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Old 01-26-2005, 11:56 PM   #1
Dane
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Cell Phone Internet Access

I share the following for those of you that might be interested in having Internet access via cell phone. My wife and I will be in position to retire from our jobs as educators and intend to work part time next year. As a result we will be free to hit the road in our Montana. Yea! I will need daily access to the Internet in order to stay "connected" to my part time job. After researching this one evening, I ordered "Datapilot" software and a connecting cable allowing me to connect my laptop to my cell phone. The company web site is http://www.susteen.com. They support a multitude of cell phones and both PC and Mac operating systems (we use Mac OS X). With one phone call to tech support, it was incredibly easy to get this up and running. I had no idea that Verizon serves as a free Internet provider through my normal cell phone package. I had assumed I would have to dial in to our regular Internet provider. Not true. The connection is slow, relatively speaking, but very usable. I share this to encourage those of you who have been wondering how easily Internet access through cell phone can be accomplished.






 
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Old 01-27-2005, 05:18 AM   #2
lightningjack11
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Sounds great and provably better than I have. I use earthlink both home and on the road. I usually get on after 9pm on the Alltel cell. Very slow but works ok.
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Old 01-27-2005, 02:08 PM   #3
rames14
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Dane -
When you say free, do you mean that after 9:00 and on weekends it is free, or its free all of the time? How do you connect into the Internet - what number do you call? Right now we have comcast.net and there is no way for me to call in - strictly cable modem from home. Like the speed, but its not portable and so on weekends I'm out of contact. Any info you can provide will be of help.
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Old 01-27-2005, 05:18 PM   #4
FredG
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Ron,

Verizon has been allowing high-speed access to the Internet over any cell phone for just the per-minute usage. So, if you're online for 20 minutes, you used 20 minutes of your alloted time. Of course nights and weekends are unlimited. Basically, it works like a voice call.

I'm not sure if all plans have this, but we have the Family share plan and we have "National Access-Minutes of Use" listed as an option on our bill and we have been using the laptop with a cell phone and get connections to 110k (about 2x a normal modem). We haven't been charged anything extra and it shows up on our bill as regular voice minutes.
From looking on the newsgroups, there was some debate as to how people were put on this plan and it seems that Verizon won't explain it because they try to upsell their other "high-speed" plans. Our best guess is that since Jen has a picture phone, the technology is needed to send the pics, so it's a side-effect.

Also, Verizon is starting to roll out a new high speed service (EDVO?) that is supposed to be equivalent to DSL speeds. Rumor has it that our area (Rochester, NY) will have it by the end of June, but that it will require a special phone or a specific PCMCIA adapter.

Do a search on the news groups on "NA-MOU" and you will see a ton of threads about this. In order to connect to high-speed, if you have the option on your bill, use this info:
phone number is #777 (be sure to include the pound sign).
username is yourphonenum...@vzw3g.com (For example 5551234...@vzw3g.com).
password is vzw

Fred
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Old 01-27-2005, 11:57 PM   #5
Dane
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by rames14

Dane -
When you say free, do you mean that after 9:00 and on weekends it is free, or its free all of the time? How do you connect into the Internet - what number do you call? Right now we have comcast.net and there is no way for me to call in - strictly cable modem from home. Like the speed, but its not portable and so on weekends I'm out of contact. Any info you can provide will be of help.
When I say "free" I mean that Verizon offers a monthly paid higher speed option as well as a no chatge low speed option (I believe this is called "Quick2Net"). I selected the free option. The numbers and passwords for this and other celll service providers are all preprogrammed in the DataPilot software I purchased. I simply selected "Verizon Quick2Net" and everything worked. As Ron mentioned, you are using your cell minutes when on-line as if it were a normal call.. We have free nation-wide roaming and long distance in our Verizon package.
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Old 01-28-2005, 03:36 AM   #6
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Quote:
quote:Originally posted by FredG

