Do any of you have internet on cel phone?

D

DLL

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Our current plan is to leave WB for the Bay on the 19th or 20th. I talked to a couple of boating friends back east, asked them what they use and they said cell phones.

I would think cell phone coverage in the Bay would be pretty good. Maybe even good coverage going down there.

I have seen the commercials saying Verizon is best, no, wait...uh...Alltel..nope...rats. I am with AT&T...ah...Sprint...that is who claims to have the fastest. AT&T says they have some sort of cell phone wifi for around $100 a month. Hard to understand some of the claims. I pay Comcast $60 a month, so if I could drop them and then pay $100 for high speed stuff, it wouldn't be so bad.

I have wondered about WIFI on the water. Can we get a signal at Ayala from Tiburon? I don't think so, but....thought I would ask.

Also, I don't need to hear the usual disclaimers about not wanting to drag the office with me or "I go to the boat to get away from that stuff" ---- I am hoping someone besides Gene has used one of the companies for WIFI.

I email the kids a lot, they get nervous when I leave the nest.

Thanks
 
Not the best person to answer this question by far...but here's my $0.02 worth.

I just checked Verizon at the link below, and they have a free PC wireless access card available free for a laptop, if you sign a 2 yr contract for $59.95 month.

Coverage is Nationwide, wherever cell coverage is availble...

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/...d=//global//plans//wireless+pc+card//view+all

WiFi are small "hotspots" of roughly 150' in dia, unless a larger area is built out (Hotel, stadium, and even some cities, etc). But for wireless broadband, you need either a hitech phone or like a blutooth or Blackberry device,(and like to view a small screen), or plug in a wireless card in your laptop and bingo.

Does that help any?
 
Thanks Mitch, I just read my topic and corrected the grammar. Oh well....

We have done a lot of WIFI in our traveling...like the 39 days we were back at the hospital in Denver...and on the road. But we had to stay at places that HAD WIFI for us to use. We would like to take it with us, on our laptops.

The main problem I see is signing up for two years is bad if technology changes. I sign up for a system now that may be an antique in a year.

I considered putting a Satellite dish on the boat, but I don't think it is worth it, not yet. you pay a fortune getting it installed, then pay a healthy chunk per month to have it. If I could get a GOOD download, I wouldn't mind. I would dump Comcast and my current Cell Phones...they cost us about $110 a month combined. I might even dump my home phones...NOW THAT WOULD BE A GOOD SAVINGS. I pay about $200 a month for home phones, cell phones, comcast broadband...the day is coming where we won't have the old fashioned "home phone" that is hard wired in.

IF AT&T told me I would get 500kb per minute down minimum, or something like that, I might just sign up today.
 
I have the Verizon card and although it works - it's really slow. I never actually did a test to get exact speeds, but I rarely use it anymore as WiFi is available in many places now. It will work fine if you just want email, but surfing sites can be painfully slow. I wouldn't recommend it, considering they want you to sign for 2 years.
 
I'll share my experiences with you and you can take it for what it's worth. I've been a Cingular (now AT&T) subscriber for 6+ years and for the most part, very satisfied. A couple of years ago I signed up for the family plan with roll over minutes, free mobile to mobile to any Cingular subscriber and it has worked well. About six months ago I subscribed to their MediaNet 200 plan ($19.99 per mo.) add-on, which is unlimited network access via their GSM network. I connected to the network via a USB data cable connected between my cell phone and laptop. While not near as fast (90-100kbs) as my DSL service at home, it gave me access from the boat or condo which was what I was looking for. About a month ago I got hold of one of AT&T's 3G laptop cards and by moving the sim from my cell phone to the 3G card, plugging it into the laptop, I now get speeds in the 900kbs range. I have canceled my DSL and land line service and now use only my Cell ph for voice and 3G card for Internet access. I can't get the 3G speed in all locations but even the EDGE Network access on the 3G card gives me speeds in the 50-90kbs range. It's been an answer to my needs and I'm saving about $80.00 a month. I could go on about antennas and stuff but you get the jest of it, I haven’t found anyplace yet that I couldn’t get access, at least here in the Midwest. (By the way, I'm on the boat right now)
 
I used my verison cell when i was travleing in my motorhome. verizon had a usb cord and connected with my laptop. it was slow but free mitutes weekend and nights. I searched the net and found my new home online.
 
