Mobile Broadband Buyers Guide - How it works, suppliers, coverage, signal strength/bandwidth etc

Mobile broadband is a service that connects computers to high speed internet in any area where there is a good 3G mobile signal. This is provided by a USB dongle with a SIM card. Required software is installed when it is plugged into a USB port and the internet can be accessed through the mobile operator’s network. It is an excellent way for people on the move with laptops to get high speed internet connection to access email, stream videos and music or just surf the web.

The Dongle

The dongle acts as a modem or aerial which is how it sends and receives data via the 3G phone network on the internet. Dongles come in two basic types—basic and enhanced. They look the same but the better dongles are also memory sticks. Just like a mobile phone, each dongle has its individual telephone number. Most of them look simple and functional, but 3 Mobile offers several different dongle designs.

Coverage

The different sizes of coverage are 2G, 3G, and High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA). The internet connection on mobile phones is 2G and was designed for text messaging and voice. It is slow and unreliable but has been upgraded to 2.5G with additional technology and has become faster. The maximum speed for 2G networks is 473Kb.

Primarily designed for data transfer, 3G is the next step from 2.5G and has speeds up to 2Mb. HSDPA also improves 3G technology giving a speed of 10Mb.

Coverage for mobile broadband is from the mobile service providers which have been tested by an outside agency for reliability of mobile broadband in the UK.

• 3 Mobile—overall best dongle including best coverage, downloader, uploader, software and most stable
• Orange—overall best dongle including best coverage and most stable
• Vodafone—best software and uploader
• T-Mobile—best coverage
• Virgin Media—best downloader
• O2
• Talk Talk

There is no guarantee that you will get coverage in every corner of the country, so it is best to check the service provider’s information to find out if there is strong coverage where you live and other locations where you travel regularly. To keep up with the great demand, providers are constantly adding locations to their coverage area.
The speed for mobile broadband is advertised from 1.8Mb to 7.2Mb which may seem like it is as fast as home broadband. This is not usually the case. Only by standing directly under a mobile phone mast will you reach those speeds, otherwise, it will vary greatly. The speed checkers give an average speed at 1Mb and say that all the service providers are about the same when it comes to speed.

Pay According to Usage

When choosing a mobile broadband company, the amount you will use it will determine the contract you need. Most dongles are pay-as-you-go, so you pay on a monthly basis for your usage. Your usage is measured in Gigabytes (GB). The basic increments are light usage for 1GB, average usage for 3GB, heavy usage for 5GB and extra heavy usage for 12GB. To give an idea of what all this means Virgin Mobile gives an example for 3GB download allowance:

• 100 hours surfing the web
• 2,000 emails
• 100 two-minute videos
• 200 music tracks

It may not be easy at first to choose your contract because you may not realize how much you use, but it is always best to buy more than you think you need at first because there may be penalties for exceeding your download limit. T-Mobile will limit your service as a last resort after sending you letters that you have gone over your limit. A contract with 3G Mobile does not allow you to carry unused capacity from one month to the next.
In general, 1GB gives about 40 hours of internet surfing, 3G gives 120 hours and 12GB gives 480, but this will vary according to the type of usage. Downloading large files and sending attachments use more data.

How to Pay

Once you have chosen your service provider, you need to determine how you want to pay. There are long term contracts or pay-as-you-go plans for payment. You can buy a dongle or get a laptop deal and you need to decide how much download capacity and speed you need and if there are any extras available. Extras may be free Wi-Fi hotspot use or laptop specifications.

If you are going for a fixed-term contact, it is best to go through the provider. You can fill in a form online or there will be a number to call on their website.

Some Considerations before Choosing

Stability, coverage and usage allowances are the main problems with mobile broadband. The technology is basically new and coverage, speeds and stability are always improving. The average speed as stated above is fine for emails and web-surfing but may not be enough for big downloads.