End of the Wi-Fi hotspot: A 21st century telephone booth?
Tue Mar 11, 2008 12:12AM EDT
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"The telephone boxes of the broadband era," that's what cell phone vendor Ericsson calls Wi-Fi hotspots like those at Starbucks, technology about to be made obsolete by the rapid growth of high-speed cellular networks.
Ericsson of course has a rather expensive horse in this race, as it makes telephone handsets that cell phone network operators would much rather be built to use the cell network instead of not (free and/or off-network) Wi-Fi services. High-speed cell service can cost $60 and up a month in the U.S., while the network operator gets nothing for Wi-Fi users.
But there's a lot of truth in what Ericsson CEO Johan Bergendahl has to say: Wi-Fi has really never been much more than a stopgap technology, especially as far as cell phones are concerned. The range is tiny, the reliability and susceptibility to interference are poor, and the amount of equipment required to blanket a metropolitan area without leaving substantial gaps is cost-prohibitive. Using Wi-Fi is fine for your house, but it makes little sense when traveling, as any hotel dweller who's had to jaunt down to the lobby in the middle of the night in order to use the Wi-Fi connection (because the signal won't reach to his hotel room) can tell you. Now when I go on a trip, I've taken to using a 3G USB card to get online with my laptop instead of shell out the $12 a night for Wi-Fi, even if Wi-Fi is available in the room. (For bonus points: Try getting a reliable Wi-Fi signal at a Vegas hotel during CES.)
Wi-Fi isn't going to die overnight, and it will probably always be with us for home users hooking up to their cable modems. It took the telephone modem five or six years at least to become wholly irrelevant, and the same thing will happen with Wi-Fi. It will probably take longer, since the price of 3G cell service is expensive here, and for people with multiple computers, that really adds up. But should the U.S. really find itself in a cellular price war (which seems not just possible but probable), and prices fall rapidly (the linked story above notes than Austrians pay just 20 euros a month for mobile broadband), 3G could soon become a no-brainer add-on for every laptop buyer, especially since every cell phone will have it too.
What's the price where you'd dump Wi-Fi for 3G?
Comments on End of the Wi-Fi hotspot: A 21st century telephone booth?
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2 Posted by jasonacyr on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:29PM EDT Report Abuse
we also have to consider the willingness of end users who are: 1. Less tech savvy, thus hesitant to try and pay for a new technology that is unfamiliar to them. If they have WiFi at home, office, public library, restaurants (for free) and access outside of home and work is more of a convenience than a necessity, then those users will want to keep their WiFi connections alive. Especially as businesses start to see that offering free WiFi is a way to attract customers to their place of business. 2. End users w/o the disposable income to spend on a 3G card and monthly access.
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3 Posted by ka7aok831 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:46PM EDT Report Abuse
Heck. I'm retired (which is why I said "heck"). I take Wi-Fi as it comes when free. Do not need to buy a card for any price.
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4 Posted by remyblaque on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:36PM EDT Report Abuse
I agree with jason. When I'm not at home I am at school or businesses that offer WiFi, why would I need to throw money away on 3G?
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5 Posted by wolverinemarky on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:49PM EDT Report Abuse
well what everyone seems to forget when it comes to free wifi is the security aspect. when you use wifi at starbucks or the hotels its an open network with not much security so it leaves you open to be hacked. And its not that reliable as far as speed either. If 3G was at a reasonable price I would purchase a card especially if I could take it with me and use it anywhere I am at.
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6 Posted by afnstech on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:46PM EDT Report Abuse
Wolverinemarky if you are that worried about security using WiFi you need to read Chris's post about Firewalls. (http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/84159) If you have proper software based Firewall security you really shouldn't have an issue. You do however have a point about the speed though and nothing is more frustrating than having a WiFi connection that moves at the speed of Dial Up. I personally wouldn't drop my WiFi habits as of yet. When 3G gets cheaper to the tune of about $30 a month I might switch.
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7 Posted by sciencetroll@verizon.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:08PM EDT Report Abuse
why does 3G have to be so expensive. what does it cost the cellular companies to give you the service.
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8 Posted by kupriaa1 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:54PM EDT Report Abuse
Hey Null- you should try and be a bit more clear when you talk about WiFi- are you referring to 802.11 (Wi-Fi isn't going to die overnight, and it will probably always be with us for home users hooking up to their cable modems)? I assume you are- 802.11 is not going to be supplanted by cellular services any time soon. So you are gravely mistaken in this point. Hotspots- yes are going away- I agree. But 802.11 is not a stopgap technology. It offers higher throughput- limited recurring expense, and is perfect for networking. Actually truth be told - it will continue to be more popular in the coming years- whereas cell services will always take a back seat to 802.11.
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9 Posted by scottiecordes on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:08PM EDT Report Abuse
Don't you have to buy a card for each computer/device, or at least be willing to swap the card from device to device? What I am getting at here is..if you need multiple cards, beyond the actual expense of the card....do you need to pay X number of dollars for each card to access the network? Many times we have 3 different computers accessing the internet at the same time in my house, sometimes even the PS3 on top of that. Unless you truly need a mobile solution, which I am thinking is not the majority, I just don't see it as a good investment for the average consumer household.
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10 Posted by rcmit on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:31PM EDT Report Abuse
Wi-Fi won't be going away for a very long time. There are plenty of coffee shops and restaurants that will continue to offer free Wi-Fi to draw in customers. Except in metropolitan areas 3G is slow and spotty. Additionally, most companies won't be willing to spring for the monthly 3G fees for their employees. Personally I have never had a problem finding free Wi-Fi when travelling (Chris, if you're paying $12/night for Wi-Fi you really need to find dirrerent hotels!)
1 Posted by j_alexfleury on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:45PM EDT Report Abuse
$40 bucks a month, but only if it worked in more than metropolitan areas