Mobile broadband is broadband through a mobile phone sim card. The Sim card is located inside the broadband USB stick or "dongle" and connects to each operator’s 3G mobile phone network
The main benefits of mobile broadband are obviously - mobility and probably . A modem plugged into a laptop can be brought almost anywhere in a town or city in a car or on a train. Rural coverage is a bit patchy though - so the connection will not be consistent. All the mobile phone operators now offer mobile internet access via a mobile usb modem. Meteor was the last company to launch it - and at the moment Meteor broadband " to go" is only available in Dublin and Cork.
With prices ranging from €20-€30 a month, it is generally cheaper than the cost of fixed line broadband because there is no landline rental fee. With better networks and modems - speeds available over mobile broadband have increased from a maximum of 1Mbs - to speeds that promise 7Mbs. (Many do not deliver these speeds though)
So which mobile broadband operator has the the fastest speeds?
According to limited tests carried out in August 2008 by the Sunday Buisiness Post - in just three Dublin locations. - O2 had the top speeds with download speeds of up to 3 megabits per second (Mbs) and upload speeds of up to 1.2Mbs. Get O2 Mobile Broadband here
Vodafone Mobile Broadband did slightly better than 3 Ireland, though both were significantly slower than O2.
However, the service was not consistent . As with any mobile Sim-based product, reception can vary from street to street and building to building. For example, while the O2 service recorded an impressive 1.2Mbs in a cafe in Drumcondra, it collapsed to a dial-up speed of 51kbs (0.05Mbs) in an office in Harcourt Street Dublin .
How the speed tests were carried out:
Speed tests were set in three locations across Dublin city, using the internet speed website IrishISPtest.com. At each sitting, three consecutive speed tests were run on Vodafone, O2 and 3 broadband modems. The reason for three speed tests per sitting is that results can fluctuate by as much 50 per cent from one minute to the next.
Vodafone, for example, went from a 487kbs download speed to 1.54Mbs (1,540kbs) within the space of two minutes in one sitting.
Similarly, while O2’s faster modem speed returned download speeds of 2.6Mbs and 2.97Mbs at the first two attempts in one sitting. A subsequent effort resulted in a speed of 1.65Mbs,a drop of almost half from its peak. 3’s scores did not fluctuate as much.
What they charge
O2 - Cost: €19.99 per month plus €29 for the modem at O2online.ie 18 -month contract applies. Data limit: 10GB.
Vodafone Pay Monthly Mobile Broadband
Cost: €19.99 per month free modem. 12 month contract
Data limit: 10GB.
Out of bundle charge: 2 cents per megabyte
3 Ireland Details
Post-pay 18 month contract
Cost: €20 per month plus free modem
Data limit: 15GB.
Out of bundle charge: 5 cents per megabyte.
3 Pay-as-you-go
Cost: €100 modem charge plus €5 per day (0.5GB data limit), €10 per week (2GB data limit) or €25 per month (10GB data limit). 49 cents per megabyte out of bundle charge.
Meteor Mobile Broadband were not included in this limited test,