By: Ang Biondo
© May, 2010 angbiondo.com
Summer’s here and we’re on the go again. For some of us we just can’t live without the internet. It seems to have become an interregnal part of our lives and in many cases our livelihood. So if we decide to take some time to ourselves to enjoy some summer fun, we need to be near civilization where we can keep our finger on the pulse of things.
Most everybody with a cell phone today has internet capability should they choose to use it. However, for those of us who work with computers and require access to the net to earn a living, the capability to do so wasn’t always available.
Good news, that’s no longer a problem. Many phone companies now offer mobile broadband. Not long ago this option was cost prohibitive to low profile users such as bloggers, like myself, or company employees, home business, and those who would just like to be able to surf the net and get their e-mail while on the road.
For those who are tied contractually to customer support contracts, and have committed to be available for a set number of hours per day or week, the USB modem like the ‘Broadband2go USB modem pictured to the left in the Virgin Mobile™ ad, will provide mobile broadband making it possible for them to fulfill their obligations while lounging on the beach catching a cool breeze on a hot sunny day. For the serious minded, notebook and Netbook computers are also available with mobile ‘wif’i modems built in, you need only purchase a contract and/or card, activate and you’re all set. Some companies like Virgin Mobile’s™ ‘broadband2go”™ don’t require a contract, you need only by the 3G modem, and a connect card.
Be forewarned, this service is still in its infancy and depending on your budget or need is somewhat spotty for some companies who lack service in remote areas. It is important that you know and realize your needs since some require a contract and the cost of initializing the USB mobile modem can range quite drastically in price. G.M.’s On-Star service for instance costs around $400 to setup and requires a contract, while Virgin Mobil is available for as little as $79.00 for the device and does require or have a contract.
For the summer traveler, the no contract pay as you go appears to be the better method and is the option I have decided to take for now. Once you’ve purchase the modem and activated it, (if I have my signals straight), you only need to buy an airtime card which gives you unlimited browsing access and a set number of megabytes or gigabytes download size depending on the card you purchase ranging in price from about $20 to $60 dollars good for one month of service. For the most part, browsing in unlimited, but downloads at the premium speeds are limited. Virgin Mobile’s “Broadband2go” lists the following cost table on their WEB site:
(Note: I like Amazon.com for their reliability and competitive pricing - but you might find it cheaper else where on the WEB)
| Virgin Mobile’s (Broadband2go) 3g wireless modem ($99.99) | |||
| Price | Expires | Capacity | Use it for-(without attachments) |
| $10 | 10 days | 100 MB | 5 hrs WEB browsing, 25 min video, Or 10,000 emails |
| $20 | 30 days | 300 MB | 15 hrs WEB browsing, Or 75 min video, Or 30,000 emails |
| $30 | 30 days | 1 GB | 50 hrs WEB browsing, Or 4 hour video, Or 100,000 emails |
| $60 | 30 days | 5 GB | 250 hrs WEB browsing, Or 21 hours video, Or 500,000 emails |
Or another option is to go with a ‘mifi’ wireless personal hotspot unit like the ‘Cradlepoint PHS300 Personal Hotspot advertised to the right, to expand wireless connection within a short restricted area. This would allow everyone within the range of the ‘mifi’ transmitter to access the internet that is in the fairly short range of the unit. The “PHS300” is ideal for a up to four computers in a group of people such as business associates or family group on a long road trips. The Personal Hotspot Unit can be setup secured or unsecured. Unsecured would make it a public “Hotspot” accessible to anyone within its range. If you want a greater range or more than four (4) people to be able to have wifi accessibility you need to look into a more powerful unit. Keep in mind more that 4 accessing a unit such as the “PHS300” would slow down access immensely, it is therefore highly recommended it be setup as a secure unit. To set it up
unsecured would give anyone within 15 to 30 ft. access.
Internet Hotspots are areas such as Starbuck’s™ Coffee Shops, Panaro’s™, and McDonald’s™, etc. which provide a wifi internet “HOTspot” to give their customers access while they are patronizing their facility.
Anyone with a wireless modem either built-in or plugged into their laptop can take advantage of the “Hotspot” while enjoying a byte to eat, so long as they remain in range of the signal. Be fore warned, Public Hotspots are not secure and make data stored on your computer accessible to anyone within that network. Some other Hotspots are airports, public transportation terminals, hotels, motels, etc.
A wireless personal hotspot router is not only for business, it’s great for keeping a couple of antsy teens busy and out of each others hair by making access to internet games or communicating on a social media network ie:, facebook or myspace, etc. reducing the stress of bumper to bumper traffic. I’ve included a couple of YouTube video’s to give you an idea of what wireless personal “Hotspots” are all about.
The 3G wirless modem video is followed by the Cradlepoint PHS300 Personal Hotspot Wireless Router YouTube video
The Cradlepoint PHS300 - Personal HotSpot
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