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Teltonika's HSDPA USB modem accepts SIM cards and OS X
While PCMCIA and ExpressCards certainly fit the bill at times, the convenience of popping any ole SIM card into a USB adapter and hopping on a 3G network can't be denied. Teltonika's HSDPA USB modem just so happens to provide such a luxury, as the versatile device supports speeds up to 1.8Mbps via GPRS / EDGE / HSDPA, is entirely USB powered, and provides the ability to "text from your PC" and use VoIP. Furthermore, the TELTUSB3G manages to support both Windows and OS X right out of the box, and the company even allows you to customize the enclosure with colors and logos of your choice if you cough up the required surcharge. Unsurprisingly, you won't be snagging this one in the US without some importing help from the other side of the pond, but Europeans can grab one right now for around £165.00 ($329).[Via BoyGeniusReport]
Comcast shows off blisteringly fast channel bonding modem
Two little words that could potentially give new life to copper, at least in the high-speed internet department, have found their way into the news once again, and this time it's Comcast who's showing us just what channel bonding can do. While you may have been scratching your head about Ambit Broadband's ridiculous claims, it looks like the technology may actually be edging closer to hitting the mainstream. Apparently, Comcast's CEO was able to demonstrate such a modem in front of the public and cable competitors alike, and while he claimed that it could reach speeds of 150Mbps, it was the testing that got everyone all riled up. Based on DOCSIS 3.0, the modem was able to download a 300MB file "in a few seconds," and he even snagged the 32-volume Encyclopedia Britannica 2007 and Merriam-Webster's visual dictionary in "under four minutes." Interestingly, it was noted that the FiOS competitor "could be available within a couple years," but if fiber crawls to our house before this stuff is ready to rock, it'll sure to be hard to hold off.
Clearwire gets FCC nod to release WiMAX-class laptop card
Things are lookin' up in the WiMAX arena, as the oft stubborn FCC has reportedly given a green light to Clearwire to produce "the first WiMAX-class laptop card to connect to the Clearwire network." Of course, we've seen pre-WiMAX cards hit other continents and witnessed quite a bit of high talkin' at 3GSM, but now that the Commission has granted its final approval on this iteration, it won't be long before users here in the US can test things out. In an attempt to deliver "true wireless broadband with a device that facilitates even greater portability than the firm's existing modem permits," the forthcoming PCMCIA Type II card will utilize Motorola's Expedience wireless access system, but unfortunately only seems to play nice with Windows XP and Vista for now. Still, folks within a Clearwire service area should really start saving those pennies, as the currently unpriced card should be landing sometime "during the second half of this year."[Via TGDaily]
T-Mobile rivals Vodafone, offers up portable USB HSDPA modem
There's just nothing like good old fashioned competition, but it always gets interesting when the challenger rolls in with pretty much the exact same product. Interestingly enough, this seems to be the case with T-Mobile's latest attempt to yank some 3G market share from Vodafone, which released its own oval-shaped HSDPA modem not too long ago. T-Mobile's rendition may look the part, but the pricing is where it differentiates itself, as the firm will reportedly be offering the unit up for just £29.99 ($61) with a one-year contract, or free if you sign your name to an 18- or 24- month deal. Moreover, the monthly data charge for "unlimited" usage is the same as the one-year purchase price, which looks mighty tasty compared to Vodafone's seemingly outrageous £53 ($106) monthly fee for the same privledge. The modem looks to be available on T-Mobile's UK site right now, so if you were moments away from pulling Vodafone's trigger, you can thank your lucky stars.[Via TrustedReviews]
Helio Hybrid, RIP: 2006 - 2007
Helio has officially cut down its Hybrid EV-DO / WiFi data card down in its prime. Actually, we're not sure if the Hybrid was cut down before its prime, in its prime, or past its prime -- but any way you slice it, it's toast. The move is going down pretty quickly, too; no new Hybrids are being sold, and existing customers will be switched off as of May 8 (though they're "welcome" to keep the deactivated card, according to the announcement). Folks who also have a voice line activated with Helio will be given a month of free service for their troubles, but we imagine that's little consolation to the poor laptops mercilessly stripped of hotspot and EV-DO access in the discontinuation's aftermath. Was it Helio's stingy 160MB limit that ultimately lead to the Hybrid's demise? We may never know -- but given Helio's cozy relationship with Earthlink and Boingo, we'd be pretty surprised if the MVNO were out of the dedicated data business for good.[Thanks, Brent S.]
