Answer to questions abotu my Mobile Broadband setup from other thread

[brecklundin]

We began discussing this here:

http://www.internettablettalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17092

But my answers was too long and too involved and off topic so I moved it here...hope that is cool?

Anyway, here's how I roll on the road:

http://www.brecklundin.com/tmp/mbbsetup.jpg

Ah, so you DO have it connected via a router. Good to know :-)

Do you have the Cradlepoint CTR-350 or the MBR-thing that Millenicom has on their site? I couldn't tell which one you have, from your message.

ummmm...I thought the part where I wrote "...ctr350..." would have been a dead give away there...hehehehe...now, I don't care for the MBR router at the Millenicom site for one reason, it's very new and two the antenna is fixed so you cuold not cable in a higher gain antenna or relocate only the antenna. Also, some folks I know are experiences some weirdness with it right now...but the mfg is on top of it trying to sort things out.


And, where did you get the battery pack for whichever one you have? What kind of battery life are you seeing on it, and under how much use? And how is the quality with skype? clear? Do you get many interruptions or distortions? (the one or two times I tried skype, it was a distortion every 30-60 seconds; my gf didn't appreciate that at all :-} )


As you can see, I hope it comes out OK, the pic I am using a Tekkeon MP1550 battery pack that uses either two or four AA batteries. I use the Sanyo Ultra Low Discharge Eneloop NiMH 2000mAh batteries. I carry two additional charged sets of batteries each set powers the router for 2.5-3.5hrs of moderate to heavy use. I do have the Tx on the router set to 10mW just like my N800. This saves a lot in terms of battery life.

To power the router you need 5v so I need all four batteries to get a total output of just over 5v, about 5.2v measured at the end of the cable. I debated over the Tekkeon MP3450 too as it would easily power the router, the NIT combines pretty much all day long and then some if need be...but I opted for the MP1550 for now. Smaller by far and lighter.

No matter what power supply you get you want to be sure it has a voltage regulator. These Cradlepoints can be sensitive if too much current is supplied and will just sit there and smoke...so voltage regulator = good, non-voltage regulated=bad, very bad... :D


The other question I have about the cradepoints (or the external battery you've got) is if there's a way to power/charge them via USB (I have a car charger that has a USB port on it, and might get one with 2 or 3 USB ports; then I have USB cables for charging my phone and my NIT ... being able to charge phone+NIT+router all at once would be nice).


The answer is yes and well, no...you can actually use the USB cable that comes with your NIT to charge in the battery pack via USB. Or use the included mini-USB attached to the retractable cable that comes with the battery pack.

You cannot power the router AND use the EVDO modem via the USB port on the router at the same time...of obvious reasons, one port = one use/device at a time. You can however make or buy a cable to power the router via a USB port on your computer.

For the connection from the battery pack to the router (or router to computer's USB port) I made my own from a USB cable and a size "L" size tip, wired for a "tip" positive. Cost me nothing because I had the parts and just made a few snips here and there a bit of solder and some heat-shrink and viola a custom cable in like 15mins. You can see the cable in the pic. You can, of course, order the correct adapter for the MP1550 but, like a doofus I forgot to do so when I ordered the battery pack and, well, of the like 8 adapters it comes with none were size "L"...daaaang it!@@


Last, what do you use to carry around the battery+router+usbDongle? I was thinking about getting another Pelican case to hold all of that, but I don't know which one is sized right to be "just big enough to hold all of that and the foam inserts to secure it", and how good the signal strength is through the high density plastic.

Plus, I'm pretty sure I'll need to move to the next larger Maxpedition bag from the one I have, in order to carry the iGo keyboard, N810 in a pelican case, and a 2nd pelican case for the above. Though, I've been thinking of moving up to the Jumbo or Manta anyway (I have the "Fat boy").


I think that would be fine...I would say they take up less room then a 1L bottle of water if that helps? Including the NIT in it's case.

