The “Wireless Web” Finally Reaches Critical Mass

A few years ago, people could only dream about the freedom to log onto the Internet without using a wire plugged into a telephone jack. Today, it's become routine to connect to the Internet wirelessly, at 100 times the speed of a dialup connection, while at a fast-food restaurant or a train station.

And it's becoming a big business: Sales of Wi-Fi hardware that enables high-speed, wireless access to the Internet will increase from $1.5 billion in 2003 to $2.9 billion by 2007, according to market consultancy Infonetics.

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