Portland, Oregon has become one of the first cities in the nation to be blanketed by "Clear" - a wireless product from Clearwire.   What they have provided is what is known as 4G service (vs current 3g or 2.5g from the cell companies).  You can check out the coverage areas here.

I have been using sprint's 3G Rev-A service for about 3 years and have been delighted with it.  In fact, I am writing this article watching the USC/Washington basketball game with my tablet PC in my lap on my Sprint Broadband modem.

Yesterday I went snowboarding in the morning with a fellow Realtor and friend and while I drove he kept checking to see how far out of town he could get a reliable clear signal, and it went just past Gresham.  Pretty impressive really as the signal handed off from tower to tower as we drove and he had a signal several times more powerful than my 3g.  Coverage doesn't seam to be seamless, but its become a pretty good alternative to Comcast, Verizon or Quest - the old Portland standbys for coverage.

I do think this offers a viable alternative to Comcast, although for now I'm sticking with my Comcast cable and Sprint Modem.  The issue I have is I use Comcast at home and I can't share the Clear with a USB antenna they provide, so I dont see a way my wife and I could use it at the same time.   As for my Sprint Rev-A modem, I have to say I have been really impressed.  I use a tablet PC and visit many clients in their homes, and am continually using the service to sign and then email/efax off forms as needed.  I also travel somewhat as a real estate speaker and have yet to go anywhere in the USA where I cannot use the Sprint modem and get 3G coverage.  I'm continually impressed.

Having these services is important for Portland as a "tech" city.  So I thank Sprint, Verizon, T-Mobile, ATT and Cricket - and now Clearwire - for making us a leader in coverage for American cities.