Internet connection thru cell phone

[hanginon]

A friend of mine has asked how and if he could use a cell phone to connect his laptop to the internet
while he is traveling. I thought this was an interesting idea but have no idea if it is possible or how to go
about it.
Any thoughts or ideas on the subject would be appreciated, Thank You.

 

[ojai00]

You have to get a data cable that you can use to connect the phone to the laptop. He should contact his wireless provider to make sure how he gets charged for the time he spends online. Last time I checked, the speeds were limited to 19.2kpbs. Hope this helps.

 

[hanginon]

Thank You for your quick reply. That's some really slow speed but to be expected I suppose. I'll check
with a couple of different wireless providers to see what they offer and how much. Again, Thank You.

 

[ZippyDan]

actually, id heard that sprint offered over 100kbps and voicestream offered just under 100kbps over their G3 networks. i dont actually use it so i dont know. the service and hardware needed is offered through your cell phone provider. some will charge you per minute, and some will charge you per kb :/

~Zippy!

 

[MrMaster]

Express Network from Verizon isn't bad from what I heard for speeds. Although the proper cable will run you $40 ifyou get the mobile office kit.

 

[Matthias99]

You can also use Bluetooth with an appropriate phone (such as a Nokia 3650) and a USB Bluetooth adapter. Newer phones use GPRS, which in *theory* gives DSL-like speeds, but you have to be in an area with GPRS coverage and excellent signal strength. My experience with it was not great (I used it from my Palm Tungsten T), but it may just be poor coverage near where I live.

 

[Mark R]

You can use infra-red, bluetooth or cable connection to your cell phone.

Then you just install the phone modem drivers (supplied with the phone or available on the manufacturer's web site) and configure the dial-up as appropriate. That's it. It's that easy.

That's the way it works using circuit-switched GSM (i.e. you dial up a modem line at a conventional ISP). In this case you pay per minute (with a max connection speed of 9.6 kbps).

High-speed data services work slightly differently - in this case you dial a special code given to you by the network provider who act as your ISP. GSM 2G (GPRS) data rates are available up to 110 kbps (depending on network and handset support, but typically are 50-60 kbps), whereas true 3G services currently support data rates of 384 kbps. On these high-speed (packet-switched) services you pay per kilobyte.

My experience has been pretty good, at least recently. Win2k before SP3 and some major problems connecting to phones over IR. Now that this has been fixed, it's a piece of cake to setup the phone.

It took 10 mins to get dial-up internet working on a Nokia 8310 via IR. And about 15 mins to get GPRS working (typical download speed 5-6 kB/s).

 

[andylawcc]

MarkR:
doesn't GPRS charge by kilobytes AND minutes used on top of that? I seen those service plan brochue mentioned something like that.
where as using the "dailing up a modem line using the cell phone" will only charge you for the minutes used.
?

 

[Mark R]

Maybe it depends on provider.

My network, like all networks in the UK, charge only per kilobyte for GPRS use - it's use as an 'always-on' connection is a minor selling point.

I've not heard of any networks charging per minute, mainly because GPRS connections are packet based and keeping the connection up requires virtually no resources from phone or network. Though, that doesn't mean that none do.

Dialing up a conventional modem will incur charges per minute. Some networks price voice and low-speed data calls at the same rate, and some will permit data calls in any inclusive minutes. Others will charge a seperate tarrif for data calls.

 

[Matthias99]

Originally posted by: andylawcc
MarkR:
doesn't GPRS charge by kilobytes AND minutes used on top of that? I seen those service plan brochue mentioned something like that.
where as using the "dailing up a modem line using the cell phone" will only charge you for the minutes used.
?

Depends on the service provider. For instance, AT&T charges through the nose, but T-Mobile is only $10 a month for unlimited GPRS. I don't *think* GPRS use counts against your 'minutes' (at least with T-Mobile, I never noticed it on my bill), but that might also vary with your service provider and/or plan.

 

[Slick5150]

Verizon is currently still letting users use the Express Network (which I think just changed names if I remember right) for "free". Meaning, it only uses minutes off of your plan, but if you have free nights and weekends, then it isn't counting towards anything. I've connecting this way using my LG VX6000 phone, and a USB cable I bought on eBay for $20, and it's worked well. My connection speed was around 130k, so, a good deal faster than dialup anyways.

They also have a "really free" service that you can use (QNC I think it's called?), but the speed is limited to 14.4k, so it's dreadfully slow.

Goto howardforums.com or wirelessadvisor.com and read through whatever carrier's specific forum there that you're looking for. You'll see posts about internet access over the phone, and for Verizon, specific steps on how to set it up.

 

[markk]

do these points apply the same to use of a cell phone for FAX . hooked to a Multifunction printer /scanner/fax ? Sure I will contact my cell provider but thought in terms of the cable required , if it is essentially the same as to connect cell phone to PC forInternet