Internet anywhere / satellite internet?

[Scotty12]

Hi everyone,

I am looking into the possibility of internet that is not tied to cable / phoneline, and that I can use wherever I am (on the train, in a taxi, at a friends house) sometimes as a primary internet connection, and othertimes as a backup.

Bell 'wimax unplugged' looks allright, however its kind of an interesting name for it, seeing as the website advertises it 'anywhere you can find a plug' - This doesnt really work for travelling in a car, and im not sure if the plugs on the train would give me the same connectivity that a residential plug would.

I was unfamiliar with the terminology, but I searched the forums for 'satellite internet' and it returned tons of unrelated threads. I then tried google and could only pull up the following which did not offer much help:

Ask me anything about xplornet internet / wireless internet (http://www.redflagdeals.com/forums/showthread.php?t=548847)

Here, the OP replied:


It is not portable internet, it is mainly for residential/commercial customers that live where cable/DSL internet are not available ie/ the country. It provides these customers with highspeed internet when no alternative is available. The wireless product would be the first option of choice and if you can't get that then the satellite option.

As I am living just steps from the CN tower, it looks as if this isnt the solution Im looking for. As well , this thread could be 'dated' - as Im sure technology has the potential to change in eight months.


The second thread had 0 replies :( (http://rfd-web1.redflagdeals.com/forums/showthread.php?p=7317934)

With that said, im wondering if anyone can point me in the right direction, or ANY direction? Can you share your own experiences or those of your friends?

Many thanks,

Scott

[TruE SkiLLS]

just fyi... get ready to get shotgunned in the face with the price.

http://your.rogers.com/business/wireless/products/business_products_details.asp?shopperID=8M9XKCSL4V 128PBNJPN3E1D6RSNH72A5&PRODUCTID=MC950DR&summary=1

its a USB modem that goes on ur laptop... then it uses 3G "phone" internet to surf.

its hella expensive.

[Scotty12]

Monthly Price: $299.99


LOL, if that is the only option, its out of the question. I was expecting maybe $100, which I would consider, but triple that is just rogers being rogers.

Is there any competition, or no, and thats why they can charge so much?

I appreciate your quick reply

[Kasakato]

Its Rogers, its going to be expensive. My friend in upstate NY often travels with a sat. internet modem. Its super slow and chat messages take 3-5 seconds to get to/from him.

[mlerner]

That's only the price for the hardware on a monthly term (non-contract). You could get it on ebay for $239 + shipping from Hong Kong but nothing cheaper than that.

[rogeryen]

Monthly Price: $299.99


LOL, if that is the only option, its out of the question. I was expecting maybe $100, which I would consider, but triple that is just rogers being rogers.

Is there any competition, or no, and thats why they can charge so much?

I appreciate your quick reply

I think it means for a month to month without contract basis the device costs $300, not $300 per month.

[ngp]

Another option is to get a cell phone with a data plan. Then you can tether it to your laptop. Of course it could end up being expensive depending on how much data you use.

[l69norm]

Option 1:
Bell "unplugged" and Rogers "portable high speed" are the same service/network shared between Bell and Rogers using something called WiMax:
http://www.wimax.com/commentary/news/wimax_industry_news/news9-16-2005mw2

It's a "plug into an electrical wall outlet" type modem about the size of a hard cover book. It's more for the "carry the modem between home/school/work" crowd and not meant to be used on the move, hence the permanent wall outlet plug-in. I know people who use these on the move in their car with a 12Vdc to 117 VAC inverter and they work fine, but these are dedicated mobile offices and take up a fair bit of room (like real estate agents). The main advantage is the cost is only about $80/month for all you can eat data. You aren't going to be using this in a cab and most likely not in a train as coverage inside major cities only. BTW, the speed is so-so like maybe 2X or 3X as fast as a 56K modem.

Option 2
The Rogers USB stick modem is HSPA or cellular 3G modem based. The stick is cheap to buy ($30/mo with a $30 min data 3 year data contract). The big problem is that mobile data is extremely expensive. Rogers charges you $30/mo for just 1 GB or $60/mo for 3GB and about $50 for each GB over the limit.

What some people do is take special "on device" browsing contracts on a 3G phone like the iPhone or N95 and run a proxy application so Rogers cannot detect you are "tethering". The deal rate $30 for 6 GB browsing data, but it just expired so you'll have to wait for this deal again. So your laptop would tether (i.e. connect via bluetooth) to your 3G cellphone and then back to Rogers via HSPA. This only works for browsing and also in city areas only. Other data is charged at the regular data rates $$$$. It's quite easy to go through 6 GB/mo browsing on a laptop.

[Tijuana]

It's quite easy to go through 6 GB/mo browsing on a laptop.

Depends what you do. 6gb is more than enough for just surfing and documents etc.

[kleptodathief]

^ 6 can't even get u crysis:D

[ashhabib]

But, rogers has a cap on their fees. You max out at $100 no matter how much you use. So your bill is never more than $107ish plus tax

[mlerner]

But, rogers has a cap on their fees. You max out at $100 no matter how much you use. So your bill is never more than $107ish plus tax

Actually that's the overage cap, so you you got a base data plan (i.e. $30 for 6 GB) and use the entire data bucket, you now have a $100 cap for overage fees so that adds another $100 to the bill.