VoIP Watch

A Comparison of Three Pay As You Go Mobile Broadband Networks in the UK

Over the past week I've been shifting between T-Mobile (on my Nokia E71) as well as both Three and Vodafone for mobile data.

For ease of use Three and T-Mobile on mobile handsets are simple and easy to deal with, and offer easy to follow pay as you go options for as little as a day with Three, or a week with T-Mobile, or daily where you don't have to do anything at all.

Cost wise, Three is the best value as you can get a 7 GB plan for 25 pounds. T-Mobile isn't that far behind them with a 2 pounds per day plan for what is deemed "fair use"but they cap it at 3GB a month and you're not supposed to use it for VoIP, making Skype a non-starter.

The most expensive service comes from Vodafone, at 15 pounds per gig. You also get the best and only HSUPA network in the London area. Hands down it's the best 3G experience I've had, rivaling my Verizon experience in the USA on the downloads, but smoking just about anything out there except a Fiber connection as the uploads have been as fast as most cable and DSL connections.

Coverage wise, Voda and T-Mobile cover more of the UK, but if London is where you'll be most of the time, then any of these will do, with Three offering the best value for money and Vodafone giving you a true HSUPA experience.

Vote For Martin Geddes

It's great to see pal Martin Geddes nominated by Global Telecoms magazine as one of the bright minds in telecom, but we all knew that already.

Mohney Watch-The Writings of Doug Mohney Make Me Smile

I think I've known Doug longer than those in VoIP, recalling his days from SkyCache. Now that Doug is writing on his own, and unencumbered from the shackles and chains of others he's never been more on.

Take his tale about the shabby and no excuse for bad service he got from Verizon that required the Virginia SCC to intervene. Seven days to fix dial tone?

There are also other posts about his issues with the second largest landline company in the USA that are worthy of a read.

His key point about the declining state of service (both customer and technical) in the USA is spot on. I get better service in the UK as a pre-paid customer than I do back home as a post paid customer. How so? Questions answered and problems fixed at the first tier level with nary a wait on hold, a line at the shop or a person who needs to put me on hold to check what they can do.

But it's his post about the 99 cent netbook that caught my eye. Doug correctly points out that the brand and model of netbook is hardly going to scare anyone. For those who want to buy a netbook as a kids present this is a good deal, as the service will be paid for anyway, but for really powerful models, you won't be getting them for this price. As a high end, daily netbook user, the contract service charge would be there anyway, but the difference with Sprint or Verizon vs. an AT&T netbook deal is you're not only locked into the service as there's no "SIM" to move to a better netbook.

Saunders Watch-The Writings of Alec Saunders

This week Alec wrote about two clients and his insight on both is on target. If Alec wasn't a full time entrepreneur running iotum and keeping Calliflower on track his blogging would put him on par with the top writers online and he'd have both a day and night job that was one in the same :-)

First his review of the Nokia N97 vs. Apple iPhone is perhaps the best comparison I've come across. While I'm still using the Nokia E71 (and E75) I can say one thing very clearly. The battery life on the Nokia buries the new Apple iPhone 3GS. The Apple can barely make it 8 hours with being recharged, while the Nokia just keeps on running.

Then he recaps a briefing with ShoZu CEO Chris Wade. Wade is rapidly proving to me that as an experienced serial entrepreneur with wins under his belt that much like Google's Craig Walker, good executives listen to their advisors, deal quickly with the high level issues that matter, but most of all understand that their product or service being right for the mark and addressing issues about that as they arise makes for a winning formula.

That's the same way Alec is running iotum. Making sure Calliflower keeps working and meets the needs of his customers and users.

Take One Part Voda and Add a Twist of MiFi

I decided to conduct an experiment of sorts last night. Well, call it early this morning. I loaded up my unlocked Novatel Wireless 3G/HSPA ready MiFi and popped in a shot of Voda. As in VoadFone.

You see, Voda has been advertising that their network is 7.2 megs capable on the DL (Download) and 2 megs on the upload. Well, not exactly.

After using the settings I found on the Pre Paid Data Wiki, I was off and running. Instantly.

My speeds were very, very good. A quick speedtest over at SpeedTest.Net showed that I was popping over 2 megs down and 1 meg up. Not too shabby going wireless from across the suite at the Andaz where I'm holed up for a few days in London.

The way this all worked is I walked in the other day to a VodaFone store and grabbed one of their 39 pound dongle and 1GB plans, added a second gigabyte and was using the dongle (USB Stick) on both my Mac Book Pro 13" and the Asus 1008 HA. Last night safely back in London after a quick two days of meetings down in Cornwall (on the coast a la Del Mar) and in a moment of boredom, I loaded up the MiFi with the SIM and saw just what a real HSUPA network can do.

Oh, and the experiment. I placed a Skype video call to may pal with the golden eyes, Ken Rutkowski. Ken's been my audio tester for years of new cell phones, softphones and laptops. The result. He said the video was amazingly sharp, clear and perhaps the best ever seen. Yeah Baby.

Oh, and just for comparison I installed the SIM from 3 in the MiFi. I felt let down. While 3 megs will get you going, the speed test was the true indicator. 1 meg down and 750kb up. OUCH. So here's the difference. About 20 pounds.

So while a shot of 3 (http://www.three.co.uk) will get you there, it's the shot of Voda that gets you there faster.

Cherry- A New Player In The Space

While there may be some who think Fixed Mobile Convergence is dead, clearly someone in Belgium doesn't. TechCrunch Robin Wauters reports on Cherry, a new company that is promising to deliver Fixed Mobile Convergence, meaning GSM and WiFi, with Voice Call Continuity at the base of it.

