Nitero’s NT4600 streaming service start of the end for cable guy

JUNK radio spectrum unusable for mobile networks will soon stream 4K video across loungerooms, thanks to an Australian spin-off.

Computer retailer Dell has ­already produced a WiGig pro­duct, a wireless dock.

JUNK radio spectrum that is­ unusable for mobile networks will soon stream 4K video across loungerooms, thanks to work by an Australian spin-off firm.

The move is regarded as the beginning of the end of HDMI cables as home-theatre connections go wireless.

Last year, Nitero said it had produced a chip set capable of being installed in smartphones that would allow 4K streaming from a phone to a TV with a 4K receiver.

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last month, Nitero chief executive Pat Kelly told The Australian that the ­device — the NT4600 — would be available to phone manu­factu­rers later this year and that Nitero ­expected the chipsets would be installed in smartphones sold next year.

Nitero was spun off from ­Australian digital research body National ICT Australia in 2011.

While primarily based in ­Austin, Texas, Nitero retains its ­Australian connection, employing 15 staff in a design team in Melbourne.

The unregulated 60 Gigahertz radio band used by the NT4600 is way beyond the 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies commonly used for WiFi and presents major hurdles.

It is easily absorbed by oxygen, degraded by obstacles such as walls, and very short range.

On the other hand, it is capable of transmitting high bitrates such as 4K or ultra-high definition movies and video over a short distance.

The Australian watched a demonstration of the technology at CES.

Nitero has developed the NT4600 jointly with Samsung Foundry, which is a design and manufacturing arm of Samsung Electronics.

Mr Kelly said the next generation of WiFi — 802.11ad — was “the missing link to allow for the long-awaited convergence of PC, gaming and entertainment platforms on to a single mobile device”.

Nitero said its NT4600 supported low-latency 4K displays and peer-to-peer wireless connectivity at USB 3.0 data rates.

It would support zero-lag 4K wireless gaming and seamless use of productivity applications in a mobile office.

Nitero said the NT4600 supported transmit and receive beamforming to provide full coverage throughout an office, living room or conference room.

The device offered a power reduction of up to 10 times over PC 802.11ad solutions.

However, Nitero, a member of the Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig), faces competition from the rival Wireless HD Consortium in what looks like a rerun of the VHS versus BetaMax rivalry of the 1980s.

Computer retailer Dell has ­already produced a WiGig pro­duct, a wireless dock.