T-Mobile’s webConnect Rocket USB Laptop Stick is aptly named because it’s a mobile broadband missile. On the outside, it offers a similar appearance to the current 3G webConnect USB adapter that T-Mobile sells — a USB interface, software included on the device for plug-and-play installation, and a microSD memory card slot. It’s what’s on the inside that shoots you to the moon — a 3.5G radio that maximizes bandwidth on T-Mobile’s upcoming 21 Mbps network. I got a chance to test this device on T-Mobile’s 21 Mbps test network and it was blazing fast! Here I show off a speed test, podcast download and 720p YouTube stream over the 3.5G network. And I couldn’t help myself by testing a Google Nexus One on the network while I had a chance = 4 Mbps downloads!
Posts tagged ‘Broadband’
Depending on the service, one way to place a BroadBand Phone call is to pick up your phone and dial the number, using an adaptor that connects to your existing high-speed Internet connection. The call goes through your local telephone company to a BroadBand Phone provider. The phone call then goes over the Internet to the called party’s local telephone company for the completion of the call. Another way is to utilize a microphone headset plugged into your computer. The number is placed using the keyboard and is routed through your cable modem.
Some BroadBand Phone providers offer their services for free, normally only for calls to other subscribers to the service. Your BroadBand Phone company may permit you to select an area code different from the area in which you live. This means you may not incur long distance charges if you call a number in your area code regardless of geography. It also means that people who call you may incur long distance charges depending on their area code and service.
Some BroadBand Phone providers charge for a long distance call to a number outside your calling area, similar to existing, traditional wireline telephone service. Other BroadBand Phone providers permit you to call anywhere at a flat rate for a fixed number of minutes.
I’ve been asked this question so many times I thought I’d put my thoughts down here for you to read. Let’s start by pointing out a couple things first. First off, depending on where you live, you may not have a choice of access. Satellite may be your only choice, which makes this null and void. Don’t fret, satellite is better than any dial-up and the contract lengths are generally 12-14 months in length. It will cost a bit more, given the extra equipment involved, but it certainly beats dial-up (if you can afford it).
Ok, on to the two major broadband access methods, cable and DSL. When I’m asked this question, I usually follow it with questions of my own.
1st. What type of internet surfing do you do? Are you a gamer, shopper, email user, web developer, music downloader, online video watcher, video editor or casual surfer?
2nd. How many computers will you have connected to the internet at one time?
3rd. Do you plan on ‘leveraging’ your broadband investment for home security or VoIP? (Voice over Internet Protocol is a method of making and receiving your phone calls using your broadband connection.)
When making your decision keep in mind that cable access, generally, cost more. The higher cost comes with the benefits of more speed. Up to 6 meg download, or the amount of information you can receive ‘down’ from the internet.
Loading web pages, listening to music online or watching video online are all impacted by your download speed. DSL is about 1.5 meg down in comparison. Not only does this impact ‘your’ surfing behavior, but if you plan to have more than 1 computer access the internet at the same time, keep in mind you’re ‘sharing’ this connection. Sharing the connection means sharing that download ‘pipe’. (your internet connection) Uploading to the internet (file attachments in email, uploading web pages, etc. impact your upload speed. Cable upload speeds are around 384K while DSL is around 128K.
If you wish to leverage your investment in broadband by using VoIP, keep in mind that DSL is provided through the copper wires of your phone line. Having VoIP as a primary phone line without local phone service is very, very rare. This type of access is called ‘naked DSL’ and is not very common. We hope this will change in time, but for now, check with your local phone company. If you plan on leveraging your investment, check first.
So the answer to the question Cable or DSL is really all about your usage and what you’re willing to pay. Yes, cable is more expensive but it also comes with the additional benefits of faster speed and the ability to leverage your investment using VoIP as a primary phone service.
Lastly, when I’m asked what I personally use at home? I use cable broadband access and VoIP phone service. I’m very pleased with both and don’t plan on changing any time soon.
If you’re still unsure which is right for you, there are many web sites out there to provide you with additional information. Our site can help you as well so we hope to see you there!
Happy surfing.
