::How to build a mobile WiFi hotspot:: [/tech/net] (13:13)

I gave up on public WiFi a few years ago and turned to EVDO as my primary mobile internet connection. I've been on EVDO Rev A since summertime, and the access speeds are incredible. They are so good that when I'm at work I often turn on the EVDO card when I need to download large files because it's significantly faster than our office connection. I think this says more about how bad our office network is than how good EVDO is, but with the exception of my home connection, EVDO speeds generally meet or exceed the bandwidth I can get anywhere else.

It's great, but sometimes I'm out and about and would like to share my internet with others. OS X has a great internet sharing feature. I can share the EVDO connection to other machines, but I've found this not to be very reliable lately. I haven't figured out exactly what the problem is, but it's not something I have a lot of time or energy to spend on the issue. I expect this things to just work. If I wanted to spend all my time configuring my machine, I'd go back to Linux.

The solution is an EVDO Router. There are a number of devices available, but none of them caught my eye until the recent release of the CradlePoint PHS 300. What is unique about the CradlePoint is that it adds battery power for a truly mobile internet connection.

For normal home use, battery backup isn't really important to me, but the battery backup does make car use much simpler. The car adaptor provides power to the unit while I am driving. If I stop somewhere, the WiFi hotspot stays active. Anyone still in the car doesn't lose access when I stop, and if I want to stop somewhere that doesn't have WiFi, assuming I'm not parked too far away the battery power kicks in and provides internet access while I'm inside. If the signal can't reach, I can take the unit with me and continue using the connection.

I haven't had time to drain the battery, but others have reported 2+ hours of charge. That's not quite what I can get out of my laptop, but it pretty much covers all my mobile needs. If I need more than 2 hours of connectivity, I'm probably going to be near power to plug it in. I would love more power, but right now it seems like enough.

I'll post a more detailed review when I have a couple weeks of use out of it. So far I don't have any serious complaints. If you are looking for a mobile internet solution for more than 1 machine, give the PHS-300 a look.