broadband on the move?

[The Maestro]

I acquired a USB 3g modem 3 days ago, and so far I'm very impressed with it. It is MUCH faster than my home broadband which I will now ditch ASAP.

 

I haven't got my boat yet but expect to within a few weeks. But I have got a mooring a Shardlow Marina, and a slight worry was that T-mobile's coverage map showed the marina to be right on the edge of the good signal area. So I took my laptop and new modem to Shardlow and tried it out in three different places in the marina. It worked a treat, I got a HSDPA signal [the best, equivalent to 3.5g, apparently] everywhere, including under trees.

 

This deal is £29 per month for 18 months with the modem free, but I can claim a cashbackof half the rental for 11 of the 18 months - this reduces the final cost to an average of £20.14 per month. The snag with this is you only get it after 6, 8, & 11 months, and you have to remember to submit a claim including all the bills!!

 

It was the best offer I could find and is with Mobiles.co.uk. Before you sign up, check the terms and conditions carefully as there are naughty things hiding in there, and the headline says "half price line rental", and not "pay in full but clain cashback" The terms and conditions page is HUGE, no wonder most people don't bother.

[Titania]

Does it support an external aerial ??

 

I acquired a USB 3g modem 3 days ago, and so far I'm very impressed with it. It is MUCH faster than my home broadband which I will now ditch ASAP.

 

I haven't got my boat yet but expect to within a few weeks. But I have got a mooring a Shardlow Marina, and a slight worry was that T-mobile's coverage map showed the marina to be right on the edge of the good signal area. So I took my laptop and new modem to Shardlow and tried it out in three different places in the marina. It worked a treat, I got a HSDPA signal [the best, equivalent to 3.5g, apparently] everywhere, including under trees.

 

This deal is £29 per month for 18 months with the modem free, but I can claim a cashbackof half the rental for 11 of the 18 months - this reduces the final cost to an average of £20.14 per month. The snag with this is you only get it after 6, 8, & 11 months, and you have to remember to submit a claim including all the bills!!

 

It was the best offer I could find and is with Mobiles.co.uk. Before you sign up, check the terms and conditions carefully as there are naughty things hiding in there, and the headline says "half price line rental", and not "pay in full but clain cashback" The terms and conditions page is HUGE, no wonder most people don't bother.

[Scotty]

I now have mobile broadband, PAYG for £5 for unlimted access for seven days or £1 a day if I buy it just for a weekend. It access' 3g broadband if available, if not it defaults to GPRS which is still faster than my old method and at a fraction of the cost.

How do did you arrange the £5 for 7 days? that's good!

 

Is it an existing pay as you go plan?

[The Maestro]

Does it support an external aerial ??

 

No, but there are two connectors supplied, one a few inches and the other about four feet long, and these are standard USB leads which can be extended. So if necessary you could just put the modem itself outside - it would only need rain protection.

[saltysplash]

No, but there are two connectors supplied, one a few inches and the other about four feet long, and these are standard USB leads which can be extended. So if necessary you could just put the modem itself outside - it would only need rain protection.

 

Couldnt agree more. using it now as i type. and very fast, easy to load, just plug and play.

[Yamanx]

How do did you arrange the £5 for 7 days? that's good!

 

Is it an existing pay as you go plan?

 

Standard Orange charge, £1 a day or £5 for seven days. You need to phone them and transfer some of your balance to data connection before hand. Perfect if you dont want a contract and only use the boat weekends and holidays etc.

[benjamino]

Just though I'd share my setup here. I got a 75 quid 3g phone (k610i) from Argos, and use it with my latop via bluetooh. So far its been pretty tricky to find a place to get teh 3G connection, but have found a few areas. I found the phone needed to be on a pole about 3 foot above the roof of the boat. This means that unless I'm outside with the latop the bluetooth connection doesnt work. So I used a usb bluetooth dongle on a long usb extension which goes out the window and out onto the roof, where it can communicate with the phone uninterupted. So basically I can use the laptop anywhere in the boat now, I just need to feed the donle out whichever window I'm near. Quite functional setup. Although the speed isnt that hot, I'm getting 0.59MB/sec - which isn't as fast as the stand along modems from what people are saying on here. I'll look towards that in the future I think. I like the sound of the Orange PAYG set up someone mentioned.