HTC subsidiary will sell 3.5G data cards
Not content with simply making some of the best smartphones on the planet, Taiwanese powerhouse HTC is now looking to get into the data card game, with the company prepping a new HSDPA card through its BandRich subsidiary. The C100, as it's known, will offer download speeds up to 7.2Mbps where available, and is said to be just the first of many mobile modems BandRich is planning. DigiTimes is reporting that the C100 will be priced north of €200 ($269), so although we don't yet know when/where these are gonna drop, it looks like you'll have to part with at least a few C notes if this model lands in your neck of the woods.[Via jkOTR]
KT's iPlug brings WiBro / HSDPA to Korean USB ports
C'mon, you knew all those other telecommunications outfits in Korea wouldn't just sit around and let SK Telecom have all the WiBro fun, and while KT's WiBro-equipped NT-Q35 is fine and dandy for those needing a new machine, the company's latest offering is aimed at the ever-lucrative upgrader. The completely-not-DAP-related iPlug Premium will unsurprisingly offer up the same WiBro / HSDPA connectivity that existing alternatives already do, but the firm still insists on calling it the "world's first dual-mode USB modem." Of course, users lucky enough to be hovering in WiBro hotspots will enjoy even faster speeds than those poor souls that are forced to live with "just" HSDPA, and if all goes to plan, it'll be available for South Koreans on March 5th. Currently, the pricing structure looks to offer at least one flat-fee option and a based-on-usage plan as well, but potentially even more interesting than how much these luxuries will add to your monthly bill is the note that the company is already looking to kick out "various handsets" that simultaneously support NesPot and DMB after this. We dig the forward the forward thinking, KT. [Warning: Read link requires subscription]
Novatel's Merlin EX720 ExpressCard hits Sprint shelves
The world just became a little less of a cold, dead, meaningless (or at least data-less) wasteland for Sprint customers rocking ExpressCard slots (of either the /34 or /54 variety) thanks to the official release of Novatel's Merlin EX720 modem on Sprint's website. Riding atop Sprint's glorious EV-DO Rev. A airwaves, the EX720 should deliver up to 1.4Mbps down and 500kbps up to virtually any ExpressCard-equipped device that needs it (MacBook Pros included), provided that the requisite $179.99 (after contract and rebates) has been forwarded to the appropriate bean counters over at your network. We can almost picture Cingular and T-Mobile folks seething -- for what it's worth, we feel your pain -- but hey, Sprintheads, go get your WWAN on.
Parasitic device adds baud modem tones to your wireless router
For those who are lucky enough to have only known the internet care of broadband, you might be a bit unfamiliar with the pings and screeches of days past, but for those all too familiar with dialing up in an attempt to hop on the world wide web, you could probably hum it back on command. In yet another instance of DIY creativity being used in a completely unnecessary (albeit very retro) manner, Jonah Brucker-Cohen is developing the Forward Compatible, which is a "parasitic object" that utilizes a light sensor in order to sense when a modern day modem / router is transmitting data, and subsequently belts out tones from a 2,400 baud modem from yesteryear. The FC is also designed to simply strap onto any internet-connected device without internal modifications, making it completely portable and universal in nature. So if you're interested in adding a dash of vintage to your otherwise fresh device, grab yourself an audio recording circuit, a photo-transistor, and tag the read link for a bit of old fashioned fun.[Via MAKE]
The Huawei E270: fantastic enjoyment with HSUPA uplink
Calling its E270 HSUPA modem "fantastic enjoyment" is strictly Huawei's own terminology here, but at two glorious megabits per second of upload speed (albeit theoretical) and up to 7.2Mbps on the downstream, well... "fantastic enjoyment," indeed. Granted, it'll be at least another year before we really start to to see widespread deployments of HSDPA's heir apparent -- which leaves the download speeds untouched from HSDPA while boosting the uploads significantly -- but we're glad to see manufacturers already have their eyes squarely on the prize for getting equipment prepped in the pipeline. Huawei says its E270 is also the world's first USB modem for HSUPA, surely bringing smiles to the faces of the expansion slot-challenged among us, and the tri-band 3G / quadband 2G radios should be enough to spread the love worldwide. No word on launch plans, but with the requisite networks necessary to take advantage of that juicy hardware far from in place, let's not put the proverbial cart before the proverbial horse.
