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I'm thinking "WiFi" owners might get the last laugh

Best buy is getting ready to announce something.... Or partially did. Saw it on engadget.

I wonder what the no-contract hardware will be priced at? it will have 4g and run on sprint.

Hmmmm........
 
Within the United States, this thread makes sense. For the other part of the world that travels out of the country, not so much.

Also, people make the point of sharing with home computers. What? At home use the connection that you are already paying for. Once you walk out of the house and go mobile, you won't be taking all of those gadgets with you.
 
ob81 said:
Also, people make the point of sharing with home computers. What? At home use the connection that you are already paying for. Once you walk out of the house and go mobile, you won't be taking all of those gadgets with you.
Click to expand...


I dunno who said sharing with home computers...because that is just not smart.

I take my computer to study at bookstores and coffeeshops where there is no wifi so I can focus lol :p
 
If virgin mobile will let me use my existing account balance to purchase this and all the money attached to my cellphone that I don't use anymore but top up every 90 days anyway "just in case" I will be stoked.
 
phoobo said:
It's great to be able to announce "Free WiFi" to everyone on the train a couple times a day. I love to see the reaction.

That alone makes the Mifi worth it.
Click to expand...

Good luck explaining that when SWAT kicks your door in because someone's been downloading some nasty pr0n via your open connection. :D
 
GPS on the iPad is AWESOME!!!!

cenetti said:
and ALSO get GPS...
Click to expand...

I think the GPS is FANTASTIC!!! But, I do a lot of spelunking, and even the 6" Dash mounted GPS is only soso...although TONS better than what I had before that. I have the iPad "mounted" in the car so that it is below the in-dash GPS. Which means I can either NOT use the car GPS and leave it on video/audio, favoring instead to use the

I have also been using the iPad on my little 14' flat bottom boat as I troll around the swamps and rivers in the area. VERY helpful. I realize I could use a variety of GPS units that I have, from small hand-held to larger car mount with battery that would allow for hand held usage, but the iPad, with all of GLORIOUS 9+" screen is just amazing...not to mention the variety of the program I am using for maps (Google, Hybrid Satellite Imagery laid over streets maps)...and the connectivity to the internet. WOW!!!

As far as 3g, I have been keeping the unlimited plan going, but I can't use more than 2g that I can figure, and I am off during for the summer right now, and I thought usage would be higher. I did just spend the weekend in Houston and was on the road the whole time, accessing 3g a bunch. And, the hotel on Saturday night wanted to charge for wifi (WTF???) and I declined it and browsed for a couple of hours on 3g. Point is, the best I have come up with is about .5gb for the last two weeks including this past weekend.

But, for the time being, I will keep the unlimited plan...but come this fall, I will probably drop to the $15 plan.

But, I did consider that there were a bunch of other plans, but they were all MORE expensive...and the Apple iPad 3g is still the best plan. Besides, who wants to be tethered to another device? I just spent the last 16 years tethered to a laptop power cord, mouse and lap-rest...and SO glad to be FREE of those things that were keeping me bound down!!!
 
I use a Cradlepoint PHS-300 personal hotspot, and can share my USB stick connection with several others, works great with the iPad :D
 
cenetti said:
also I don't get it ????

the difference between 3g and wifi models is also $150ish. With that you get prepaid option WITHOUT needing to carry another device ..... and ALSO get GPS...

You tell me which one is a better deal ? .... I think wifi owners should be laughing at themselves... for paying extra $150 and not getting GPS.... lol

:D
Click to expand...


I'm not laughing at myself. I live in the 80% chunk of the US where AT&T doesn't freakin' have 3G. Even I did have 3G where i live, I wouldn't deal with it. Everywhere I go on a daily basis has wifi available, so i don't have to worry about that. And I'd have to deal with AT&T at one point or another, which is something I never really want to do.
 
I bought the 3G because I wanted to GPS chip. I have no intent of paying AT&T for data when I already pay $30/ month for unlimited data for my iPhone.

What I plan to do is upgrade my Verizon aircard I have for work to a MiFi as well as upgrade my work Droid to the new android operating system which includes wifi tethering...
 
The price difference you get

GPS
No extras to carry

Don't forget also that the mifi wont last as long as the iPad. The iPad can go 0 hours between chage, the mifi can do about half that. When you are out and need to be online, the iPad might have juice but your miff is dead. Who's laughing then?


