By Chris Scott Barr

AT&T has received a lot of grief over their 3G speed and reliability, mostly from iPhone users. Being an iPhone user myself, I tend to agree with such statements. It’s usually not too bad, unless you’re in a crowded area where other people may be sucking up the bandwidth. While I can’t make any direct comparisons, my Sprint 3G card consistently loads pages on my laptop faster than my phone’s 3G connection through AT&T. What’s interesting is that a recent PC World test of the four major carriers, AT&T came out on top for speed and reliability for 3G.

In almost every city tested, AT&T had faster upload and download speeds than the other three carriers. In fact, on average they were 67 percent faster. It sounds like Apple might not be so crazy for sticking it out with AT&T. Granted, their coverage map is still a bit spotty, which means most areas aren’t able to see this awesome speeds.

VIA [ PC World ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Having a 3G card can come in handy when one is traveling long distances. I know that mine came in handy this past summer when I drove across the country and back. Of course if you’re in a car with multiple people with laptops, wouldn’t it be nice to share that wonderful internet? Ford thinks so, and is planning on making that an option with their next generation of Sync.

With the next version of Sync, Ford will allow you to plug in a 3G card (via USB) and have it broadcast the signal via Wi-Fi. Since you won’t want outsiders leeching off of your connection, you’ll have access to the same security measures as any other wireless router. As an added level of security, all new wireless devices must first be confirmed by the driver before they are allowed on the network. Look for this feature to debut on Ford cars sometime next year.

[ Ford ] VIA [ UberGizmo ]

By David Ponce

We’re running on translated information with scant details but our understanding is that the Chinese Huawei E5 allows you to convert your 3G GSM signal into a WiFi signal. It’s also allegedly the world’s first to do this. This means you could turn it into a mobile hotspot and allow the connection of any nearby wireless devices. So instead of tethering your one laptop to your cell to access the Internet, you use this to create a hotspot and connect via WiFi using any device you like.

Detailed specs include:

Wi-Fi 802.11b/g

WAPI

HSUPA/HSDPA/UMTS 2100 MHz

EDGE/GPRS/GSM 1900/1800/900/850 MHz

MicroSD card: up to 32G

Sadly no details on pricing or availability, but these Chinese products have a knack of making their way here sooner or later.

[ Article (Translated) ] VIA [ Cloned In China ]