Verizon and Novatel launching USB720 Rev A modem tomorrow
Again, Verizon isn't really all about the surprises today, with an inconspicuous Rev A launch, and now the release of this USB720 Rev A modem from Novatel more or less right on target, but there ain't nothing wrong with that. Sure, they're playing catch-up to Sprint on this front as well, but everybody's gotta start somewhere, and Verizon has picked tomorrow to start handing out these USB modem dongles. And by "handing out" we of course mean charging $150 to people who sign up for a new two-year customer agreement, and $200 to the one-year types. Plus you'll need to pick up an unlimited data plan for all those gigabytes you'll be pulling, which will run you $60 a month on top of an existing $40 voice plan, or $80 a month all by its lonesome. Not cheap by a long shot, but just think of all those neat things Verizon wants you to do with that bandwidth, like blaze through torrents, make p2p Skype calls, share your connection with friends and email your mom! The modem will be available immediately on line and in B2B channels, to be followed by a retail launch on the 20th.
Option GlobeTrotter Express 7.2 gets FCC love
If AT&T plans to roll deep with 7.2Mbps HSDPA this year, we reckon they need some equipment on store shelves, so FCC approval of Option's GlobeTrotter Express 7.2 certainly bodes well. Besides tri-band UMTS / HSDPA and quadband GPRS / EDGE, the card features a nifty zero-CD installation feature that copies drivers directly from the card itself. No word on release -- or whether AT&T will even carry it, for that matter -- but we're guessing we can find a few MacBook Pro users out there who are about ready to raid the FCC's offices and swipe this thing today.
Cingular adds Globetrotter GT MAX to 3.6Mbps stable
If the promise of 3.6Mbps downstream data (eventually, anyway) on the wings of Cingular's HSDPA network gets you out of bed every morning, but the AirCard 875's bulbous antenna is enough to make you want to cry, just feast your eyes on this little number. Option's Globetrotter GT MAX is the latest (and only second) data card to hit Cingular with support for the higher HSDPA data rate, while still preserving a veritable who's who of backward compatibility (GPRS, EDGE, and plain ol' UMTS) on four GSM and three WCDMA bands. Unlike the aforementioned AirCard from Sierra Wireless, the Globetrotter has a nifty little retractable antenna that'll likely be a hit with road warriors weary of removing modems from their slots when trying to pack the PC away. Look for the Globetrotter GT MAX to be available today from Cingular for a nice, round $49.99 after rebate on a two year agreement.[Via PHONE Magazine]
Option's option for ExpressCard HSDPA
Nipping at the heels of Novatel's similarly-styled XU870, Belgium's Option Wireless Technology has announced its GlobeTrotter EXPRESS 7.2. As the name implies, the ExpressCard promises 7.2Mbps downstream on the wings of your carrier's HSDPA airwaves -- if said carrier supports such blazingly fast speeds, of course, and as of right now 3.6 is as good as it gets. For what it's worth, the XU870 currently tops out at 3.6Mbps with a software upgrade to 7.2 slated for down the road, so the GlobeTrotter takes the strictly-theoretical speed crown in the meantime (and if the GlobeTrotter were actually shipping right now like the XU870 is, that'd be even cooler). Thanks to a nifty little feature Option calls "Zero CD," drivers for the card are embedded in the card itself, meaning that no separate driver installation is necessary when you shove this puppy into your lappie of choice. No word on availability yet, but with support for triband HSDPA and quadband EDGE, we wouldn't be surprised to see this one take the whole world by storm.[Via 3G.co.uk, thanks Bram]
Pulse for BlackBerry cuts the tethering cable
Sure, tethering 8700s to Macs is a neat trick -- but how about cutting the cable entirely? "Pulse" by Brain Murmurs aims to do exactly that, trading that pesky USB cable for the more convenient Bluetooth connection (and yeah, it's Mac compatible, to boot). Pearl users might have no concept of what we're talking about (on account of RIM's latest goodness coming with DUN in the box) but Pulse should be big news for 7130, 7290, and 8700 owners looking for a moderately less conspicuous way to pipe hot data from their phones into their PCs. Be sure to give us the down-low in comments if you get the chance to give this a whirl, eh?