[Scotty]

You need to phone them and transfer some of your balance to data connection before hand.

Thanks i've got an orange payg sim coming so i'll give it a try.

 

I've got an unlocked 3g datacard, t-mobile & vodafone sims but signal strength varies depending where in the country you are so it's good to have lots of options!

 

I like your phone on a stick ben that's funny!

unfortunately the cut is sometimes just that 'a cutting' and it's a bit too low for a decent signal.

[Yamanx]

Thanks i've got an orange payg sim coming so i'll give it a try.

 

I've got an unlocked 3g datacard, t-mobile & vodafone sims but signal strength varies depending where in the country you are so it's good to have lots of options!

 

If you get any issues let me know. Took a bit of getting to work and I had to change some "strings" in the modem initilistaion. I got the information by trawling the net. Works perfect now.

[Brett]

Woohoo! .... So I bought one of those Vodafone 3g data cards from Ebay, unlocked for forty quid. Then got a PAYG Orange sim card for a quid. After a bit of mucking about, calls to Orange help desk (Which was a waste of time), some internet time and googling.

I now have mobile broadband, PAYG for £5 for unlimted access for seven days or £1 a day if I buy it just for a weekend. It access' 3g broadband if available, if not it defaults to GPRS which is still faster than my old method and at a fraction of the cost.

And NO BLIMMIN CONTRACT!

That is exactly what I am after. We are heading for the UK (from New Zealand) in two weeks time, to spend a three week holiday on board a canal boat, doing the Leicester circuit. Originally, after reading all the comments about the T-mobile Web'n'walk USB modem, I thought that would be a good plan. However, upon further investigation, it appears that they will not do anything less than a year long contract. At £30 a month, that works out a bit steep (£360) for only three weeks' access.

 

Can anyone please make some recommendations for me please, as I really would like to have internet access during our holiday? I will be taking my notebook with me, and would appreciate advice as to how I can get connected. If possible, I'd like to make the arrangements now, before we get there, as we will travel straight from Heathrow to Nuneaton, and thence to the canal boat coy in Stoke Golding (Ashby Boats).

 

I have seen plenty of Orange PAYG SIM cards on eBay for 99p, but would these work for data? Would you need to get them transferred from talk to data?

 

I've also found these USB modem options:

T-Mobile 3G, HSDPA USB Modem Web n Walk, Data Card

and

UK Vodafone 3g Broadband Mobile Connect USB Modem

Would they work, and what else would one need to get? Where would I purchase the PAYG SIM card which would work in this device, or would any SIM card work? As you can see, I'm somewhat in the dark. I presume one could then resell them again on eBay after the trip is over.

 

This option:

3G Data card HSDPA - Huawei E620 datacard *UNLOCKED*

appears to be somewhat different. Is the PCMCIA/data card modem more difficult to install, or does it perhaps not work as well as the USB modem. Would an external aerial be required?

 

Also, it might seem like a silly question, but where does the SIM Card go? I can't see a slot for it, but get the impression it fits somewhere into the datacard or USB modem. Does one have to register or anything like that, or do you just top it up with your credit card etc.

 

Sorry if all of these questions have been covered previously. I have searched and read a good deal about the subject on the forum, but haven't quite got the picture, so to speak. I'd be very grateful for any help or advice.

 

Regards and best wishes,

 

Brett

Tauranga, New Zealand

Edited September 2, 2007 by Brett

[pagan witch]

I am in the second day of trying out my new T-Mobile 3G Usb modem. So far have only been able to connect via gprs at 56k but have not yet found a suitable spot to connect at faster speed.

Package costs approx £30/month for 18 months (through carphone wharehouse) with a 3Gb monthly allowance.

very neat little item and installed on windows without any problems, software for windows installs itself directly from the sim card.

 

Any tips on finding good areas to access 3g on the canal system?

 

Yep - I have been using a T Mobile USB modem for around 6 months or so now. Up until last month or so I was reliably getting a 3G 3.6 MEg connection with the thing inside the boat. Recently though it has only been getting GPRS 56k type connection so I e-mailed them.

 

They phoned me back - a real human and everything - spoke English too. When I'd recovered he suggested that I did this :-

 

Go to 'Tools' then 'Options' then 'Network'

 

In there you can tell it to only look for a 3g connection. Of course if there just isn't one then you ain't gonna find it and it will 'drop back'. However, if given a choice between a very good GPRS and a 'maybe' 3G it tries for the 3G. The result is normally a good connection with the odd drop, but with 3.6 meg being just a tad faster then 56k I can live with the odd drop.

