3G Mobile Broadband

3G is slower than 4G, but it available in many more areas

Until 4G networks are more widespread, 3G mobile broadband remains the dominant type. Several cell phone carriers offer mobile broadband plans, each with specific advantages and drawbacks. Experts say the best choice depends on your priorities and location. The major players are AT&T, Sprint and Verizon. T-Mobile is less often reviewed, but does provide mobile broadband service. Keep in mind that with most of these services, you'll be required to sign up for a two-year contract with early termination fees.

If download speed is your priority and you travel a lot in the United States, recent comparison tests in eight cities, conducted by Gizmodo, find Sprint the best bet (*est. $60 per month). Sprint's 3G technology, EVDO, has a maximum download speed of 3.1 Mbps, but averages more like 600 to 1,400 kbps. Sprint's download speeds aren't fastest in all of the eight cities, or even in all neighborhoods in any city -- but its average download speed is highest. You also get GPS capability, turning your laptop into a GPS navigator.

Sprint's drawbacks include a lack of Wi-Fi access plus a 5 GB cap on monthly usage. After you exceed that limit, you can be charged about $1 per MB, which can add up fast. For example, downloading three full-length movies uses up your 5 GB limit. (This is why reviews warn that 3G mobile broadband can't replace cable, fiber optic or DSL broadband.) Even more important for some users, Sprint earns low ratings for customer service and technical support -- though we did find that at DSLReports.com, AT&T and Verizon's ratings for customer care are just as low.

In February 2009, Sprint began offering a "Simply Everything" plan (*est. $150 per month) that adds 3G mobile broadband for laptops to its "unlimited plan" for wireless cell-phone services. This bundles mobile broadband with long distance calls, text messaging, etc. However, the mobile broadband part is still limited to 5 GB per month.

AT&T 3G download speeds are faster than Sprint in a few areas, especially in the South, but boasts significantly faster upload speeds overall. This can be a big advantage if you often upload photos and videos to the web. However, AT&T's main advantages lie in its plan packaging. If you need mobile broadband only for checking e-mail or downloading an occasional web page, you can choose between a 10 MB plan (*est. $20 per month) and a 40 MB plan (*est. $40 per month), so light users can save some money.

The 5 GB plan at AT&T (*est. $60 per month) comes with a free USB modem plus free Wi-Fi access at a wide network of hotspots. The Wi-Fi access is faster than 3G wireless, and can help you stay within the 5 GB limit. AT&T's 3G coverage area is more limited than Verizon or Sprint, and its non-3G service is slower than the non-3G networks used by those carriers.

Most reviews and surveys give Verizon and Alltel (now merged into Verizon) the edge over both Sprint and AT&T when it comes to customer care. The 5 GB mobile broadband price (*est. $60 per month) matches that of AT&T, but users report that taxes and fees can add as much as $20 per month more.

Verizon's 3G network uses the same EVDO network technology as Sprint. Like Sprint, Verizon provides GPS capability but not Wi-Fi access. Connection speeds in metro areas where its 3G network is available are considered adequate but not great. Coverage outside metro areas is spotty. In addition to slower speed, you may enter an area where you're considered to be "roaming" -- and the usage cap then is only 300 MB.

Verizon also offers a 24-hour plan (*est. $15 per day) without, of course, any long term contract. This can be a good solution if you need mobile broadband only a few times a year -- perhaps as a backup when your home cable or DSL is out. You can also use it as an inexpensive trial period to test connection reliability and speed in your usual travel pattern.

T-Mobile (*est. $50 per month) isn't included in many reviews, but it does earn praise for its lower cost plus very good customer service. Like AT&T, T-Mobile bundles free Wi-Fi access with its mobile broadband. Right now, T-Mobile's 3G coverage is the smallest, but it's expanding fast.

T-Mobile initially sought to impose a 1 GB monthly cap, but withdrew that after garnering some unwanted publicity. The company now says that there's no usage cap, but reviewers say to take "unlimited" plans with a grain of salt (and to study the fine print on the contract).

Cricket Broadband (*est. $40 per month) is a budget mobile broadband service that's available in some metropolitan areas. Cricket has begun upgrading its networks to faster 3G EVDO technology, but service is slow in areas in which that has not yet happened. For example, Sascha Segan at PC Magazine tests the service in Tuscon, Ariz., and reports download speeds of just 532 kbps -- faster than dial-up, but slower than most home broadband services or 3G mobile broadband access.

Cricket might be a good budget choice for some users. Its lack of a required contract commitment is certainly a plus. It also offers a free first month. But that offer isn't as good as it sounds as the modem is subject to a restocking fee of $35 even if returned during that first month. We also saw some other complaints regarding customer service.

Cricket bills itself as being unlimited, another plus, but Segan reports that there's, in fact, a loosely defined cap that could see connection speeds throttled if you download more than 5 GB in a month. Discussing the cap with Lisa Murray, Cricket's director of broadband, Segan confirmed that the cap actually exists, but adds that Murray says "Odds are very small that we would ever do anything to limit or throttle you."

Tethered cell-phone mobile broadband

As noted earlier, it's often possible to tether a laptop computer via a USB cable to a cell phone or smartphone. This uses the phone as a modem for the laptop, via the phone's data service. Some users apparently improvise this, but carriers want you to sign up for tethered service at a fixed fee.

In November 2008, AT&T announced plans to make the iPhone usable as a laptop modem. AT&T tethering (*est. $60 per month) is already available for Blackberry smartphones, but it's not clear whether or not the iPhone plan will carry the same monthly fee.

Prepaid mobile broadband

MobilityPass offers a USB modem and prepaid 3G card for use in 66 countries, including the United States. Like a prepaid phone card or cell phone plan, you pay in advance but don't have to worry about exceeding your planned usage and incurring extra fees. The prices are in Euros, so the dollar price depends on the currency exchange rate. Prepaid mobile broadband isn't cheap; 50 MB would cost about €76; at the time of our report that would be about $100. We were unable to find any reviews testing how well the service works.