3G USB keys good inside city limits

MOBILE broadband has got cheaper, faster and more convenient in the past 12 months with the arrival of 3G USB keys from all the 3G network operators.

These mobile broadband keys plug into a PC or Mac USB port and crank up mobile data rates to an advertised 7.2Mbps, although you are unlikely to see those sorts of speeds anywhere outside 3G network infrastructure supplier's labs.

Advertised speeds might be fluff, but real data rates of 1Mbps or better are common and provide enough speed for browsing and streaming in the likes of YouTube videos. The big advantage of a USB key over a PC Card or ExpressCard 3G broadband product is universality. Just about every computer has at least one USB port, whereas only some notebooks have CardBus or ExpressCard slots.

Cheap and cheerful netbooks such as the Eee PC don't have ExpressCard slots. The downside of a USB key is that they are more vulnerable to damage - especially out on the road. Jutting out of a side port on a notebook, a USB key is ideally placed to be accidentally snapped off.

ExecTech looked at 3G USB keys from Vodafone, Telstra, 3 and Optus.

Optus pre-paid wireless

INSTALLATION was a breeze and the user interface, albeit hard on the eyes, presents key usage information well.

The USB key, with microSD support, worked well in tests in Sydney's inner west, averaging speeds of about 1.42Mbps. That made it possible to watch a few streaming videos concurrently.

The pre-paid product complements Optus's post-paid wireless broadband offering and is suited to visitors and foreign guests who already have a similar Huawei-made USB device and are looking for a quick internet fix.

One problem, though, is Optus's usage structure. According to Optus, the first 30MB of usage each day is calculated at 10MB and automatically deducted. Thereafter, data usage is charged in 10MB (or part thereof) increments. So those logging on to merely check their webmail might as well expand their horizons and chomp through the whole allowance since they would have to pay for it anyway. Recharge vouchers start at $30 for 30 days and come with a 2GB data allowance.

The maximum data allowance is 9GB, which would cost $100 with 60-day validity.

The USB stick has a cap that protects the connection and this feature can be annoying to some. Like pre-paid mobile phones, this product will catch on when pricing becomes more competitive.
- Fran Foo

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: 7.2Mbps HSDPA enabled, Windows compatibility only, MicroSD slot
Price: $199
Rating: 7/10
More at: www.optus.com.au

Vodafone mobile connect USB

VODAFONE'S Mobile Connect USB key produced data transfer speeds of about 500Kbps in Sydney's inner west.

That speed is acceptable for checking webmail and streaming the odd YouTube video - one at a time - but isn't designed for heavy lifting.

That was the good news. The bad news is coverage: the results would have been abominable if testing was done in a shed in country NSW. Vodafone's 3G network mainly covers metropolitan Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Adelaide and Perth.

Outside these areas, the device switches to the slower GPRS network.

For some reason, after the initial installation the device could not be detected but simply reinserting the USB stick sorted that problem.

The microSD slot is a nifty addition to the Huawei-manufactured USB key.

The USB connection slides out easily and doesn't require a case. Unlike the Optus equivalent it doesn't having any moving parts.

It may seem like a non-issue but when you're out and about, these things matter.
- Fran Foo

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: 7.2Mbps HSPA enabled, MicroSD slot, Windows and Macintosh compatible
Price: Plans start at $19.95 per month for 1GB
Rating: 6/10
More at: www.vodafone.com.au

Bigpond 7.2 USB mobile card

THE performance of BigPond's Wireless Broadband 7.2 USB Mobile Card almost lives up to Telstra's Next G hype of the past two years.

Capable of theoretical peak speeds up to 7.2Mbps and with a trump card in its 98 per cent population reach, BigPond's offering is one of the best available.

BigPond advises that the device is capable of "real-life" speeds between 50kbps and 6Mbps, so we weren't exactly blown away with the 1.4Mbps we were able to hit when testing in the inner western suburbs of Sydney. Having said that, we were only able to achieve two out of five bars for coverage, so it should be possible to hit higher speeds with full coverage.

Despite our coverage issues, the speed was more than sufficient to enable smooth web browsing. The device also performed admirably when streaming video content from YouTube. Downloading small files was a trouble-free experience, too, when we were able to achieve speeds of up to 170Kbps.

However, installing the BigPond device was no bed of roses. Although the device claims compatibility with both Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, we failed to get it working on a Mac even though we tried installing two different USB Mobile Cards on two different Macs. Windows XP suffered none of these problems.

In its defence, the BigPond installation software and the accompanying download usage tracker are intuitive and easy to use and should help vigilant data downloaders keep track of their online habits.
- Mitchell Bingemann

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: 7.2Mbps HSDPA enabled, external antenna, Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh compatible
Price: $299 outright purchase. Plans start at $39.95 per month for 400MB
Rating: 7.5/10
More at: www.bigpond.com

3 internet key

THREE'S USB key is enabled for the latest 7.2Mbps download HSDPA spec but since the network hasn't been upgraded to that level yet, the best you will get in the real world is 1.5Mbps. Like the Vodafone key, 3's Huawei USB device has a micro SD slot for carrying data around, as well as an internet connection.

Installation was simple and worked well on most notebooks we tried, XP and Vista models included, although with some it required a reboot before the device was recognised, and with others we couldn't get a connection until the laptop's WiFi was switched off.

The dashboard-style interface worked well enough but we would have liked better diagnostics and a more detailed data usage meter. As for coverage, the 3 key likes the big city. The broadband zone covers Sydney, Canberra, Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne/Geelong and Brisbane/Gold Coast.

Outside these you are on a scary national roaming charge of $1.65 a megabyte. Excess data is 10c a megabyte and plans start at $15 monthly for 1GB after an outright purchase price of $149.

Other features include 7.2Mbps HSDPA enabled, MicroSD, Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh compatible.
- Stuart Kennedy

SPECIFICATIONS
Features: 7.2Mbps HSDPA enabled, MicroSD, Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh compatible
Price: $149 outright purchase. Plans start at $15 per month for 1GB
Rating: 6/10
More at: www.three.com.au

CONCLUSION

ALL the 3G keys tested were adequate for web browsing, email and moderate, YouTube-style video streaming, although heavy downloaders and BitTorrent users would be well advised to stick to their fixed-line connections.

Weighing up these products will come down to price versus the coverage you need. At the moment, as Vodafone and Optus are still building their 3G networks beyond the big cities, Telstra is the coverage king with its 98 per cent of the population reach, but you will do much better on data rates with the other offerings.