Mobile Broadband Review

Mobile broadband gives you Internet access almost anywhere

Mobile broadband, often called wireless broadband or wireless Internet, means you can connect your laptop to the Internet far beyond Wi-Fi hotspots, using radio frequency bands. Several types are available, at varying speeds, data limits and prices. The best type depends mainly on your travel patterns and plans -- but also on availability.

There are lots of places to learn about mobile broadband. Gizmodo has the most comprehensive comparative review, testing three top carriers in eight cities. Computerworld only tests in one locale -- New York City -- but compares performance in various situations using different carriers. Mobile-Broadband-Reviews.com reviews and rates five carriers on features, cost, performance and more, and despite its marketing driven origins, information is balanced and well documented. DSLReports.com is the best place to see user opinions of mobile broadband providers. J.D. Power and Associates and Consumer Reports don't report on user satisfaction with their mobile broadband, but do document wireless carrier performance, which does heavily impact users' mobile broadband experience.

Getting most types of mobile broadband requires having a special modem or "air card" in your laptop. More and more new laptops come with such a modem built in, but you can also get small mobile broadband modems that plug into a USB socket. You can also use a small router so more than one computer can use the same mobile broadband connection.

Wi-Fi hotspots still provide the fastest, most consistent and reliable wireless broadband, though data security can be a problem. Connection speed varies, but download speeds are often about 5.5 Mbps (megabits per second). Available at airports, coffee shops and many other public places, Wi-Fi is built into most laptops so you don't need an extra card or modem.

In some cities, Wi-Fi hotspots overlap so much that you can connect almost anywhere, and a few cities and towns provide free Wi-Fi as a municipal service. Most locales that once planned this have suspended development, however, due to budget concerns. You can pay for Wi-Fi by the hour in some locations, or buy access by the hour, day or month from a cell-phone provider. Some mobile broadband plans give you free Wi-Fi access.

Mobile broadband, however, relies on cell towers rather than Wi-Fi networks, so coverage can be much more widespread. Some experts predict that mobile broadband will become the dominant Internet connection type as early as 2013. One wireless network in Sweden has been recorded at peak download speeds of 154 Mbps, with minimum speeds of 16 Mbps. Widespread availability of such a fast connection would encourage technical innovations for using the speed, and make telecommuting a viable option for more people.