Warring Wireless Networks and T-Mobile's HSPA+
6/30/2010 9:00:00 PM
WSJ's Personal Technology columnist Walt Mossberg discusses the war among U.S. wireless carriers, which are competing to roll out new, faster wireless Wide Area Network (WAN) data networks.
He tests one of the least known of these new speedier networks: T-Mobile's "HSPA+" system. HSPA+ is a souped version of 3G Wide Area network data. This is broadband data, not 802.ll Local Area Network (LAN) wireless.
Mosberg's initial tests indicated that HSPA+ beat Verizon's and Sprint data download speeds.
Wirehead actually configured on of the T-Mobile USB WAN cards for a relative so he could get the Internet at home. It was easy to configure and T-Mobile had a sale on the service.
Whether it it 3G, 4g or HSPA+ data, the ability to get to the Internet around town without finding an 802.11 hot spot is nice.
A word of warning. In the past you could purchase one service for both voice and data and use a cable or dongle to provide data to your laptop from your cell phone. Most of the carriers now require you purchase both data and voice service and you must use a separate data USB 'modem' for data.
Blackberry is the one exception. If you have a Blackberry, you may still be able to purchase a data cable to tether it to your laptop.
Virgin Mobile is also selling a wireless broadband USB modem and you can purchase minutes for it with a card from Wal-Mart.
Sprint is stripping Virgin of its pay-by-the-minute plans called BroadBand2Go pay-as-you-go mobile 3G broadband , though current customers can remain. Sprint recently purchased Virgin Mobile.
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