Subsidized netbooks with integrated 3G are all the rage these days. It seems every carrier is offering them, and the reaction is mixed. There are some who find the convenience of having 3G connectivity in the netbook to be worth the data plan cost, and others who don’t like having the 3G tied to one device. I am definitely in the latter camp, finding the Verizon MiFi meets my needs while letting me use the 3G with any devices I wish. My step-daughter is getting a subsidized netbook, however, and I have to admit her needs make that the best fit for her.

Continue reading »

This morning finds me back at the car repair shop that I visited a couple of days ago. It’s not that I find it a comfortable place to work — no, that’s not why I’m here. They had to order parts to finish the repairs to my old Volvo, and this morning the work is being done.

I’m sitting here in the waiting room, in typical waiting room chairs that are in no way conducive to working comfortably. I’m using three pieces of mobile tech, however, and that makes the work experience a productive one.

The Lenovo ThinkPad x200 is sitting in my lap currently, and I’m using it in laptop configuration. Typing is the task at hand, so laptop it is. I’m connected to the web via the Verizon MiFi, which is throwing its 3G goodness out for me to tap into my personal hotspot. These two gadgets are more than enough to get the job done, but I’m using a third simply because it makes it easy.

The Droid is out, too, and I’m using it for a certain task that experimentation shows me makes the most sense: to keep up with the hundreds of RSS feeds I track. I can easily do this on the laptop, but I found that I can spin through the huge number of feed items that constantly roll in faster using the Droid. I use the Google Reader page optimized for the iPhone, and that works perfectly on the Droid. I spin through the article titles, tap the yellow star to flag something to return to later, and basically fly through the feeds as fast as I can swoop down the page with my finger.

Once I’ve caught up with the feeds, I jump over to the ThinkPad and access the items I’ve flagged on the Droid. I can honestly say that I’ve covered as much ground, perhaps even more, than I do using just a browser on the PC. Maybe tasks like this explain the high Droid web usage being reported.

I had a flashback moment while sitting here working away. The repair shop has a TV in the waiting room, tuned to the local Fox News. I don’t normally watch Fox, but a glance up at the screen took me back. It seems one of the anchors is the Fox reporter who visited Mobile Tech Manor three years ago to interview me about the unboxing video phenomenon. It was a pleasant and unexpected flashback.

Yesterday found me in a place where none of us like to be, the car repair shop. My old car was in need of some repairs, and I spent a few hours sitting in one of those comfortable car shop waiting room chairs. I knew I would have plenty of time on my hands so I brought two pieces of gear in my kit, the ThinkPad x200 Tablet PC and the Verizon MiFi.

I brought the x200 because of the flexibility it provides for working extended periods. It is thin and light, and the ability to rotate that screen around into a slate form insures it can be used comfortably, no matter the environment. That flexibility was the call of the day, so the x200 went into the bag.

Continue reading »

It’s time to let off a little steam about something I keep seeing over and over on the Interwebs. The growth of the subsidized netbook segment regularly has someone chime in that the “$300 netbook” is really a “$2,000 netbook” due to the cost of the data plan over two years. I understand the logic, but I’m going to call it for what it is — fuzzy math.

The fact of the matter is that the data plan is a separate item from the netbook, no matter the subsidy. Sure the carrier will knock off a few hundred dollars so you’ll buy the netbook, but the real product they are selling is the data plan. Subsidy or no, netbook or notebook, if you don’t need a two-year data plan then don’t buy it. If the data plan is important to your work or other need, then get it and view the netbook as a throw-in on that deal.

What most fuzzy mathematicians fail to note is that carriers will let you move the data plan to any other device, even if you bought a netbook from them. You can move the plan to a “full” notebook down the road if you decide the netbook is too restrictive. You can move the plan to one of those fancy MiFi devices, or even a USB modem. It’s your data plan for two years and you can do what you want with it (except cancel it without penalty).

So don’t buy a data plan to get a cheap subsidized netbook — they are all cheap already. Buy a data plan because that’s what you need, and if you get the cheap netbook so be it. It’s still a cheap netbook — not a four figure netbook no matter what anyone says.

Ah, Friday, my favorite work day of the week. Not because it is the last work day, although that certainly is a factor. No, it is the day I get to share my week with you. My home office, aka Mobile Tech Manor, has been quieter than usual. This is in large part due to the weather we’ve been having, rain every day of the week. It’s like being in Seattle. It was a week of upgrades, breathing new life into some gadgets. It was an unusual week for me in the e-book department, as I read two non-fiction books for a change. Step into the Manor and let’s visit.