I did not show it but for now I have a small Timbuktu accessory bag with a clear front to see what is in the bag. I am eventually going to get another Tom Bihn Buzz bag. I have to say it is the most useful and in obtrusive backpack style bag I ever owned. Sadly, I bought it for my better half and she is never gonna give it up...seriously it replaced her purses when we are just kicking around. The design of the bag is such that you can jusr slide it around to your chest and the zippers are on top and you can access anything in the bag, zip up when done and slide it back around....very nice for light OTG use. I also have a Tom Bihn Super Ego that carries my 17" laptop and I can slide the small utility bag in there easily.

One of the nice parts of this setup is I can trun on the router/modem combo and slip it into an outer pocket in the backpack or even as I said in my back pocket (just don't sit on it or crunch!! d'oh!!)

As for Skype I find it best to be running no other apps on the NIT and it works fine...as long as the MBB connection is stable. Only a couple times was it bad to the point of useless...I use it everywhere I go and would guess it's 99% just fine w/o any cut-outs or drops. But, we are in a great coverage area for EVDO as well as I have a nice solid & stable DSL connection at home.

We also save a fortune with SkypeIn numbers as we have places in Seattle, WA & down here near Santa Barbara, CA. Plus her dad lives in Spokane...I have local numbers in both places that cost just $24/yr each...we save that in a single week when she is up there.


Yeah, I had thought about that too. I wish they had kept the ethernet port on the PHS. Though, honestly, I plan on moving all of my server (my home email server) oriented stuff to Google Apps anyway, at which point my home machines will be client only. At that point, having them only online when I'm home, and thus also use the PHS for their network access, would be just fine. Cheaper than having two ISP's as well. Oh, and, I can get work to pay for _one_ ISP starting next month ... if they were paying for whatever ISP I use for my PHS, then that would cover me all around.


I have two ISP's but for me it's all business overhead so I can justify it by calling the EVDO backup in case the DSL is down. Did the same for years with dial-up service as well as mobile battery powered devices like laptops. I am nto sure the exact way my CPA does it but he has it rigged so I can pretty much deduct 100% of the costs as overhead by calling them backup emergency service devices or something like that...heck, I dunno I just sign the checks anymore...hehehehe....


I also use the kickstand as a "hand strap" on my N800 ... but I haven't really done that with my N810. It isn't as comfortable to use the keyboard when held that way, in my experience. I suppose it might work if I only put 2 or 3 fingers, from each hand, under the kickstand ... but having all fingers from my left hand under it makes it an awkward angle for two-thumb typing.

I don't have the flexibility in my hands anymore to to the thumb typing thing but that sure makes sense...nice to see I am not the only person using the kickstand as "the gripping hand"... (and subtle homage to Jerry Pournelle & Larry Niven of course...)

whew....ok, I done now...shorter posts the rest of the week! :)

Oh, heck one last thing here is a diagram of the whole setup in summary:

http://www.brecklundin.com/tmp/mbbdiag.gif

[brecklundin]

I left out the answer to your question about build quality and durability...it's ALL PLASTIC so therfore it's kinda fragile. I don't use a ridgid case but I do use padded pouches for each device and they are only in their own bag or compartment. Also, the tekkeon is a shiny high gloss plastic so it will get scratchy. I am not sure what I will do about that but might use some old screen protectors for a PDA I never bought...???

But if your bag see's a fair amoung of rough handling, get something ridgid to hold the devices for sure. You can always get a ridgid bag then cut an opening in it for the modem to poke through... ;)

And also the modem, it swivels so it can extend up as shown or on the same plane as the face of the router so it's flat-ish.

[brontide]

InPulse ( currently ) allows uncapped EVDO data as long as the "phone" is active. This can be achieved for about $15/month. It only works in Verizon territory. You can check out the specifics on howardforums.

[brecklundin]

thanks for the tip but where we are out west...we have horrible service from Verizon cellular. Coverage numbers for Verizon in the US are not near to that of Sprint and when you count areas with EVDO RevA as opposed to Rev0 the disparity is even greater.

And fyi, there is no such thing as uncapped service from Verizon in any form no matter what they claim in an ad or even on their site. In fact either they or AT&T just got their rear end beat in court in NJ or NY for flase advertising of "unlimited" service.

