Over the past couple of years, many different mobile internet solutions have been introduced; all of which have been [much] less than perfect.

Cellular carriers like AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint all offer USB WWAN cards or Expresscards that are usually free with a 2 year contract (or around $250 otherwise). As well as plans which run for $60.00 a month at the cheapest.
Currently, AT&T’s HSDPA/HSUPA 3.75G service is the quickest, and is priced the same as Sprint and Verizon’s similar services; as well as Chrysler’s recently introduced their Autonet service. 
Autonet has recently been unveiled by Chrystler as a mobile car internet service.  It is a step in the right direction, but still hasn’t hit the sweet spot.  It is appealing to the consumer because of its low $30 monthly payment and carrier switching between Verizon, Sprint, and Alltell, but it also scares consumers away with its hefty $500.00 pricetag.  

Times have changed, and the percent of consumers who travel with laptops has largely increased, and netbooks have gotten cheaper and more widely known.  Most of the owners of these netbooks and laptops do not have internet following them, and are constantly searching for WiFi hotspots.

THE SOLUTION:
Someone [ehem, AT&T!] should consider these facts, and should release a much more reasonable service:

Low Monthly Rates: This is the most important factor to consider, not  many can afford to drop $60.00 a month, and something in the $20-$35 a month range would be perfect.

High Speeds: 3G is a must! HSDPA and HSUPA would be nice, and in fact, should most definately be included.

A Reasonable Download Cap: No current U.S. carrier at the moment would be powerful enough to support a whole slew of customers using this service without a download cap, but 5gb is high, and reasonable.

Cheap Hardware: There should be one year contracts with dongle prices of no more than $100 on contract.  These would be perfect at $0-$50, but we can’t ask for too much.

In conclusion, all of these factors have to be taken into consideration before such a service is launched; but in the end, if we are lucky enough to see this happen, businessmen, travelers, bloggers, and everyday average Joes will have a fairly cheap way to access fast internet while on the go.

Filed under: blargKABOOM