 

Hope this helps

[chris w]

Although 3GB monthly download may sound a lot, in real terms at 3G speeds it is an average of only about 5 minutes of download per day each month before it is all used up.

 

Chris

[Yamanx]

That is exactly what I am after. We are heading for the UK (from New Zealand) in two weeks time, to spend a three week holiday on board a canal boat, doing the Leicester circuit. Originally, after reading all the comments about the T-mobile Web'n'walk USB modem, I thought that would be a good plan. However, upon further investigation, it appears that they will not do anything less than a year long contract. At £30 a month, that works out a bit steep (£360) for only three weeks' access.

 

Can anyone please make some recommendations for me please, as I really would like to have internet access during our holiday? I will be taking my notebook with me, and would appreciate advice as to how I can get connected. If possible, I'd like to make the arrangements now, before we get there, as we will travel straight from Heathrow to Nuneaton, and thence to the canal boat coy in Stoke Golding (Ashby Boats).

 

I have seen plenty of Orange PAYG SIM cards on eBay for 99p, but would these work for data? Would you need to get them transferred from talk to data?

 

I've also found these USB modem options:

T-Mobile 3G, HSDPA USB Modem Web n Walk, Data Card

and

UK Vodafone 3g Broadband Mobile Connect USB Modem

Would they work, and what else would one need to get? Where would I purchase the PAYG SIM card which would work in this device, or would any SIM card work? As you can see, I'm somewhat in the dark. I presume one could then resell them again on eBay after the trip is over.

 

This option:

3G Data card HSDPA - Huawei E620 datacard *UNLOCKED*

appears to be somewhat different. Is the PCMCIA/data card modem more difficult to install, or does it perhaps not work as well as the USB modem. Would an external aerial be required?

 

Also, it might seem like a silly question, but where does the SIM Card go? I can't see a slot for it, but get the impression it fits somewhere into the datacard or USB modem. Does one have to register or anything like that, or do you just top it up with your credit card etc.

 

Sorry if all of these questions have been covered previously. I have searched and read a good deal about the subject on the forum, but haven't quite got the picture, so to speak. I'd be very grateful for any help or advice.

 

Regards and best wishes,

 

Brett

Tauranga, New Zealand

 

 

Use the data card option, not the modem. Make sure it is unlocked, insert orange sim, change the modem initialisation string (If you want info at the time let me know but the information is out there on the net) and presto.

 

Put some balance on your Orange sim as you would do normally, then phone Orange and ask them to transfer some of you balance £5 for seven days for instance, to data transfer.

 

Worked first time out the box. 3G where available (broadband) or defaults to GPRS

[Brett]

Use the data card option, not the modem. Make sure it is unlocked, insert orange sim, change the modem initialisation string (If you want info at the time let me know but the information is out there on the net) and presto.

 

Put some balance on your Orange sim as you would do normally, then phone Orange and ask them to transfer some of you balance £5 for seven days for instance, to data transfer.

 

Worked first time out the box. 3G where available (broadband) or defaults to GPRS

 

Thank you, Yamanx, for this clarification/explanation. I presume that one can't "unlock" one of these data cards easily, and that you have to buy one that is advertised on eBay as being already "unlocked." I would appreciate your providing me with the info for changing the modem initialisation string, please, or at least a link to where I might find it.

 

When you say "Put some balance on your Orange sim as you would do normally," you have to understand that some of us folk from the colonies aren't as technology advanced as others. I assume this is done by phoning Orange with the necessary credit card number handy, or is there some other way to do it on your phone? Bear in mind that I don't have a UK phone account or anything like that.

 

Thanks for your time - this really is helpful. Regards and best wishes, Brett

[saltysplash]

Although 3GB monthly download may sound a lot, in real terms at 3G speeds it is an average of only about 5 minutes of download per day each month before it is all used up.

 

Chris

 

 

Im on my third month now with T-Mobiles USB modem and so far not even come close to using 3GB. The connection is fast and being near a town ive never yet not had 3G speed (is that a double negative?)

