i sell used computer to very poor people. the two most popular ways for these people to get on the internet is either some type of free wifi(maybe provided by the building they live in or just a neighbors open connection) or mobile broadband(overwhelmingly cricket). very few of these people have a landline phone or cable TV; and many would never pass a credit check for long term subsciption service; but they can buy cricket month to month.

what makes it really interesting is that most of these mobile broadband devices are attached to desktops not laptops.

i think the tech world in general overstates peoples desire for high speeds on 3g. most people would much rather have a lower price and/or a larger cap.

i do aggree with some of the readers above that things like windows updates are a major issue for mobile broadband user as they tend to turn them off for faster surfing.

When using mobile broadband it seems you need to compartmentalise your activities. That big Windows update that keeps announcing itself, that big file you promised someone (or promised yourself), that Youtube clip you keep intending to view; all these are recorded on a ‘memo to self’ as things to deal with when you get back to a decent landline or wifi connection. I can’t see it ever being much different. The urban environment is such an unfriendly palce for wireless signals, particularly in the bands used for mobile broadband, that the service will always be worse or dearer than landlines – except in exceptional cases.

The fact that mobile telephony works well is not an indication that the technical problems have been licked. Instead, it’s an indication that telephony is on several counts less demanding than mobile data. You can get a decent telephone service under conditions where you don’t get a decent mobile broadband service. These days voice-data rates can be below 10 kbps and sound OK.

As someone who regularly uploads video for reviews, etc, I can’t see myself solely using a MiFi at any point soon. For more typical users, I think the bandwidth caps need to be more flexible or, at least, better explained: no more “we might” throttle your connection or “we may” charge you overage fees, people need to know exactly what will happen if their usage expectations differ from those of the carriers.

I think mobile broadband needs to be thought of as a supplement to a land line, and it needs to be priced in a way that doesn’t make it look like an extravagance for people already paying for fixed-line broadband. To a degree that’s happened in the UK, although a couple of operators are struggling, and it’s not clear that the market can support all the players.

LTE, if and when it happens here, will improve matters, but I don’t think it will transform the situation. The market for LTE looks better in the USA to me than in the UK. In the USA it could bring standardisation to a fragmented scene. In the UK, the operators have invested so heavily in 3G (including paying colossal amounts for spectrum) that the operators will have to do their utmost to get a return on their investment.

Honestly, I don’t even have a problem with the $60/mo. price, since it could replace a $30-50 home broadband bill for many users, plus give more flexibility.

I am grandfathered on a true unlimited, SERO, no 5 GB cap Sprint plan for $49/mo., and have had it for about three years. Just recently transferred it to my MiFi, and I have no plans of giving it up anytime soon.

I had a problem with the WiMax reception in my office. Connection speed was higher on the other side of the house. There is no provision for an external antenna with the Clear WiMax hardware, so I’d have to do some rewiring to get the highest throughput.

In short, WiMax could work as a substitute for cable modem service at my location.

I’ve taken to running netflix streaming videos to my TivoHD. It’s a nice service. It works on my 1.5Mb/s DSL, but I think it’s at the low end of acceptable speed.

IF I was using WiMax or 3G for my internet connectivity, would things work correctly, or would I not have the connectivity?

Wireless by it’s very nature is a shared medium. Wired internet can be individually segmented, monitored, or metered.

If streaming movies works well over the air right now, but they sell the service to 1000 other people in my neighborhood, (I live in an urban area) will it stop working at the times I want to use it because so does everyone else?

And if they do, they make use of hotel, coffeehouse or other place providing wifi…

I guess what may be needed is a big shift in usage pattern of net services, from head down (keyboard, screen) to head up where one get a steady stream of additional info about ones surroundings.

This however would move the 3G connection to the background, being just a pipe to get the stream from.

think of it like this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b64_16K2e08

married with this:
http://www.vuzix.com/iwear/products_wrap920av.html

Fortunately, I have a small cable company with excellent high speed for a very reasonable price.

3G is finally maturing in the UK, plans are cheap, data limits are rising and the hardware is ultra cheap, even pick up PAYG for £10 for a dongle and max £2 per day for data.

Now, if you can get internet in the home on adsl or cable that’s still the first choice, however, for light users who want the portabilty of 3G then it could well be all you need.