New 4G Network from LightSquared Could Hamper GPS Technology
... #ad▼A new ultra-fast wireless Internet network is threatening to overpower GPS signals across the country and interfere with everything from aviation systems to consumer navigation devices.
New 4G technology …
LightSquared, a satellite wireless internet company, has been given permission to launch broadband Internet service. A network of cell towers will amplify the signals from a LightSquared satelliite. The frequencies are adjacent to the spectrum that is used by GPS. There is a dramatic difference in power with the new system being up to a billion times more powerful.
Experts are worried the GPS technology will fail because of the interference. Some of that technology is used in every day consumer navigation, but GPS technology is also used to aid in computer dispatch of police and fire vehicles.
When they start charging for GPS service i’ll go back to maps.