Today I’m going to explain why it’s such a big deal that mobile phone goliath Cingular Wireless just now rolled out its first GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) service called HSDPA (high-speed download packet access). It competes with service offerings from other giants Sprint-Nextel and Verizon called EV-DO (Evolution-Data Only).
OK kids, now that we’ve scared off the adults with a flood of acronyms, here’s the deal. Last week Cingular finally began selling gear for the long-awaited “third generation” broadband service over its cellular network.
The first Cingular devices with the European-style, high-speed Internet-everywhere service are PC cards with little antennae that plug into notebook computers. Quite soon you’ll see the same speed in smart phones like the BlackBerry or PalmOne Treo handsets. Look for this type of phone from Cingular early next year.
Meanwhile, I’ve done a quick but strenuous review of the PC card and can tell you that it delivered acceptable Internet access from my laptop over Cingular’s cellular system.
Just about everywhere I went in Chicago to test, I got adequate results considering that we’re talking about mobile technology rather than the hard-wired cable modems in our homes.
Cingular executives say the HDSPA network boasts throughput between 400 bits per second and 700 bps with spikes in the 1 megabit range. I don’t think I experienced anything like 1 megabit, but I was very happy with what I did get–roughly 400 bps worth of speed.
The Web connection cut off under bridges and in the subway but performed on par with a reliable cell phone.
Cingular is initially launching this BroadbandConnect service for PC cards in several markets besides Chicago.
Before you mutter ho hum and head for the comic pages, consider that this portends a big change in the way Americans get their Internet connections in an era where wireless and Web businesses are booming.
With 3G, the whole country becomes your Starbucks. As companies fight with municipalities trying to block them from providing hot-spot coverage for entire towns and cities, mobile phone operators already offer comparable access.
The Cingular service was slow in my tests but not hopelessly slow. Downloading is much faster than uploading, which is the same with DSL connections and even cable Internet accounts.
At roughly 400 bps, streaming video came in loud and clear, and even though downloading music and photos was sluggish, it certainly was adequate. A high-resolution photograph that downloaded seemingly instantly on my cable modem connection took maybe a half second to arrive.
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Uploads were far slower in my tests using photo attachments to e-mail. That same picture took around 10 seconds to upload. Not bad but not great.
Bigger files, like a 1.4 megabyte digital photo, downloaded in about a minute but took up to 4 minutes to upload in my tests.
Like all cellular phone deals, the service is sold in different plans. They start at $19.95 per month for 5 mb of data and $59.95 for unlimited use. You need to have a Cingular voice account for these rates. Without a voice plan, the service costs $79.99 with a 2-year commitment.
The modem I tested was the Sierra Wireless AirCard 860 and costs $200 with the $79.99 no-voice plan. The price is lower if you sign up for voice service and less still if you’ve already got a Cingular phone.
Anyway, figure you would spend $20 or $30 more per month than your current high-speed deal. If you use just one computer at home or if you’re a hard-core gadget lover, this might be just the ticket.
Of course, while I’m looking at this as a home consumer, the big attraction for Cingular and other wireless providers is corporate and small-business accounts where it’s pretty obvious that productivity gains would justify going 3G.
But nobody’s discounting home users.
With phone manufacturers like Motorola targeting the iPod set by conjuring up images of streaming music over their mobile phones, the 3G experience is proof that such stuff actually works.
The big excitement in bottom-line fiscal terms is the way this will permit 3G-enabled mobile phones and text messaging devices to do stuff at the kinds of speed that television commercials imply but current equipment can’t provide.
You really will be able to take a picture of your friend singing in the shower and beam it to his boss in real time.
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Binary beat readers can participate in the column at chicagotribune.com/askjim, or e-mail [email protected]. Snail-mail him in Room 400, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611.