Continue reading »

As mobile enthusiasts, we really can’t live without our connectivity. To that end, James bought a MiFi device, while I use a mishmash of methods, including a Boingo Wi-Fi account, a 3G data plan with Verizon Wireless and Internet tethering on my iPhone as a backup. There’s a number of ways to share our 3G connections — the MiFi does it natively — but Windows 7 adds a new feature that one company is already taking advantage of. Microsoft added Virtual Wi-Fi, which uses software to virtualize one or more hardware wireless adapters. And as ReadWriteWeb notes, Connectify is offering beta software to use the new Windows 7 feature.

With Connectify, you have a software solution to share the data connection of your PC — a secure hotspot with WPA2-Personal (AES) encryption is created via a virtual Wi-Fi interface, so any other Wi-Fi device you have can take advantage of your mobile broadband connection. And this differs from tethering options we’ve covered in the past (here for PC and here for Mac OS X) because tethering generally only allows one other device to leverage the connection. By creating a Wi-Fi hotspot, multiple devices can join in.

The obvious disadvantage of a software solution is that it requires your Windows 7 computer to be up and running. That’s where hardware like the MiFi excels — you don’t need to have computer on because the MiFi creates its own hotspot. Still, I see the advantage, so I’m hopping on the beta train for Connectify right now.

The MiFi is still firmly on my list of all-time most useful gadgets, and this week Novatel released a firmware upgrade to keep it on the list. It is not a major upgrade but does address some points that aggravate some folks:

• Now fully compatible with Nintendo DS and BlackBerry Curve
• No longer goes into hibernate mode while plugged into AC.
• Now works properly while roaming internationally
• New Administration page enhancements:
• Fixed Roaming indicator added
• Sprint Only mode support added
• Allows international access
• WiFi Channel Default changed to ‘Auto‘
• DHCP IP ranges now support class A, B and C

This upgrade is for both the Sprint (international) model and the Verizon MiFi model. I applied the upgrade to my Verizon MiFi and note the following for others wanting to upgrade:

If you always use the Verizon MiFi over Wi-Fi, you will not see any indication that the firmware upgrade is available. It must be downloaded and applied while connected via USB. You will find the upgrade firmware selection under the Options menu in the Verizon Access Manager (VAM) program. The upgrade only takes 5 minutes and the PRL will be updated after the firmware upgrade is completed. Note that it is not possible to upgrade the firmware using the Mac version of the VAM. I also attempted to apply the upgrade on Windows 7 running under Parallels Desktop on the Mac and that would not work. It applied fine on Windows 7 on a non-Mac PC.

(uneasysilence via zatznotfunny)

Don’t ask me how I’ve held out from getting a MiFi, but somehow I have — even after this great review. Like James, many of you have purchased one of these little 3G devices that creates a Wi-Fi hotspot bubble around you. And because that hotspot supports multiple devices on one 3G account, that 5GB bandwidth cap can loom in the back of your mind. If you use an iPhone or iPod Touch to leverage that 3G connection, a free app I read about at GottaBeMobile should help.

The software (App Store link) is called Mi-Fi and it serves a few purposes. First, it monitors signal strength and your 3G throughput — both upload and download traffic — so you have a feel for how much bandwidth you’ve used in a session. The Mi-Fi software also taps into your MiFi hardware to display your IP address and, more importantly, the battery charge of the portable hotspot.

Maybe Santa will bring me a MiFi for Christmas, and if he does, I’ll surely be adding this app to my iPhone. I would like to see the software tap into the monthly bandwidth usage data in the future though. Session info is good to have, but if I could see usage since my last bill, that would be great. Setting an alert when getting close to the 5GB limit would be even better. In the meantime, folks can always get their monthly usage directly through a carrier app or the web.

It is the end of the week and that can only mean it is time to share the past week with you, my friends. The days flew by as I was extremely busy, yet I had time to create a genuine disaster at Mobile Tech Manor. I had the opportunity to prove something to myself that I had long suspected. I saw a friend use mobile technology the way it is intended to be used, for maximum effectiveness. I had the unexpected pleasure of having a minor relationship with a new Nobel Prize. Come on in and I’ll share everything with you.

Continue reading »

Novatel is marching ever onward with the MiFi line of 3G W-Fi routers. The Verizon MiFi I’m using is still my gadget of the year, and we’re already in October. When Novatel first announced the HSPA version of the MiFi, I questioned the logic of adding features to a gadget that I felt had the benefit of being a simple-minded device. Today, Novatel has announced an agreement with Eye-Fi for applications preloaded on every MiFi except those on Verizon and Sprint. I must confess I’m still unsure if this application business is something that’s really needed.

Continue reading »