More WiMAX at the Mobile World Congress, this time in the shape of two reference designs from wireless equipment integrator Elektrobit (aka EB); one a VoIP handset with carrier-grade voice quality, Trolltech’s Qtopia Linux OS and the NextWave WiMAX chipset, the other a Mobile Internet Device (MID) based on Intel’s Menlow chipset and running both a Linux OS and virtualised VoIP client.

The MID design will support not only WiMAX but WiFi and Bluetooth, and use the VirtualLogix VLX virtualisation to simultaneously run the OS and the VoIP phone stack on a single CPU core.  Menlow, which should be released in the first half of 2008, consists of the Intel Silverthorne CPU, Poulsbo integrated north/south bridge and an optional SSD.

Meanwhile, the VoIP handset will be able to seamlessly switch between the 2.3 - 2.7GHz and 3.4 - 3.8GHz bands, as well as deal with local variations in technology, and uses an ARM9 processor.

EB will be demonstrating both devices at the Mobile World Congress next week.