Information on The Top 3 UK broadband providers
These three providers offer variety of products. Making it sound like you are getting something for nothing is the goal of very Internet provider. There are providers who do offer free access but you must be willing to surf the Internet with any number of annoying pop-ups from various advertisers. However, the top three providers in the UK have worked their way to the top by offering their customers exactly what they want, which is a quality service at an affordable price.
One of the top three UK broadband providers is Homecall Broadband. Their deals start as low as £19.99 pounds a month for bundled broadband and phone packages. Other great plans are available from Homecall Broadband that will work well in your home business or in your office. This company has made a good name for itself as one of the top U.K. broadband providers. They plan to continue doing this.
BT Broadband is the second member of the top three U.K. broadband providers. BT Broadband also offers affordable Internet access that will not tie up your phone line. On the company web site, they state that about 99 percent of the country has broadband available to it. With excellent low prices and quality service quality, BT is garnering a solid reputation in the UK. It is highly likely that BT Broadband will continue as one of the top three U.K. broadband providers.
Wanadoo Broadband also offers reliable and cheap broadband Internet access that doesn’t tie up your phone line. Wanadoo offers 2 Meg per month deals that begin at £15.99 pounds, which is a previously unheard of price for broadband Internet service. Wanadoo also offers greater bandwidth packages for larger users, like businesses.
With the three top U.K. broadband providers clamoring for your broadband pound, then doing some comparison shopping among the providers could be in your best interests. One or several of them could have the service that may be right for you. One thing to keep in mind is that in some areas, one of these providers may not be available to you yet. Their infrastructure may not be in place to provide service in your area.
Even if all three of these top U.K. broadband providers do have service in your area, it is still advisable to get opinions from people who actually use their services. They are all have good reputations, but talking to people who have the same broadband needs as you will give you idea about what life will be like with that provider. One of these companies may have a service that suits your needs better than another of these three top broadband providers.
Still, with broadband service becoming more accessible to everyone in the UK, all three of these companies should expect to have a very good future as broadband providers. In short, you can expect them to be around for a long time.
All About Broadband
Defining broadband in simple terms
There are so many different ways to define broadband. The most obvious definition is basically a transmission medium that lets a person send and receive various types of data along multiple pathways. This is far better than voice communication devices. In the simplest terms, it is being able to access a wide range of data through a single connection at a speed that is reasonable.
The difference between traditional dial-up connections and broadband is great. A phone line limits the amount of information that can be sent and received because it only has 56kbps. In contrast, the width of a broadband connection is greater than 2 mbps. This allows a person to access many different frequencies and channels on its wide pathway. It has made life much simpler for those that like to play video games on the Internet and also for those people who do things like heavy graphics work. They can now import, send and receive large amounts of data quickly and easily.
The minimum width of a broadband pathway is still being debated. When broadband first came onto the scene, it was defined as any line that was greater than 2 mbps in width. It has been suggested by experts that the definition of a broadband pathway should be at least 3 mbps. There are others who have complained that it should be at least 20 mbps. The debate continues to rage on, and now people that wish to give a broadband connection a trial use often have service at 1 mbps. The point is that people cannot really agree what the minimum width of bandwidth should be for it to be called broadband. Even DSL service, which ranges between 256kbps of capacity on the downstream and over 1.5 mbps on the upstream capacity, is being labeled as broadband. This current definition of broadband also includes cable TV modems, which operate at similar speeds. The bottom line is that anything that is larger than the narrow line of a telephone line, which will only hold 64 kbps, falls under the technical definition of broadband.
Nowadays, nearly everyone has broadband service. When the Internet began to be more popular with the general population, most people were content with the narrow line dial-up Internet services. But we have a need for speed these days. Files and Web pages have become more complicated, and this requires more storage space and memory. The need to send and receive bulky amounts of information quickly has become the norm, so broadband service is the answer to these needs. It is hard to find anyone who uses dial-up service these days. Everyone wants to take advantage of the benefits of broadband. These benefits are now considered essential to every type of office worker that uses a computer in their daily job. The only people who probably don’t consider broadband important are those that don’t make a living with their computer. However, this too, is changing, as more telecommuting jobs become available..