Gizmodo: wwan

Sony Vaio P Modded To Accept SIM Cards, 3G via HSDPA Connection

John Mahoney — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 10:10:00 EST

The Vaio P comes with EV-DO hardware, but an enterprising modder has tweaked everyone's favorite ~~makeup compact~~ netbook to accept HSDPA SIM cards too, for 3G connections from AT&T. It's not for beginners, though.

Since there was no elusive SIM card slot found like there was on the HP Mini 1000, the modder had to solder in her own. So the hack is not for the faint of heart, but it's confirmed working. Check out the how-to and some photos of the action. [tnkgrl]

HP Mini 1000 Netbook Now Shipping With 3G Internet Capability

Adrian Covert — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 20:30:00 EST

Not that it wasn't technically possible before, but the HP Mini 1000 now has official support for 3G WWAN Mobile Broadband out of the box and with support for multiple cell carriers.

Previously, users had reported the existence of a dormant SIM slot inside the Mini 1000's WWAN module, and ability to hack the drivers to enable the hardware. Now that it's official, it's as easy as firing up connection manager 1.0 to get 3G going on the 10-inch netbook, albeit for an extra $200 (?!?!?!?!). In any case, the new and improved Mini 1000 is available from HP now, but dont forget, the MIE version is coming soon. [HP]

Lenovo Lets You Disable Your Stolen Laptop With a Stern Text Message

John Herrman — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 05:40:47 EST

In the next couple months Lenovo will be rolling out a BIOS update for its Montevina laptop users which enables remote shutdown and subsequent encryption via text message. The tech relies on the laptop having a WWAN connection and activates when a custom string, defined by the user and sent from a single, paired phone, is received. In other words, you can choose whatever you want as the shutdown signal, from a cool "Kill" or "Self-Destruct" to a long, patronizing multi-part message about the thieving youth of today.

Constant Secure Remote Disable, as it's called, isn't being touted as a first line of defense. In fact, quite the opposite: "This is kind of like a morning-after pill, I guess" said Stacy Cannady, Lenovo's product manager for security and apparently the only person at Lenovo to miss the company-wide memo about not using awkward reproductive metaphors in PR. The update will be available as a free download for compatible laptops in the next few months. [Crave]

HP Mini 1000 Already Supports 3G?

John Mahoney — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 09:50:00 EST

Initially, HP indicated that a 3G WWAN-equipped version of their newest netbook, the HP Mini 1000, would be arriving sometime in December. But if we are to believe a forum poster on Pocketables.net, all it takes to get 3G humming on an HP Mini 1000 today is to download a driver and slide in your SIM card in a mysteriously hidden slot under the battery.

The poster is using model number #1033cl—our question is, does every Mini 1000 have said SIM card slot? Let us know in the comments, owners. The drivers are downloadable here from HP, and for more instructions, hit the forum thread: [Pocketables]

Rumormania: Apple Putting 3G into MacBooks?

Jason Chen — Mon, 14 May 2007 16:20:18 EDT

This rumor seems to come out of nowhere, but the combination of wishful thinking and high-end technology is what makes it so good. AppleInsider says a source told them Apple will integrate 3G access into a MacBook model. Other laptop makers have already introduced the trend into their business and "luxury" models, but Apple is supposedly integrating the card into the display, which saves space and increases performance.

If they do support this, it's likely they'll go with not EV-DO, but AT&T's HSDPA. Why? Well, the iPhone of course. – Jason Chen

Source: Apple may build 3G wireless into future notebook model [AppleInsider]

AT&T to Give HSDPA a Shot of Adrenaline with Faster Uploads

Louis Ramirez — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 20:00:57 EDT

EV-DO Rev A may be enjoying its time in the limelight, but now AT&T wants its 15 minutes of fame too, announcing its plans to upgrade HSDPA with faster upload speeds. The upgrade will gradually roll out through the year (via software updates) and new PC cards can be expected by mid-year.

So what kinda speeds are we looking at? HSUPA will boost current 384 kbps upgrade speeds to 1.5 megabits per second. And before you can complain that HSDPA isn't available in your area, AT&T says they plan on adding another 58 to 65 HSDPA markets by 2008. Things are looking good for us WWAN fans. – Louis Ramirez

AT&T to Speed Up HSDPA, Add Dozens of New Markets [RCR News]

Sprint EX720: The Must-have Card For the Net Addicted

Louis Ramirez — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 17:53:09 EST

We've had our eye on Sprint's EX720 mobile broadband card for quite some time now and the folks at SlashGear recently got the chance to take it for a test spin. Performance-wise, the card averaged impressive download speeds of 826 kb/s with upload speeds of 103 kb/s. It runs on Macs, but you'll need BootCamp or Parallels to activate the card via Sprint's Windows-only software. Here's the killer. Pricing. The card goes for $179 with a 2-year contract ($59/unlimited monthy) or you can do 1-year at $79/month (unlimited data). – Louis Ramirez

Sprint's EX720 EV-DO ExpressCard [SlashGear]

Apple Releases More Support For EV-DO/HSDPA Cards

Jason Chen — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 19:00:41 EST

If you check your Apple software update today, you can see Apple's jsut put up an update for various Novatel EV-DO and HSDPA cards. Why is this important? Because we know firsthand how good the Sprint Novatel cards performed at CES.

Among the newly supported cards are the Merlin XU870 for Cingular's HSDPA, the Merlin EX720 and U720 for SPrint (both Rev. A), and the XV620, V740, and U720 for Verizon (first is Rev. 0 and second are Rev. A). Good to know all these cards are available no matter which provider you choose. – Jason Chen

Thanks Tristan!

Sony Ericsson PC300 Does 4 Flavors of Wireless

Louis Ramirez — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 10:30:02 EST

Amidst the barrage of phones they introduced this morning, Sony Ericsson quietly released their first mobile broadband card capable of supporting 4 types of wireless—HSDPA, UMTS, EDGE, and GPRS. The card will get you 3.6 MBps of download speed and it's been fitted with an integrated antenna, so you don't have to worry about accidentally lodging anything off. It's Mac and PC friendly, though all your ExpressCard fans will have to go elsewhere for your WWAN fix. – Louis Ramirez

Press Release [Sony Ericsson]