Quicklinks
Want to jump straight to a networks site? Heres what you need:
What is mobile broadband?
If you've ever wished that you could get on with some online work while you were away from home, or that you could catch up on your emails without scouring the streets searching for an internet café, then mobile broadband could be a life changing piece of technology. With a portable modem you can carry with you, whenever, wherever you like you can plug it into your laptop and access the internet.
How do I compare mobile broadband packages?
Rather than clicking round all the providers' sites, usb-dongles.co.uk maintains an up-to-date, complete listing of mobile broadband prices and offers which you check free of charge. Because we are completely impartial this means we don't try and sell a particular network to everyone. Plain and simple impartial advice resulting in you the customer getting the best deal for the best price. Click here to compare all our packages. If you're totally confused about everything we have a complete section dedicated to helping you, take a look at our Mobile Broadband Explained Guide.
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T-Mobile
£15 per month
3GB download
WiFi hotspots
18 month term -
Vodafone
£15 per month
3GB download
7.2 mbps (upto)
12 month term
FREE modem
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Three
£15 per month
5GB download
3.6 mbps (upto)
18 month term
FREE modem
Virgin Mobile Broadband, just £15 per month!
The Virgin Mobile Broadband contract gives you a generous 3GB of data access in the UK every month. That's all this, and even a little bit more!
- * 2000 emails
- * 100 hours of web surfing
- * 200 music tracks
- * 100 two minute video's
| Monthly Allowance | Montly Cost | Cost of Device | Link | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virgin Mobile Broadband, £15 per month for 18 months | 3GB | £15.00 | Free | Order here! |
Plus, you'll get a free USB modem included. All for just £15 a month. More info about the Virgin Mobile Broadband deal.
Looks like Virgin Media has taken everyone by suprise yet again with another fantastic product. We done a bit of digging and can confirm that the speed is upto 3Mbps. Virgin are also willing to give you a free USB modem on the 18 month tarif. Bargain!
Mobile broadband in a nutshell
What does it all mean?
We’ve busted the jargon so you don’t have to.
3G Broadband - 3G is shorthand for 3rd Generation. This basically means faster data transfer. The faster the data transfer, the faster you can download music, pictures and videos. Now the unique thing about 3G is that you don’t need a phone line like conventional broadband. Completely wireless you can be anywhere in the UK and you will still have broadband.
HSDPA - This means High Speed Downlink Packet Access. Put simply, HSDPA enabled devices will be able to download files and websites just as fast as your broadband at home.
HSUPA - This means High Speed Uplink Packet Access. This is the opposite of HSDPA, it allows you to upload files faster. For example if you have a bunch of pictures you want tpo put on facebook and don’t have a HSUPA enabled device it would take forever! With HSUPA those files will get sent alot faster, this applies to anything you’re sending - emails, videos, music, photos etc.
Dongle - This is the name given to the little stick you plug into your laptops usb port. This little gadget allows you to get online quick and easily and most importantly, without any wires. Being nice an portable you can literally take the internet with you wherever.
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1 GB enables you to:
- Send 1000 Outlook/HTML Emails
- Surf the web for 10 hours
- Download 5 four minute videos
- Download 32 four minute music tracks
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3 GB enables you to:
- Send 3000 Outlook/HTML Emails
- Surf the web for 30 hours
- Download 15 four minute videos
- Download 96 four minute music tracks
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5 GB enables you to:
- Send 5000 Outlook/HTML Emails
- Surf the web for 50 hours
- Download 25 four minute videos
- Download 160 four minute music tracks
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7 GB enables you to:
- Send 7000 Outlook/HTML Emails
- Surf the web for 70 hours
- Download 35 four minute videos
- Download 224 four minute music tracks
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15 GB enables you to:
- Send 15000 Outlook/HTML Emails
- Surf the web for 150 hours
- Download 75 four minute videos
- Download 480 four minute music tracks
Mobile broadband news
04 February 2010 - Government warns of wireless network congestion again, rides iPad to push its spectrum agenda
The feds simply aren't backing down from their incessant warnings of a wireless broadband spectrum crunch the likes of which the world has never seen, and they've seemingly found a great vehicle -- the iPad -- to help spread the message just a little further (and at a higher volume) than before. This time around, it's the Omnibus Broadband Initiative's director of scenario planning Phil Bellaria who's sounding the alarm, saying that the iPad foretells "even greater demand for mobile broadband on the horizon" and asking that the people with the money and the power (the carriers and the FCC, respectively) do what it takes to make sure that the nation's broadband infrastructure and policy are appropriately managed in light of that. Perhaps......
Read more at Engadget
02 February 2010 - Alienware M11x now up for pre-order, reporting for duty March 1st
Far be it for Japan to steal the Dell store's thunder, but the pre-order page for Alienware's M11x. The "not a netbook, not yet a gaming rig" is retaining its previously-heard $799 price tag, and with it comes a 1.3GHz Pentium SU4100, 1GB NVIDIA GeFOrce GT335M, 2GB of memory, and 160GB HDD. Wanting to customize? Turn that processor into a 1.3GHz Core 2 Duo SU7300 for $100, up the RAM to 8GB for $350, and swap the HDD with a 256GB SSD for $570. Mobile broadband is available via either Verizon or AT&T for another $125. It's all starting to add up mighty fast, but hey, at least it started small. Ship date is March 1st, which is just around the corner. You can be patient.Alienware M11x now up for pre-order, reporting for duty March 1st......