 

Mind you i dont go for downloading music clips or stuff like that so that may be the reason

[Brett]

Oh, and can I ask please, why does it need to be unlocked? Could one buy one that is not, and purchase a SIM card from that company, or would that end up being much more expensive? So many questions, sorry. Regards, Brett

[Scotty]

It doesn't need to be unlocked, but sods law says that the network you're locked to won't get a signal to the area you're in.

 

 

you can add credit over the phone or online. They make it very easy to give them your money

and if it wasn't answered before, the sim card slides into base of the datacard

[Brett]

Thanks, Scotty, for that helpful information. Since I'll be moving around a lot I guess it will pay to look at the coverage maps. Regards and best wishes, Brett

[pagan witch]

No, but there are two connectors supplied, one a few inches and the other about four feet long, and these are standard USB leads which can be extended. So if necessary you could just put the modem itself outside - it would only need rain protection.

The one just a few inches long isn't a data connection. It is to allow the modem to collect power from two adjacent USB slots as some really old laptops didn't provide enough power to run it. Never have used mine as it works fine on the one socket.I have thought about the 'extend the lead' plan too. The cover would need to be relatively signal transparant (though compared to 4mm of steel most things are) was thinking of a thing plastioc pot like like a yoghurt job.I do know of someone who has put his vodafone aerial inside an empty pringles tube (the inside is foil lined) and made a directional antenna. If it wasn't for the fact he works for Voda data I'd have thought he was joking but apparantly it works.

Does anyone know if you can run two lap tops off of one of these TMobile USB modems (I guess Im looking for built in routing functionality) ?

BIG YES !!At risk of demostrating a degree of anorakness beyond the call of duty I run a 3 PC network off of one. I opted for the very simple but totally reliable hard wired network via a hub.Each of the PCs has the drivers installed individually too so I can choose which one to plug into if I only need on PC, or put the network up if everyone wants to be on line at the same time.

Im on my third month now with T-Mobiles USB modem and so far not even come close to using 3GB. The connection is fast and being near a town ive never yet not had 3G speed (is that a double negative?) Mind you i dont go for downloading music clips or stuff like that so that may be the reason

With the average music track coming in at around 4 - 5 meg I reckon I could get around 1,000 or so tracks and still have change of my 6 Gig allowance. 6 Gig is just massive even for the likes of me and I daresay Lady Muck who write and maintain web sites via this system.For the 'average user' 6 Gig is as close to unlimited as you'll ever need unless you try SKYPE or download videos where I agree it would be quite possible to go over the top.

[Lady Muck]

Yup thats right, never managed to go over my limit yet. Unless you're addicted to you tube or downloading movies it'll be sufficient.

[JohnOnTheWey]

Yup thats right, never managed to go over my limit yet. Unless you're addicted to you tube or downloading movies it'll be sufficient.

 

... and we all know what the internet's for, don't we?

 

 

JOTW

[Brett]

Can I ask also if there is much difference between the 3G coverage of the different networks, i.e. T-mobile, Vodafone, Orange?

 

Regards and best wishes, Brett

 

I thought I should perhaps clarify that. I had a look at the respective coverage maps, and Orange "appears" to have the most coverage of the Leicester circuit, which is where we will be. However, I am asking more from the practical point of view. Has anyone had experience of more than one network? Thanks very much. Brett

Edited September 4, 2007 by Brett

[stickleback]

Does anyone use a Mac??!!

[Lady Muck]

Can I ask also if there is much difference between the 3G coverage of the different networks, i.e. T-mobile, Vodafone, Orange?

 

Regards and best wishes, Brett

 

I thought I should perhaps clarify that. I had a look at the respective coverage maps, and Orange "appears" to have the most coverage of the Leicester circuit, which is where we will be. However, I am asking more from the practical point of view. Has anyone had experience of more than one network? Thanks very much. Brett

 

Yes there is a difference but you need to check the coverage where you are to see who has what masts. It's very complicated. It's hard to say who has the best coverage. I guess all you can do is to check the places you think you'll be at the most. If you really really really need your email wherever you are then I'd suggest you get a Blackberry or other email enabled phone. It will still work when everything else is broken.

Edited September 4, 2007 by Lady Muck

[Brett]

Thank you, Lady Muck. I thought that was probably the case, but it's good to get confirmation. All so difficult when a few thousand miles away! Regards and best wishes, Brett