iPhone, iPad and Laptop all connected at screaming high speed from pretty much anywhere – priceless!
I am on the road eighty percent of the time anymore, and the need to connect to the internet has expanded between my iPhone, iPad and HP laptop. My Starbucks Gold Card has been replaced twice due to wear and tear. When home in Seattle, I feel as comfortable in one of the local Starbucks as I do in my home office with one exception up until now-internet speed.
I have been a fan of Verizon’s MiFi 3G device for almost two years now and wrote of my experience. The ability to get a connection to the internet from every location I have attempted during this time has not only been convenient, but in several cases a money-maker. I do use WiFi whenever I can, but you all know the exercise of getting the security key, and setup is not always fruitful, so when it is just not working I pull out my trusty Verizon 3G MiFi hotspot.
I have been hearing about the new Verizon 4G LTE network and it’s amazing speed, so when I had a break in my day earlier this week, I stopped in to check out the newest options. I left the store with a Samsung 4G Verizon LTE Mobile Hotspot SCH-LC-11.
Similar in size to the unit I replaced, about the dimensions of a playing card. A bit thicker than my old 3G unit but not by much. Got out the door with a $99.00 price tag as I was close to my renewal date. Two data plans available of 5GB for $50.00/month or 10 GB for $80.00/month.
Here is the connection speed from the Starbucks that I am writing this post from, using the free WiFi:
Here is the connection speed from the Samsung Device on Verizon’s 4G LTE network at same location:
You can see from the results that the speed difference is significant. If all you are doing is checking email, then the speed will not matter. If however, you are presenting your ideas/products or services and you need the internet to do so, it becomes important. I love the download speed, but where I really get the bang for my buck is with the upload speed. The results showing above at 1.74 Mbps upload are excellent when compared to the best I have had before, and I have had speeds up to 7 Mbps upload speeds. When I am uploading files to the blog, YouTube, Vimeo, etc. It can save considerable time.
I have completed two live streaming video presentations using the Samsung device and UStream successfully. It would crash every time at the slower speeds. I have also had several very enjoyable, trouble-free Skype conversations with the device.
Now that I am using my iPad in some of my presentations, I have stopped paying the $25.00 for the cellular data service, utilizing the higher speed and connectivity from the Samsung Mobile hotspot. If they would only have an unlimited data plan for a reasonable fee, I would drop my home DSL connection as well.
If you are mobile, count on a quality high speed internet connection to get through your day and the local coffee shop internet isn’t meeting your needs, I recommend checking out this product.