I have been down this road before, i used to tether off my Nokia N95 to my iPod touch, it was cumbersome to remember carrying 2 things at once is tpmy first problem, battery life difference between the 2 is the next. Knowing all you need is in 1 tidy package is worth the $150.

Besides, who is stopping you using the 3G version like the wifi version? Nothing at all.
 
One really needs to consider if the mifi is for them, or if the 3g is for them.

If I didn't have an iPad already, I would still go this route simply because I have a GPS already in my car, and value the added benefit of using the wifi on my computer.

But for people who just want an all in one device, then the 3g iPad is the way to go. Doesn't seem like one thing is better than the other to me. Neither side needs to justify why one way is better than the other. But like another poster previously said...it is nice to have options.
 
MrDeeds said:
I'm a little shocked that more 3g owners weren't livid at the bait and switch on the whole unlimited plan fiasco.
Click to expand...

Most were, but what can you do? They, Apple and AT&T, market cap is 400 billion. Personally, I use my connection all the time, mostly for things that I never use. For example, at night I'll upload pictures to my MobileMe page that I never look at. I'll also download podcast 50+ that are under 20 MB, that I never listen to. My favorite is The Economist. Oh, and I'll keep it playing Netflix movies to use data, just to use the data.

The funny thing is, before this I was careful with how much data I used. However, after the Bait and Switch, the more data the better.
 
I had a wifi ipad, but hated the fact that I couldn't take it anywhere. Kind of
silly to spend $600-$700 and not being able to use it. I sold wifi on ebay and bought the 3g and signed up for the unlimited plan. I purchased by june 6th, so I was able to get unlimited. I thought about getting a mifi, however I would have to pay $60 for 5gb a month vs $30 for unlimited. Also, if you have a mifi, you have to keep both devices charged, it's a pain. I don't thnk th mifi would last the 10 hours that an ipad would. It's just so much more elegant to have the built in 3g. Yes, ipad is a lot bigger to carry around vs an iPhone, but the screen resolution is limiting. IPhone 4 might help with the screen resolution, however sceen is still small. I wish apple would come out with a 5" inch phone or tablet, so you could still pocket it. For now, until
android tablets come out, ipad 3g is the only game in town for decent mobility.
 
I think free wifi is just going to be the way of the future. More and more places are getting free wifi to increase business, and the places you would normally use your iPad in, will already have wifi. The future looks good for free wifi.
 
As I said in the other thread...depends on your usage needs.

I need to be able to have mobile internet for my laptop, so why pay for an extra plan just for the iPad. That makes no sense to me. So a mifi, and one with no contract works great for me. Also I can share with co-workers when needed which is a bonus.

However if I only needed to access the Internet with the iPad I would have gone with the 3G option and unlimited, because that would have made the most sense.

The mifi is smaller than my iPhone 3GS and can stay in my bag that I carry the iPad in or my backpack for my computer. So no biggie on carrying it around. If I only wanted the iPad with it can just put it in my pocket then.

Also for those of you that already have a USB stick the Cradlepoint PHS300 rocks. It makes it so you can acess your USB stick over wifi. Battery life is about the same as the mifi.

Mifi is about 3 to 4 hours heavy usage and with one device connected, in a good 3G signal area. So no it won't last as long as the iPad without another battery if you are solid access for the whole time. But if not the battery will last longer in standby. Just depends on how you are using it and signal strength.
 
Just used my mifi here at work to send out emails and go to "unsavory" sites on my macbook pro. :cool:

Head-fi, amazon, ebay. hahah

Only used 1.4 mb in 15 min...298.6 mb to go in 28 days. Next month I probably will not charge up the card since I will be at home during my vacation from school. Virgin mobile says 300mb is good for 15 hours of webbrowsing. That is MORE than enough for me!

So I believe the math is:

300mb/30 days
10mb/day
1.5mb/15 min

= about 100min/day
 
Ok, let me break this down for you:

3G+Wifi Model:
3G (AT&T)
GPS
WIFI (AT&T-tethered, verizon mifi, sprint overdrive, etc...)

WIFI only model:
WIFI (AT&T-tethered, mifi, sprint overdrive, etc...)


HELLO!!!!
 
MrDeeds said:
I'm a little shocked that more 3g owners weren't livid at the bait and switch on the whole unlimited plan fiasco.
Click to expand...

LOL, you obviously weren't perusing these forums when the announcement from AT&T came out. It wasn't safe around here for several days thereafter.
 
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