According to Sprint, commercial availability of Sprint’s dual-mode CDMA/WiMax modems will occur by year’s end.  The fine print with this launch is that it will be released in Baltimore where Sprint also launched its WiMax service thanks to a partnership with Clearwire.  At the moment Sprint holds control of 51 percent of the Clearwire venture and despite a deflating stock price, this could prove to be the smartest move Sprint has made in recent memory.

Sprint Nexel’s new “4G’ lineup will eventually include both handsets and modems. All of these devices will be able to switch between the CDMA network on the new WiMAX network that Clearwire is creating throughout the country.