I recently subscribed to Clearwire in SE Washington state. Once I downloaded the proper driver for my USB adapter .. it worked just as described.
Since I have no cable and my landline distance-to-station would give me crappy DSL speed, I think I've found a home for now. It's not cheap .. but in my circumstances .. it was the only practical way to get beyond 'dial-up' service.
There only ONE SPOT in my computer room where I can get a singal strength of ' five bars'. But honnestly ... I haven't noticed too much difference in speed at 4 and possibly 3 bars. So .. so far .. so good.
I'd be interested in reading what others in the Northwest have found with their Clearwire service.
I'm wondering now whether as additional subscribers get onboard whether there's going to be a significant degredation in service.