Tethering vs WWAN

[codek]

Will tethering phase out WWAN? I was looking into possibly getting WWAN but now I'm thinking about tethering with an iphone. Pro's and Con's of each?

[bill bolton]

Will tethering phase out WWAN?

Highly unlikely IMO, for a whole host of reasons, including the need to keep batteries in two different devices in an adequate state of charge for effective data connectivity purposes.

Cheers,

Bill B.

[spuddog]

MY thoughts, I doubt either will the only option for everyone.

There are 3 scenarios
1. internal wwan
pro- as long as the laptop is charged you have connectivity, no card or dongle to lose
con- only laptop user can use it

2. usb wwan
pro- anybody can use the aircard with any laptop
con- might get lost, or somebody else has borrowed it when you need it

3. tethered smart phone
pro- generally lower cost, your normally have the phone with you
con- more devices to juggle, most carriers can't use phone for calls while tethered.

Scott

[Norway Pad]

4-5 years ago, while I was living at a place back in Norway, with no access to ADSL or phone line, I used my Nokia 3G phone as the data connection for my laptop. But this was a real hassle in my eyes, with the phone that needed to be connected, then battery got discharged, I was unable to make phone calls, etc. So it was a big progress when I could buy an USB dongle to do the same thing. I needed a separate data service plan for the dongle, but at the same time I took the data service plan off of my phone, so expenses were almost the same. Still there were some annoyance with the need to use the USB dongle. Back then, they were quite big, so I accidentally ripped it out, and sometimes it lost connectivity so I needed to reboot, etc. So the most desirable option for me at that point would have been internal WWAN, something I didn't have access to before after I got access to ADSL in my flat.

Just my experiences, hopefully some input for your decision making. But in the end: What works the best for you totally depends on your needs and preferences.