Who would you recommend for a wireless broadband access service for my laptop? Sprint or Verizon? (Those seem to be my main choices here in Keene, NH.) And would you recommend the USB dongle or the ExpressCard version?
In heading out the Communications Developer Conference/ITEXPO next week in L.A., the show organizers have already told me there is no free WiFi access at the LA Convention Center… but I can, of course, pay for the access through the local provider. (And probably deal with the same usual headaches of getting adequate signal strength.)
I am so incredibly sick of show WiFi, both in terms of paying for it and also just in quality, that yes, indeed, even though I am a cheap Yankee… er… “frugal”, I think I need to suck it up and pay the $720/year to have wireless Internet access over the cell networks. This will also be hugely beneficial for all the wonderful times I spend hanging out in airports.
My choice seems to be either Sprint or Verizon. (AT&T and T-Mobile don’t have great coverage in my area.) Both will cover whatever limited roaming I do in my local area… and both have coverage in the major cities I tend to travel to. I’ve seen both used on the Amtrak train down to New York. They both charge ~$60/month… they both charge $50-100 for your actual broadband access card. They both require a 2-year contract (or reference a 1-yr but then your hardware costs go up.) And they both seem to have 5GB monthly limits (on-network).
On the actual hardware, it seems that I can get either a USB dongle or an ExpressCard. The USB is interesting in the sense that I can plug it into virtually any computer and use it. But the ExpressCard version looks interesting because: 1) I don’t use that slot currently for anything else (whereas I do plug things into the USB slots); and 2) it looks like a smaller external form factor, i.e. there’s less sticking out of my laptop.
So my questions for you all, dear readers, are these:
- Have you seen any great reason to prefer Sprint or Verizon?
- Do either one work better with the Mac? (my laptop these days)
- Do either work better than the other inside of buildings like convention halls? (I’m imagining neither one works great.)
- Any suggestions of the USB dongle over the ExpressCard card?
Any advice or recommendations is definitely welcome… I’ll probably be picking one of these up in the next couple of days. (Thanks in advance!)
Technorati Tags:
wireless, connectivity, broadband, sprint, verizon
I’ve had Sprint service with an AirCard 597E ExpressCard in my MBP for over a year now (in Dallas.) Works beautifully 98% of the time and only gives me issues if it can’t get reception (Las Vegas Hilton was terrible, some Chicago hotels were bad but I had bad cell access too…)
I’ve never hit any access limits but I’m not sure I’ve really done over 5GB in a given month – I do know that my bill doesn’t fluctuate.
As for the choice of hardware, the 597E is a good card and it does nicely fit into the MBP with little inconvenience (ie, I can sit the whole thing on my lap, move around, etc and not worry about breaking it.) I too was worried about the universality of a USB version, but then I discovered that the 597E (and most broadband ExpressCards) is really just a USB device in ExpressCard form. You can find an ExpressCard to USB converter on Amazon / Ebay / etc that will let you plug the card in and connect to a USB port if you discover you need it. I haven’t picked one up yet but it looks pretty simple overall.
My only real complaint with the 597E card is that it supports A-GPS on Windows but it doesn’t on Mac (I’ve done some fiddling with this… too many projects.) I forget the manufacturer but I know there is a fully supported GPS capable card on Mac – a quick google search isn’t getting what I remember but I know it’s out there.
I use Sprint with a USB dongle on my MacBook–sometimes anyway. Works pretty good.
I have Verizon Broadband for the last two years and I am generally happy with it, except for Las Vegas. I prefer the USB device, because as you said, it can be used on any machine. I work online all day every day.
I cannot be without Internet unless I am sleeping. Lately, my Comcast Cable at home has been having outages. Even though that is another story, I just grab my Verizon device and I am back in business on my desktop. That is a big plus for me to have the usb wireless device.
I am posting from Vegas right now, my 4th time here in a year. My speed should be 400 kbs, but in Vegas it is 65 kbs, which reminds me of the old dial up days. It really ticks me off to pay $60 a month, and then to have to pay $15 a day to the hotel for their access so I can work at a reasonable pace.
I am not a conspiracy theorist type of guy, but I am seriously starting to think the hotels in Vegas purposely block the signal so you have to pay for their access.
In the past year, in my four visits here, I have stayed at The Flamingo, The Venetian (twice) and I am now at The Palms. All of them had poor service with my Verizon card. I also had terrible speeds in San Juan Puerto Rico at the Condado Plaza.