The Zone

Before we can even reach Wireless X (Gigabit), there are talks about a future wireless optical solution. That's right, you're talking about broadband by light.

In the age of LEDs replacing lamps, you could soon have LEDs in a room beaming Internet to your notebook with an optical wireless adapter.  The advantage is that unlike radio waves used in today's wireless, data can't leak out the room.  The down side is that you'll need LEDs in every room to form a wireless cloud.

Optical wireless also offers Gigabit-class speeds, compared to radio waves which have to be limited to not harm people by too much radio waves.

If you think about how Powerline (wired network over electricity) is taking up, having optical wireless is merely the extension of Powerline. Think about it - the same LED that lights your room can provide you with Internet!

Source : Scientific American July 2007