FCC find: Novatel U720 USB EV-DO modem for Sprint
Although there have been inklings in the past that Sprint was working on a USB EV-DO modem with Novatel Wireless, recent FCC approval documents have confirmed its existence and given us a first glimpse at what the modem actually looks like. In comparison to its peers, the U720 is visually appealing, although the single shot of the device doesn't provide a very good idea of its size thanks to the USB port being out of sight. Not that the style of the modem matters: we know people (read: MacBook owners) that would kill to see a USB EV-DO modem come to the States -- it's probably a good thing that the FCC approved the device then, eh?
AnyDATA intros ADU-E100D USB EV-DO modem
Okay, so maybe these USB EV-DO modems would be a bit more lovable if they were in dongle form, but they're still a reasonable alternative if your ExpressCard slot is busy handling other (likely frivolous) activities. AnyDATA's ADU-E100D is a tad larger than a standard business card, but will only add about 4 extra ounces to your trusty knapsack, and sports an integrated battery as well as USB 2.0 connectivity. The modem is based on Qualcomm's MSM 6500 chipset, is backwards compatible with 1xRTT, supports EV-DO 3G speeds up to 2.4Mbps (down) and 153.5kbps (up), and allows sending / receiving of those oh-so-urgent SMS messages during data operations. Although details regarding pricing and availability aren't yet known, the snazzy blue ADU-E100D should be bringing that EV-DO goodness to your notebook (or desktop) real soon.[Via TG Daily]
Sierra Wireless to offer HSDPA, EV-DO Rev A via USB
Not a day's passed after we caught word of Sprint's launch of Novatel's S720 PC Card do we hear that Sierra Wireless has a proverbial one-two punch of WWAN modems up its sleeve, this time of the USB variety. First up in Q4 of this year will be the 595U, an EV-DO Revision A device topping out at a purely-theoretical 3.1Mbps downstream, followed by the quad-band GSM, tri-band HSDPA 875U humming along at 3.6Mbps in Q1 2007. Both USB modems look to be coming in sleek little packages with internal antennas and matching cradles, support location-based services, and have upgradeable firmware. If these things really look as slick as the press shots make them out to be, we may not be whining for a Rev A ExpressCard after all -- if the ship dates hold up, that is.[Via Macworld]
Sprint first US carrier with EV-DO Rev A hardware
Their EV-DO Revision A network might not be ready for prime time until Q4 at the earliest, but no one can fault Sprint for not having modems in the pipeline when they do eventually flip the switch. The just-launched S720 from Novatel Wireless offers glorious downstream speeds of up to 850Kbps in a PC Card form factor -- sad news for MacBook Pro users needing an ExpressCard, but we have to believe Sprint will have you guys covered before too terribly long. Look for the S720 at your friendly local Sprint retailer for $99.99 on a 2-year contract, though without much live Rev A infrastructure, there's no rush to upgrade from your trusty Rev 0 equipment just yet.[Via phoneArena]
SK Telecom releases USB HSDPA modem
The honeymoon's not quite over for us when it comes to HSDPA modems in interesting form factors; SK Telecom's IM-H100 USB modem from Pantech isn't the first USB modem to support HSDPA, and it certainly won't be the last, but the swiveling connector is worth a mention. Other than that, you get lightning-fast downstream speeds packaged inside a rather curious metallic red cylinder, and that's about it. But hey, no complaints here -- when it comes to equipping your lappie with 3G data, simplicity is the name of the game.[Via I4U News]
