MiFi launched by 3 – Is the dongle’s end near?
Just as Christmas is about to come, the mobile network 3 has unveiled its newest innovation. It is the Mobile WiFi aka MiFi, which will enable you to make use of the 3G mobile broadband network via a Wi-Fi link.
A wireless router, powered on a small battery, will be included when you have signed on to Mobile WiFi. There is no configuration needed. Just put in your 3 UK SIM and power on the modem in order to activate your porta – WiFi hotspot.
If the question “What’s so special about Mi-Fi?” popped up in your mind, it’s this. Though you can purchase routers which enable you to have a 3G connection via WiFi, there isn’t a solution currently in the market which allows the portability of MiFi or the zero configuration.
This service will be available on purchase of a new subscription. You can avail of 2 packages. One is the ‘Broadband 5GB 1 month’ package, whereby you pay 15 pounds for 5 GB of data. The modem itself will set you back by 69.99 pounds. The other package is ‘Ready to Go’, whereby, for a one – time payment of 99.99 pounds, you get 3 GB of data in addition to the MiFi modem, which could be utilized for 3 months. After this, the modem can be used on a PAYG basis.
MiFi is a great thing for people who would want wireless broadband on the go. A wireless solution is sure to appeal to everyone. Moreover, the number of devices having WiFi is increasing. This includes a number of phones, game consoles and laptops. Though it is an amazing innovation, it is yet to be seen whether customers will be willing to throw in the dongle.
Mobile WiFi will be open for subscriptions from 17th September from 3 and in all 3 stores in the country from the 18th.
MiFi – Making your Home a Hotspot
If you are a Verizon broadband subscriber, you can enhance your WiFi experience by getting a personal WiFi hotspotting device that will allow up to five of your friends to access the internet from their netbooks of mobile phones in your home. The Verizon MiFi basically makes your home a hotspot. But because it’s portable, anywhere you go becomes a hotspot. This device is ideal to any subscriber who has to trek into remote locations with weak or absent WiFi hotspots but has to go online most of the time. It’s also great for anyone wanting to give access to the internet at home without having to spend on all those cables and routers.
How It Works
The MiFi Intelligent Mobile Hotspot from Verizon is a petite battery-run EVDO cellular modem device the size of 8 credit cards stacked over each other. Wherever you bring the MiFi with you, once turned on, it detects a Verizon Wireless 3G network near you and enables a more reliable broadband WiFi connection to your laptop, netbook or mobile phone. It even lets your iPod Touch connect to your laptop.
The MiFi’s lithium-ion battery can give for 40 hours on standby mode just like any mobile phone. Turning it on with the flick of a miniature side switch gives you 5 hours continuously enveloping you with a 30 foot WiFi radio bubble so you can get your emails or surf on the internet wirelessly. At home you can just tether the device to its charger for indefinite use.
Admittedly you really can’t go unlimited surfing as you’d be limited by the amount of data downloaded specified for a billing period. So depending on the plan you take out, you can go as low as 250Mb up to 5 GB. With a low plan, you might not be able to extend this to your friends or neighbours within a 30ft radius. But if you’re the generous type, why not?
