Here’s a cheap way to get T-Mobile wireless data working with your notebook:
- buy an unlocked Sony Ericsson GC83 EGPRS PC Card on eBay ($25 plus shipping)
- download Sony Ericsson Wireless Manager (free)
- add T-Mobile Total Internet service to your voice plan (additional $29.99/month, add-on, not contract). Takes up to one day to get activated, mine took 4 hours.
- swap your SIM card between cell phone and PC Card when you need to go online.
T-Mobile Total Internet is a great deal in the Bay Area because it’s cheaper than EVDO, yet you have access to T-Mobile’s good HotSpot network (airports, coffee shops, Kinko’s, etc.), 300 free SMS messages, as well as EDGE GPRS everywhere. The speed is max 250 kbps down, average 100 kbps.
If you don’t mind a contract, you can get a GC89 card in one of their stores. That would be $100 with a 2-year contract. The GC89 has both EDGE and WiFi built-in. (Or you can buy an unlocked one on eBay for about $130 plus shipping.)
If you want a separate SIM for your PC Card, that gets more expensive. I was told you would need a separate number, meaning a separate T-mobile contract, and the Total Internet plan rate would be $49.99/month with a 1-year contract.
Using a PC Card has the following advantages over using a data cable:
- PC Card is powered from notebook and doesn’t drain phone battery
- data cables often do not make a reliable mechanical connection, like the Nokia 3220 data cable
- software is hit or miss with the data cables.
- can use external antenna with GC83/GC89 if needed
The only problem I’m having is that during data transmissions, my Compaq Turion notebook makes an RF interference electronic noise even with the speaker disabled with the sound applet.
From TheRegister: 3 calls in internet big guns for mobile credibility:
Ovum principal analyst John Delaney said: “Everything about the internet that worries the mobile operators is here. Flat-rate data tariffs remove the link between service usage and end-user revenue. VoIP undermines mobile voice revenues. Instant messaging offers text messaging at a fraction of the price of SMS.”
What a coincidence. I just started using Skype out too. 