More on mobile broadband
September 17, 2008 at 2:07 pm
Mobile broadband is a new form of technology that enables you to surf the internet on your laptop using a small USB dongle or PC card. This means flexible and convenient internet access making it the perfect solution for business people, travellers or anyone who wants to be able to use the internet in a number of locations. Mobile broadband is available anywhere you can use your mobile phone and costs start at just £1 per day.
The service is now available from Orange, O2, 3, T-mobile and Vodafone, and Virgin Mobile have announced (August 2008) that they will be introducing the service later this year. All networks are offering 12, 18 and 24 month contracts and pay as you go plans are available from 3, T-mobile and Vodafone. The contracts are often limited to a few gigabytes of data transfer each month while pay as you go tariffs are based on a pay-per-gigabyte model.
Of course, as with all new technology, there are still drawbacks. Coverage varies greatly and 3′s customers have reported exceptionally low coverage outside the so-called ‘turbo’ areas. Internet can slow down to speeds reminiscent of ten years ago. The low bandwidth also means that unless you aren’t transferring much data, you could find yourself paying over the odds for extra MB.
Nevertheless, the three-inch dongles are definitely a cheaper alternative than using hotel internet access and it is probably only a matter of time before the mobile phone networks are battling it out to provide faster and cheaper coverage.