Now they will use fancy wording to imply unlimited but the wording actually severly limits how the service can be used. For example I was willing to bet they do not allow anything but phone only access for the plan and what do I find over there but this thread:

http://verizonwireless.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1329812

On the page you will see an answer to a question about using PDA's and teathering via the phone...it is blocked from access to SmartPhones and aircards/devices. You are limited to using just the phone for connection to the MBB network. So, see that is how their "unlimited" plan suddendly becomes quite limited and for all intents and purposes, worthless.

I guarantee that I would get booted from Verizon's EVDO plans for the 50gb+/mo I use over my current EVDO service. Somewhere Verizon will have a cap and/or access restrictions for their data plans...just because they use the word unlimited don't assume they are not lying, read what they are not saying and the limits will be apparent.

I read the stuff over on DSLReports/BroadbandReports (same site) and this sort of thing is very commonly uncovered. Actually it's funny and sad at the same time. Funny because people are so baffled and trusting with what should be a simple service that they just sign and screw themselves but sad because they were trusting the brand name to be honest. That just won't work anymore, you can longer trust any US corporation to be honest in their services, marketing or advertising.

And from the look of things there is some connection throttling when you go over the 5gb unwritten cap point...

Plus if it is really cheap there is the issue of tower saturation...EVDO is a lot like cable broadband in that it is shared bandwidth. Typically they post ranges of service expectations but do not ever guarantee any speed. If a tower is saturated with a lot of users the speed degrades pretty significantly down either a dropped connection or worse than diap-up speeds. Low cost access will cause overselling in a hurry.

So, worst you will be out is $15 for a month of service if they can you...still worth a try if you have Verizon EVDO RevA in your area....

[brontide]

Right now it appears to go under the radar, they could shut it down tomorrow. But for now it's a good deal if you can get the setup working.

[brecklundin]

but see you are not seeing the fact you have to use a phone...you cannot use any other device to connect.

I will admitt I have a bias against Verizon wireless because of the dismal service the offer here...so, like you say if you can get it and it works for you and makes you happy great...but if you want to really use the connection I suspect you will not get the results you might see from other options. Just a couple movies online from say Netflix and you are in that speed reduction territory...I would rather pay more (only $35/mo difference not counting to cost of the phone service, even pre-paid costs money so the difference is even less) for a sure thing then then step over dollars to pick up pennies.

[brecklundin]

fyi here is an exerpt from one of their "Unlimted Plans" as it pertains to data use:

The Data Plans and Features MAY NOT be used for any other purpose. Examples of prohibited uses include, without limitation, the following: (i) continuous uploading, downloading or streaming of audio or video programming or games; (ii) server devices or host computer applications, including, but not limited to, Web camera posts or broadcasts, automatic data feeds, automated machine-to-machine connections or peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing; or (iii) as a substitute or backup for private lines or dedicated data connections. This means, by way of example only, that checking email, surfing the Internet, downloading legally acquired songs, and/or visiting corporate intranets is permitted, but downloading movies using P2P file sharing services and/or redirecting television signals for viewing on laptops is prohibited. A person engaged in prohibited uses, continuously for one hour, could typically use 100 to 200 MBs, or, if engaged in prohibited uses for 10 hours a day, 7 days a week, could use more than 5 GBs in a month.

They offer unlimted voice plans sure, but when it comes to data nope...very restricted and capped. In fact in the details of this unlmited plan the only places they use the word unlimited is for VOICE...when you read the description of the data service unlimited is used nowhere. That is how they get people. People read the word unlimited and stop there ignoring the details.

BTW, not trying to be difficult at all but rather to point out what these companies are doing. And Verizon is not alone. I searched a LOT for an MBB solution and only Sprint offers truly unlimitied unrestricted MBB service. And only Millenicom offers that service w/o a long term contract. Though this could be changing soon. In which direction I am unsure but I will be certain to pay my bill early and never be late in case the rules change... ;)

EDIT: OMG, yet another reason the Draconian AmeriCorp Verizon sucks...after five minutes of of idle time on the page with the TOS on it, the session times out and they boot you from the page. yeah, I want service from those guys...that is beyond ironically funny.

[g0ldfinGa]

Do you visit spokane at all, I live there downtown? Im wondering if they have good coverage around here or coverage at all for the setup similar to what you are using? I know all of downtown is a big hotspot but I dont think 180 networks wifi is fast enough for stable voip