Although not particularily fast, there's always iPhone. I get pretty good speeds on WiFi, but Edge sorta sucks. Edge is fine for email and "skimpy" web sites, but is barely tolerable for graphic intensive web sites. It's supposed to improve, but likely not for the current generation iPhone.

Dispite it's faults, though, I still love my iPhone.
 
I've got a Treo 700P from Verizon. You can use it to do email, browse the web, play music, watch TV (via a slingbox), play video or even check what the tides are all over the delta. You can also use it to connect a computer to the internet at roughly DSL type speeds (in areas with EV-DO coverage, which most of the Bay Area/Central valley has). It is pretty amazing the amount of stuff you can do with it. Coverage in the Delta is very good, and on my one trip to the Bay, I had coverage there as well.
 
Dave, when we did the four month 12,000 mile motorhome sojurn across the US and Canada three years ago, we used the predecessor to the current Verizon set up. It worked great and we did all of our on line banking etc with it. It really made the trip very easy. The only place it didn't work was up in Canada near Banff and Lake Louise. Our lap top still has it along with a wifi set up, but really, the Verizon set is more than satisfactory. The only draw back we had was a billing problem. After the fourth month I got a bill for rb2@gr5t$2500. It was unlimited for 79 a month. My first protestations were met with guffaws by the front line telephone answering people who blamed it on my proclivity to talk too much. Once I finally got through to a management type it was straightened out. It did sour my relationship at the time, as I have had the same cell phone number since 1988 and was always paid ahead. But, overall, the Verizon internet connection worked quickly and reliably.
 
Dugsboat...What is this? rb2rb2rb2@gr5tgr5tgr5t$2500 Email address or a word misinterpreted by the program?

Pleasuretime, I have read about AT&T and thought about that system. I will go check on it tomorrow. It seems I spend 4-6 hours a day on the phone or at the various doctor's offices. I have thought about this for a month or so, but wasn't sure it really worked. I saw a map that shows my house is on the edge of their system. But with a concrete tile roof I was afraid it would not work.

I wonder if they will let me test it for a couple of weeks?? Someone told me we get 15 days to return it without paying.

And having to sign up for years...that story is exactly why I won't do it yet. UNLESS AT&T will allow an upgrade during that time...and if it is more expensive, I guess they would.

Thanks...
 
Dave, its the program intrepretation of "around". Don't use the key board symbol. Go figure.
 
I donno how much my $0.02 is worth, but I'll offer it anyway. I highly doubt that the current technology will cease to be in use / available in 2 years when your contract is up. With my cell phones I've always been slow on the uptake to the latest and greatest because honestly what I already have is more than sufficient. One thing I do is I have "handset insurance" for $7 a month. If the phone gets wet and dies, for example, they ship me a new one. It takes me a year or two to either kill my phone or have it die of old age, and by then my $7 a month has pretty much paid for a new one, and they send me a free replacement right out. Except usually, since I'm at the trailing edge of cell phone technology, they have to upgrade me to something newer and better, because the model I had has been discontinued. I haven't "purchased" a new phone in years, but they are getting their money out of me.
 
I've used AT&T/Cingular cell service for years. When I have lost or broken a cell phone, I have been able to go online and have a new cell phone shipped to me free of charge. This is w/o paying any insurance! Of course these are phones without all the latest bells and whistles, but I don't all that anyway. I only use my cell to call and receive calls and voice messages. I don't text or download from the internet, etc, so I don't care that these free cell phones don't have all of that stuff.

I haven't paid for a cell phone since I left Vorizon 6 years ago.

