Operators missing out on embedded SIM
UK MOBILE phone operators are taking an extremely cautious approach to the provision of mobile broadband SIM cards for those netbooks and laptop PC which boast an embedded SIM socket.
The INQ asked six leading operators and not one of them will actually sell you a suitable data-enabled SIM unless it is already inside a dongle or a handset.
One of the most positive responses came from Orange. The company confirmed it is possible to take an Orange Broadband SIM out of an Orange dongle and use it in an embedded PC. The company also pointed out it is actually offering an Eee PC with an embedded SIM.
3UK admitted to looking into offering SIMs for embedding as part of its mobile broadband (MBB) strategy, but says it sees the dongle as continuing to be the mainstay of the MBB market. Again, it did admit that if you took a SIM out of a dongle it would work.
However, Virgin Mobile wouldn't recommend subscribers take the SIM out of the dongle. It says they wouldn't get the benefit of the associated software. The INQ's not sure that's technically correct.
We can copy the software across because the dongle acts like a memory stick anyway. But then the INQ has unlocked the software on its Huawei E220.
If the INQ had picked the Advent 4211c instead of the Samsung NC 10, it would know the answer to this one.
T-Mobile says it offers mobile broadband pay monthly contracts as well as non-committal tariffs for 1, 7 and 30 days. It also pointed to an existing relationship with Sony to provide embedded SIMs for the latter's laptops.
Curiously, T-Mobile couldn't see why anyone would want to take the SIM out of the dongle in the first place. It's aesthetically pleasing, that's why.
Vodafone provided no direct answer but was very willing to discuss the subject at a later date. O2 just said it had no embedded SIM option and wasn't very helpful.
Yet a recent report from Disruptive Analysis entitled 'Embedded-3G laptops over-hyped' predicted that embedded will only account for 30 per cent of all mobile Broadband computing subscribers by 2011.
So isn't that a bit short sighted of the operators? µ
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T-Mobile and others already provide a sim only option. Well for payg for sure and I'm sure you could do it for contract to.
You order a payg sim card from their website. Then when it arrives ask them to change it to the mobile broadband tariff.
I've done it as I use it in my 3 usb dongle. Means I can use either t-mobile, 3 or whoever I want.
I'm pretty certain you'd be able to do this with most of the uk providers.
Having just bought a new Thinkpad, vodafone are already in bed there, the sim came pre-installed!
Some of us are waiting for netbooks to offer 3G internally. Only the Dell netbook does this yet.
I mean those USB dongles take up a valuable USB port and are so easily broken when knocked against when out and about.
Wake up Mobile Companies!
I got a sony viao with built in 3G. when I came to renewing my mobile contract this summer I asked them if I could get just a sim card. In the end they gave me free unlimted mobile browsing on my phone, and I'm on the 3gb mobile broadband contract. For that they just sent me the sim card through the post and I downloaded the vodafone software.
I have one of those Dell laptops. Convenience heaven at last, thought I. But no, it was not to be. The ruddy thing is limited to Vodafone! Chocolate bloody teapot.
the INQ fell for the samsung's looks and claimed battery life over the advent's flexibility (OSX capable! sim etc) DOH
i have the advent and its not the coolest thanks to the brand, but its superb
In my experience all t-mobile pay-as-you-talk SIM cards bought from a newsagent in the
last couple of years are 3G enable. You don't have to change tariff, the
£1 a day default tariff is good for occasional use.
I'v used a t-mobile SIM in a Dell D630 laptop instead of getting an expensive
pay monthly contract to use the supplied SIM and in a PCMCIA card in other
laptops.
The software on my Dell D630 laptop won't allow the default entry's
for Vodafone and it's roaming partners to be deleted but it works
if you manually make a t-mobile profile and put the magic
string in modem property's.
I find that a 3G connection is usually frustrating to set up.
You have to find and enter the special AT command for t-mobile
in the advanced section of modem propertys, the number to dial and the APN.
Even if you get it right it can fail to connect for no obvious reason
just because the network is playing up that afternoon, the signal
strength is low, or you need to reboot because the driver has got
into a non-working state.
I'm not surprised that t-mobile said they don't supply suitable SIM's
when actually you can get them from a newsagent.
I called them for help last year. Their first line support transfered
me to technical support who gave me some settings
that were close but not quite right. A few google searches found the
correct settings.
The vodafone branded software for the PCMCIA 3G cards commonly found
on ebay is buggy and also keeps changing the settings back to
vodafone settings. The trick is to manually set up the 3G connection
in control panel as if you were setting up a dialup connection to
an ISP. You just need the 3G hardware to appear as a modem in
windows control panel, don't use to run the utility software supplied
with the card. The card manufacturer, Option, won't give out
unbranded software anymore but that will also work if you can find
a copy.
Ordered a 3G broadband dongle from Three on a 18 month plan - 5Gb a month for £7.50 with free dongle.
SIM was immediately popped into the embedded 3G card in my HP 6910p laptop and has worked flawlessly ever since.
The embedded 3G card came with a Vodafone SIM but was not locked and their pricing didn't come close to Three.
6910p with Orange 3G simply doesn't work. Both HP connection manager and Orange software work fine, the problem is that they don't work together.
I must have spent 3 working days on this over the last few months, waste of time!
Maybe this is not really relevant to the topic but i just bought at an european sim only webshop. The first i have seen in my lifetime. I think they sell to NL and DE ass wel. http://www.simonly.eu and uk shop is http://www.simonly.eu/uk/ good prices:)