MONTREAL - It will be like having an Internet connection in your pocket and will help drive a new generation of consumer devices.

WiMax technology is one of several technologies looking for dominance that will give consumers a fast way to connect to the Internet while they're on the go with their laptops or mobile devices.

The technology was given a boost this week with the announcement that America's Clearwire and Sprint Nextel will develop a high-speed mobile network based this kind of technology.

For consumers, it means there will be new devices that will easily connect to the Internet.

"Today, everyone uses handsets and external modems for their laptops or it's built into their laptops," said analyst Philip Solis New York-based ABI Research.

"But more and more, you are going to see mobile Internet devices and a whole range of mobile consumer electronic devices."

Mobile Internet devices that will let consumers surf the web, text, chat, e-mail, watch videos and TV will be out later this year that could use WiMax, said Solis, whose firm tracks the impact of emerging technologies and how they affect consumer and business markets.

The Sprint and Clearwire joint venture will have their WiMax network launched by the end of this year and will initially cover 10 to 15 million people in the United States.

WiMax isn't in widespread use in Canada, but Bell Canada (TSX:BCE) and Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX:RCI.B) have invested in Inukshuk Wireless Inc., a wireless broadband network with service available in about 20 centres across Canada that's based on pre-WiMax standards.

Many consumers are already familiar with what's called Wifi technology, which has a lower range that's limited to so-called hot spots like cafes, shopping malls and airports to get Internet access.

But WiMax is considered to be more powerful and can blanket a city or part of a country.

Canadian companies such as Nortel (TSX:NT) and Ottawa's DragonWave Inc. (TSX:DWI) have developed WiMax technology.

Shares of DragonWave soared more than 64 per cent, to $6 on Wednesday, after Clearwire and Sprint Nextel announced they will combine their wireless broadband units to create US$14.55-billion communications company that will use a WiMax mobile network.

Nortel's Scott Wickware said the trend is toward "hyper-connectivity."

"Anything that could or should be connected to the network, will be connected to the network, game consoles, obviously smartphones, digital camera, appliances, vehicles, you name it," said Wickware, vice-president of Nortel's Carrier Network.

Wickware said believes WiMax will be embedded sooner rather than later in consumer products.

"You'd like the freedom to be able to interconnect to the network wherever you are, whenever you want to," said Wickware, who's based in Paris.

"If you don't have your PC with you and you just have your iPod, why shouldn't you be able to connect?"

Wickware said Nortel has more than 40 trials and customers worldwide involving WiMax, including some trials of the technology in Canada.

Fred Wright, senior-vice president of Motorola's North American Region Networks, said his company is doing several trials with WiMax technology in Canada, including one in Toronto with telecom Primus.

He is predicting that WiMax will start out like Wifi but will take off because of its long-range ability.

"You're going to see WiMax everywhere just like you do Wifi," said Wright, who's based in Chicago. "So if we look out four or five years from now, you're going to find WiMax service working just virtually everywhere."

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