Ron,

Verizon has been allowing high-speed access to the Internet over any cell phone for just the per-minute usage. So, if you're online for 20 minutes, you used 20 minutes of your alloted time. Of course nights and weekends are unlimited. Basically, it works like a voice call.
Fred,
I also use Verizon, just signed up starting 2/1 for $79.00 a month, UNLIMITED internet connection, no Voice minutes used. I will cancel when I come back from my 6 week horse show. I also used to wait till 9:00 for the "no minute usage", but trying to stay in touch with my office, well by 9:00 at a horse show I am usually exhausted.
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Old 01-28-2005, 04:18 PM   #7
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Do you use a dial up connection like earthlink? Since I have comcast and it is not accessible via phone, am I going to need another internet provider? Just curious.
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Old 01-29-2005, 08:05 AM   #8
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For REALLY GREAT information on using your cell phone as a "modem" and hooking it up to your laptop computer, go to the site below. They have ALL the answers about using your phone to access the internet, especially for Verizon and Sprint users. They have a Tutorial that explains how to set up your phone and access Verizon's "regular service" and through a "backdoor" for higher speed access without paying the $79.00 fee. This is all legal and available for those with the correct plans and National Access. EVERYTHING is explained and the moderators and participants seem very knowledgable and helpful.

You must have a compatible phone, of which they list several available, and purchase a "Mobile Office Kit" from Verizon for about $40.00, that includes the cable and software. As soon as I get a computer I'm going to go this way to access the internet while on the road.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/InternetByCellPhone

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Old 01-29-2005, 08:25 AM   #9
CountryGuy
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Using my cell phone right now, Verizon, Quick2Net, the speed ain't the greatest, and sometimes the call gets dropped, but as long as I use during my free minutes time frame, I can be on and never be charged any more. For example, after 9 and all day Sat and Sun. The after 9 is a pain, as Sue pointed out, and many times, I just don't get on, cause I am sleeping! . But the service is getting better, and I can now get coverage in areas where 5 years ago, I could not even make a cell phone phone call.

We have even managed to network the 2 laptops together and we can both surf. Now, it is SLOW, specially on the 2nd computer, but it is ON!

After years of only being able to connect to the net at libraries when we were traveling, this is like heaven!

Wireless would be better, but I always figure, beggars cannot be choosers! So, happy to be sitting in the Montana, in weather above freezing, away from the stickbuilt, on the way to practice being a Winter Texan, that even with slow connections, I think I am a Queen! HA HA

Carol
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Old 01-29-2005, 10:08 AM   #10
ronstan
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Carol I was wondering since I have verizon also who do you use for your isp. I have comcast cable so I need an isp that I can dial up to. I can go on comcast home page and read my mail but need to get there first. Anyone using a free isp.
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Old 01-29-2005, 11:41 AM   #11
CountryGuy
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Ronstan,

Verizon is your free ISP when using your Verizon phone with the Mobile Office Kit, which includes software and a cable to hook from your phone to your computer. Very simple!
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Old 01-29-2005, 12:17 PM   #12
Parrothead
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Can the Verizon hi speed be used on a desktop computer?
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Old 01-29-2005, 01:11 PM   #13
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Thanks Carol or Al. Guess I need to head to the Verizon Outlet and get my stuff. We will be out for Days at a time this summer and I need my fix. Something might happen here and I would miss it.
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Old 01-29-2005, 02:36 PM   #14
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Thanks for the great information. I agree with Ronstan - we have a seasonal site and like to be able to use the internet and check e-mail on the weekends. And when we're out west this summer, it will be nice. Can even make reservations ahead with the laptop.
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Old 01-29-2005, 03:05 PM   #15
snowbunny
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Parrothead, I connect with Verizon using the #777 number with my cell phone. I don't think I am getting 'high speed' but it is at least twice as fast as dial-up. I use this setup with a laptop (Macintosh) on the road and a desktop at home as we live out in the boonies with no cable, dsl or satellite, so anything faster than dial up is a blessing.
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Old 01-29-2005, 06:16 PM   #16
HamRad
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Parrothead,
Yes you can install it in a desktop. But you will need an PMCI adapter or some such thing. YOU would have to have that installed in your desktop.

Why not install in laptop and run all the others off of a network. That is what I do at home. Works great. It is a wired network now but I plan to move to a wireless network setup. They work great. Just a thought. Good luck...

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