Read more at Engadget
01 February 2010 - Vodafone Portugal prepares 43Mbps mobile internet offer
(Telecompaper) Vodafone Portugal will launch this year new HSPA Dual Carrier mobile broadband technology that will allow speeds of up to 43.2 Mbps. The new wireless technology will double the current download speeds and improve the customer experience for mobile internet access, the operator said. The higher speed will allow customers to download an MP3 file (5 MB) in less than a second, a video clip (35 MB) in less than six seconds and a movie (800 MB) in about two minutes. The operator is currently testing the technology in partnership with Ericsson and Qualcomm, using the Qualcomm MDM8220TM chipset....
Read more at TelecomPaper
30 January 2010 - FCC Fridays
We here at Engadget Mobile tend to spend a lot of way too much time poring over the latest FCC filings, be it on the net or directly on the ol' Federal Communications Commission's site. Since we couldn't possibly (want to) cover all the stuff that goes down there, we've gathered up all the raw info you may want (but probably don't need). Enjoy! Phones Read - Samsung S5620B Read - Samsung S5620L Read - Samsung SCH-U320 Read - Sharp 943SH Read - Sharp STX-2 Read - Alcatel OT-808a Read - LG GS500F Read - LG GD880 Peripherals Read - Vodafone Mobile Broadband K3805-Z Read - Novatel MiFi 2352RFCC Fridays originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Fri, 29 Jan 2010 22:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email......
Read more at Engadget Mobile
28 January 2010 - Dell Adamo falls to under $1,000 for the first time, tempts you mercilessly
You know what's hard to resist? This. You know what else is difficult to turn a blind eye to? One of the sexiest machines Dell has ever made, at a price point that's below the all-important four figure mark. Starting today, the Adamo Admire is sporting an altogether sultry base price of $999, which nets you a 1.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, Windows 7 Home (64-bit), 2GB of DDR3 RAM and a 128GB solid state drive. If that's a little weak for your tastes, the upmarket Adamo Desire has also undergone a price reduction, enabling you to get a 2.1GHz Core 2 Duo chip, 4GB of memory, integrated mobile broadband and a 256GB SSD for $1,799 -- a full $500 less than it was in October. You're blowing it off like you just don't care, but you know you'll be......
Read more at Engadget
26 January 2010 - Orange France upgrades to 14.4 Mbps HSDPA
(Telecompaper) Orange France has launched an upgrade of its HSDPA network from 7.2 Mbps to 14.4 Mbps. The upgrade kicks off in Paris and its La Defense business district this month. It will be extended to Bordeaux, Gernoble, Lens, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Nice, Strasbourg, Toulon and Toulouse in the first and second half of the year. At top speed, a 5 MB file will now take 3 seconds to download, compared to 7.5 seconds previously. An e-mail with a 1 MB attachment will take less than 1 second. In parallel, Orange Business Services has launched two range of Business Everywhere plans. The adjustable plan automatically adjusts the price on the basis of four usage thresholds, starting at EUR 11 per month for 15 MB per line on a......
Read more at TelecomPaper
20 January 2010 - West European Mobile Broadband Pricing Q4 2009
This EXCEL sheet summarizes a Telecompaper survey of around 450 mobile broadband subscription offers (post and pre paid) to be used for mobile laptop internet connectivity across 16 Western European countries, looking at both the business and consumer markets....
Read more at TelecomPaper
20 January 2010 - Apple Tablet rumor roundup: summer 2010 edition
Before we get into the rumors, here's a fact: unless the Apple Tablet cures cancer, global warming and obesity in one fell swoop, there'll be plenty of disappointed faces leaving the Yerba Buena theater next Wednesday. The hype is that overpowering. But hey, that doesn't mean we are not curious to know what it will actually do, so let's get to the latest batch of uncorroborated scuttlebutt. The Rumor: The Mac Observer believes these are legitimate photos of a 10-inch glass front for Apple's new machine. Coming from a "trusted source," the pictures seem to confirm a 10-inch screen size and an iPhone-inspired design (which includes an earphone hole!). In the pic to the side, you can see it resting atop a unibody MacBook Pro's keyboard for......
Read more at Engadget
20 January 2010 - Apple rumor roundup: summer 2010 edition
Before we get into the rumors, here's a fact: unless the Apple Tablet cures cancer, global warming and obesity in one fell swoop, there'll be plenty of disappointed faces leaving the Yerba Buena theater next Wednesday. The hype is that overpowering. But hey, that doesn't mean we are not curious to know what it will actually do, so let's get to the latest batch of uncorroborated scuttlebutt. The Rumor: The Mac Observer believes these are legitimate photos of a 10-inch glass front for Apple's new machine. Coming from a "trusted source," the pictures seem to confirm a 10-inch screen size and an iPhone-inspired design (which includes an earphone hole!). In the pic to the side, you can see it resting atop a unibody MacBook Pro's keyboard for......
Read more at Engadget
20 January 2010 - 3 Scandinavia selects Ericsson to supply 'world's first' 84Mbps HSPA network
Danish and Swedish are preparing themselves four times faster mobile broadband as operator 3's network speeds is set to increase from 21Mbps to 84Mbps. And, to improve coverage, the upgrade will be complemented by a new 900MHz 3G...
Read more at EuroComms