If I had a client in a room, I could just take my computer over there instead of having to run a wire to another room. What's more, a diverse array of gadgets could comprise this futuristic network. Computers, laptops, printers, phones, entertainment centers, television sets, VCRs and headphones are among the devices that analysts envision will get hooked up, as it were. But some insiders believe common household appliances could join the network. There are all kinds of possibilities with how this could be used.
Some recent studies suggest more homes contain multiple computers.
Out of about 55 million U.S. homes with at least one PC, about 25 to 30 percent have a laptop along with the primary desktop computer, according to industry surveys. And the Yankee Group has estimated that at the end of 1999, about 660,000 U.S. homes had some sort of computer network. The market researcher believes that number will swell to 9.5 million home networks by the end of 2003. With that sort of potential on the near horizon, small wonder that wireless home networks have intrigued some big technology players. Motorola Inc. Some of the applications are obvious.