If you do not use the "at" symbol, you will not get the "rb2rb2rb2rb2rb2@gr5tgr5tgr5tgr5tgr5t" which is used to prevent scammers from getting email addresses. If you use that symbol, here is what you get: rb2@gr5t
 
West Delta...we must be cousins or something, I am right there with you. My best cell phone I EVER had...well, I was putting our young (1 year old) pup on the boat at Willow Berm when someone on the river sent a Tsunami our way. Our boat pitched up and it was choice of the dog or the phone, I miss the phone, but I love my fur kid, so I have had a series of replacements that were not quite as good.

I am looking into 3G, but it has NO coverage in Ayala cove. Good coverage if you go around the corner. But the real frustrating thing is the excellent coverage ends at my neighbor's house. Coincidently, that is where Pac Bell's phone lines end too.

So far, cable is the only way to be pretty sure you will get a good download and that isn't perfect by a long stretch. Clouds, trees, slow birds can block the signal thru the air. Even Satellite dishes are no guarantee and they cost a fortune.

WIFI is free in many cities, you can download a list of hot spots from the web. Get a directional antenna and go for it. Of course, Willow Berm now has its WIFI for "free".
 
I am trying a screensize of 800x600 to see if my sentences will stay normal instead of one sentence being 2 inches long and another 6 inches long.

Circuit City says no one has an external antenna with a pre-amp to boost the signal of wifi.

I called AT&T about 3G and the employee I got was real honest, saying 3G is great if you live across the street from a tower, but the further away you are the worse your signal. While that makes sense, it is refreshing to hear it from a salesman.

3G is shown to have great signal strength on the south, east and west sides, but not in Ayala Cove. I am amazed one of them hasn't bought a spot for an antenna on a hill top at Angel Island.

Bottom line is...unless you will spend several thousand dollars, you probably will get an intermittent signal. Rats. I might be tempted if I had an antenna I could clamp on to the radar arch, then take it home, put it on my concrete tile roof, then put it on our car, etc.

Still dreaming.........(meanwhile, let's see how the 800x600 looks. All other posts were at 1024x768 I think.)--it didn't work. the words ran off the page on 800x600, I will see if the edit button allows me to change it to 1024x768.
 
I see what the problem is. It's that mile long internet address in the second post.

I hesitate to believe we're cousins. I believe I'm significantly younger than you.

Geez, how many phones have I gone though? One was in my pants pocket, I was up to my ankles in the surf at Santa Cruz, and a big wave splashed me up to the waist. Cell phone never turned on again.

A year or so ago I dropped one in the toilet. It actually did work after drying for a few days, but the replacement phone had already arrived.

Speaking of cell phones, have you guys heard of the GPS feature that many cell phones have these days? That when you call 911, the cell phone also gives the operator your GPS coordinates. Handy in a SHTF situation, but scary from a "big brother" perspective. A friend of mine found the right combination of buttons to press and found some hidden menu which displayed his GPS coordinates where he was at. He looked them up, and, yes, they were exactly at his house, where he was.

Anyway, I wonder if this feature transmits your GPS info to the Coast Guard too? Shoot, I think they'd find that information useful when you're calling them from your cell phone in an emergency.
 
Most new phones with GPS capabilities have the ability to shut off the GPS feature for everything except 911 calls.

(On my RAZR it's under the "settings & tools" menu, then "system", then "location", and you can choose between having "location" always on and "911 only". But if there's a way to display the GPS coordinates, I don't know it. It'd be nice to have as a backup to my onboard GPS.)

Big brother may be watching, but you can chase him off....

BTG
 
DLL

Sounds as if you may have most of the answers to your questions about AT&T 3G Card, I know they have a 30 day return policy on there phones but not sure about the PC Card (I think that it does apply though). 3G Coverage, while currently available in limited areas, is growing all the time. I have access to it from my home but most other places, Condo, Boat, etc. I normally get the EDGE Network service. While a great deal slower, it's still faster than dial-up access. I'm sitting at the transient slip at Aqua Harbor Marina at this time checking boatered post and it is working just fine. I use an external antenna most of the time if the signal is weak and it helps a little. I live North of Atlanta about 30 miles and have no trouble accessing 3G even though my cell ph signal isn't real strong so it doesn't seem to matter how close a tower might be but if it is offering the 3G service or not. Even with 2 bars it will function quite well. Hope this helps.
 
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