USA Today has a story, Sprint takes wireless service to the max in Baltimore, on Sprint’s new WiMax system for the Baltimore area.

“Monday, Sprint will launch wireless WiMax services in Baltimore, marking the beginning of what could become a new era in mobile broadband. The mobile data network — which will be marketed under the Xohm brand name — is designed to cater to the needs of laptop and home broadband users, not cellphone users.

Prices will start at $10 for a day pass, good for 24 hours of unlimited usage. Monthly service starts at $35. There are no contracts. To use the service, Baltimore customers will have to buy a special WiMax “aircard” or modem, which cost about $45 apiece. There are also special launch discounts, including a $50-a-month plan that offers subscribers unlimited data usage for life.”

Xohm is pronounced “zome”, by the way.

The xohm site has pricing details, which seem to be $35/month for home, $45/month for mobile, and $50/month for both. For home use, they do have a modem that you can hook up to a home router. The $50 fee is good for as long as you are a member, which could be a great deal. I know someone who only pays $5/month for Sprint’s basic all-you-can-eat EDVO service because he was an early adopter.

Speed? They claim that it will be “Comparable to basic DSL and Cable internet service” with a footnote stating “Comparison based on basic DSL and cable plans offering download speeds of 786 kbps (DSL) and 1.5 Mbps (cable) as of September 2008.”

The site says that DC and Chicago are next in line for the service and Dallas, Fort Worth, Boston, Providence, Philadelphia are in the works.

Of course, there are lots of details to check into (e.g., if I buy service in Baltimore, can I use it when in Chicago), but this looks very interesting. Maybe Sprint can make WiMax work.