULV processor coupled with the VX800 digital media IGP chipset, which touts full DirectX 9 support and video acceleration for MPEG-2, MPEG-4, WMV9, VC1 and DivX video formats (plus a VMR-capable HD video processor, among other things). Lastly, the unit includes built-in support for Sprint's XOHM WiMAX network. Brimming with excitement yet? Start stocking that piggy bank -- this currently unpriced rig will be available in the latter half of this year across North America. Check out the gallery over on Classic!

Read - VIA and Everex demonstrate Cloudbook MAX at CTIA
Read - VIA VX800 Series Chipset

Update: Looks like availability is now set for Q1 - Q2 2009. Thanks, Taylor!

Right on cue, Nokia's WiMAX-enabled N810 Internet Tablet has surfaced at CTIA 2008, and yep, this critter is destined to go on sale here in the US of A this summer. Beyond that, you'll notice the familiar 4.13-inch touchscreen, slide-out QWERTY keyboard and even a built-in webcam for video calls, Mozilla-powered browser, integrated GPS / media player, 2GB of internal memory and a microSD expansion slot. Heck, Nokia even touts this thing's ability to "access the Internet over WiFi or via conventional cellular data networks by pairing to a compatible mobile phone via Bluetooth technology." Also announced today is the freshly updated OS2008, which includes an enhanced e-mail client, support for Chinese character rendering in the browser and RSS feeds and "Seamless Software Update functionality" to boot. Needless to say, said OS will come standard on the currently unpriced Nokia N810 WiMAX Edition -- which is scheduled to land wherever WiMAX connectivity is available -- but existing N810 / N800 owners will also get the OS upgrade free of charge in Q2. Peep the gallery over on Classic!