Laptop-toting early adopters can already tell you all about the joys of Wifi - the high-speed wireless internet access now popping up in public spaces, coffee shops, conference halls and airports.
But these public wireless hotspots, or wireless Lans, may soon be tempting consumers with other interesting applications.
For, in a move that won't escape the attention of mobile phone networks, Sharp has launched a voice telephone service in Tokyo that works using wireless LAN networks.
During its free trial owners of the company's Zaurus PDA will be able to add a headset and software to their device and, provided they are close to one of the city's 300 public wireless LANs owned by phone network NTT DoCoMo, make and receive voice calls.
If the trial is a success Sharp hopes to roll out a fuller service, expanding access to mobile and fixed line phone users, in April.
Sharp isn't the only company experimenting with voice over wireless LANs in Tokyo. Start up company Broadband Mobile Communications (BMC) intends to offer a similar service to PDAS and phone users via hotspots integrated into the city's convenience stores. It launches in April with a fixed monthly charge of around £15.
Voice over wireless LAN is both cheap and efficient and both Sharp and BMC are aware their innovation places them up against traditional mobile phone networks. So could a system work in the UK?
The UK currently has a small but growing number of public access wireless LANs offering fast internet access for PDA and laptop owners. BT unveiled a series of LANs at airports across the UK, while several Costa Coffee and Starbucks coffee shops also offer the service.
Upgrading the LANs to include voice calls would not be a difficult, but Graham Rivers, Director of Business Development at T-Mobile who provides the network access for the Starbucks hotspots, isn't convinced the UK will follow Japan just yet. "It's an interesting technology and we are keeping an eye on it. In the consumer sector there are however capacity issues - I am not sure how well it would operate if more than four people were working from the same base station."
"I think it is a bit like the Rabbit system," he adds, referring to an ill-fated mobile network from the early 90s that relied on a consumer being near a base station to make and receive calls. "You have the same system but using different technology - and Rabbit was not a success."
Rivers believes that this technology might be attractive to certain businesses who could integrate the technology into their IT systems for internal use.
T-Mobile is also continuing its roll out of wireless LANs in to the capital's coffeehouses. There are now six Starbucks offering the system (which is free at the moment) and more will follow in the New Year.
The company has apparently also had discussions with supermarkets about the possibility of setting up hotspots there as well.
"You might place your customer loyalty card into a shopping trolley with a PC connected to the LAN. It could give you the latest offers and deliver personalised information," suggest Rivers.
How customers respond to interactive networked shopping trolleys could be fascinating.
Another technology whose time may yet come is Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) or digital radio as it commonly known. Even though it is now over a decade since the BBC first demonstrated DAB sales of the receivers remain miniscule.
Launched this week is a product that will certainly help raise the format's profile. Smaller than a pack of cards, the Perstel Adapt DR 101 is the first truly pocket-size digital radio receiver.
It features a large LCD giving information such the station's name and occasional programming details and is powered by a pair of supplied rechargeable batteries.
Perhaps its biggest flaw is that in order to listen to the station involves extending a telescopic aerial that make sit a little unwieldy to use in cramped stations - say at a football match. It is not especially intuitive to use either - you'll have to give the manual a through read to the instruction manual before working out how to find the various stations. Also, there are no integrated speakers - so you listen via its earphones.
As to which stations you can listen to - that depends whereabouts in the country you are. The Digital Radio Now website lets you input your postcode and then informs you which stations you can expect to hear. Definitely check before you buy. As a back up, the radio also includes an FM tuner.
Give or take a few minor quibbles though this is a cracking product that delivers superb sound quality. At £169 it is rather pricey. However, its portable size makes it very simple to move around the home, enabling the user to plug it into their hi-fi systems via a jack to phono lead. And for never having to hear BBC Radio Five Live on medium wave in its full crackling, spluttering, hissing glory it is probably worth every penny.
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