Now, some points that need to be added:

1) Counterpath now holds the intellectual property (i.e. Patents and Patents Pending) for what was BridgePort Networks, the originators of Voice Call Continuity.

2) Another company, Outsmart Telecom, out of Israel, has similar technology that makes this work also.

3) Cicero Networks out of Ireland is a third company that played in the Voice Call Continuity and FMC space.

Each had or has struggled to get operators to roll out the FMC/VCC concept in mass, and the only two successful deployments of major note beyond one deployment by Bridgeport in the Balkans, was UMA offered by T-Mobile and Orange's UNYK in France and possibly the UK.

The play that Cherry is making is based upon IMS and SIP, leveraging a mobile network operator for GSM calls. Currently they are supporting Symbian powered Nokia E series devices, and plan to have the service work on Windows Mobile, Android and of course the iPhone.

P.S. I should also point out (thanks to Pat Phalen) that Agito Networks is also in the FMC space, but focused on a market that can make money sooner. The Enterprise space.

N95 Users Now Have A Real Upgrade, The Nokia N97

Alec Saunders was fortunate to receive a new Nokia N97 while participating in a project we're involved with for Nokia last week in San Francisco.

His review pits the Nokia N97 against the new Apple iPhone GS and clearly shows why for multimedia, the real purpose of the N9x devices, since the N90 was first released, and it successors, the N91, N93 and the amazing N95 consistently outperform all others in that category.

Most of all, Alec nailed it by saying N95 users finally have a reason to change devices.

A Tale of Many Phones

Over the past month I've tried an experiment.

First I wanted to see if I could wean myself away from my Blackberries (yes I have one on T-Mobile and one on Verizon) for email and have been using both a Nokia E75 and two different E71s (one for North America and the other for Europe due to 3G radio configuration) and looked closely at the use of the Apple iPhone for the global traveler. Secondly I wanted to see what worked best for me as far as cost savings.

During the past month I've also traversed the UK with my INQ SkypePhone2, plus tried and enjoyed the Toshiba G450, but more for the 3G capability, than for the phone.

Here's what I've unearthed:

In the USA, nothing beats the Verizon network for call quality and fewest dropped calls. In the car the RIM 8830 is my weapon of choice. In Europe the Nokia E71 is the hands down winner. For maps and directions it's a toss up between the iPhone and the E71 with Nokia Maps 2.0. The difference. Google Maps on the iPhone are free.

Mail For Exchange 2.0 on Nokia E71 and E75 s Rocks The House

Candidly if you want more than a Blackberry and need Microsoft Exchange compatibility in a much more robust offering then the Nokia E71 and E75 are very good alternatives. Candidly, I wasn't a big user of the under appreciated Blackberry Messenger and PIN to PIN capability within a closed circle, I could dump the Berries. With the latest firmware on the E71, Nokia and Mail for Exchange 2.0 I don't miss the Blackberry at all. The form factor is perfect and I can fire off emails, and more importantly manage my address book and calendar possibly easier than on the Blackberries. For PC users (I'm poly-platform) who are used to some of the more traditional nuances of Outlook, the visual similarity just seems to be easier on the mind, making Mail For Exchange a faster experience. What's more, the thin and lightness of the Nokias can't be beat. Sadly the one area where the Nokia's fall down is on battery life. But that's where it ends.

In head to head comparisons the Nokia wins in many other categories:

1. Browser

2. 3G speeds

3. WiFi

4. Ability to tether (via Joikuspot)

5. Audio quality

6. Real VoIP (Truphone and Gizmo work very well)

As a matter of fact, Truphone Anywhere on the E71 is a joy and major cost savings. Yes, I'm biased, but the combination of my travel routers and most of my clients tools (Boingo, Truphone, Nokia) save me enough money to eat well wherever I go!

Note: I did try the Skype Client on the E71 and found it buggy so I reflashed the Euro E71 and have not had any issues.

That leads me to the INQ SkypePhone S2, which for me when I'm in London, or later this year in Austria, is a great way to stay in touch with my team and to enjoy conference calls from the banks of the Thames, or from the back of a black cab in London, something Jim Courtney can attest to happens regularly, as he's my cab call test each trip to London. In a nutshell, calls on the SkypePhone2 are almost free for me. Sure I burn up some SkypeOut credits, but the combination of Skype + HiDefConferencing means I'm on more calls from halfway around the world and not missing a beat (though the calls at midnight UK time do cut into sleep time some nights.) My sources tell me that the upcoming INQ devices are likely to be even better too. In the UK the pricing from 3 can't be beat, even beyond the Skype calling. Plus, I can tether the SkypePhone when needed just like I can the Nokias.

That leaves the iPhone from Apple. Candidly, its an engineering and design gem, and when it comes to applications and browsing, provides the best experience of all the phones, and with Truphone and Boingo running on it, I'm easily connected. The drawbacks to the Nokias are the lack of a keyboard, though for reader types and light typers the on screen keyboard is fine, but not for someone who is email intensive. The carrier locked phones is also a drawback, and while I could Jailbreak it, I'm not inclined that way. My email usage is so high that even with the best plan from AT&T I'm pushing its limits, so for the global business person, be wary. This also gives the nod to the Nokias.

On the financial front, RIM wins the deal with the lowest global roaming plans around. Compared to AT&T's rates, nothing beats the Blackberry for staying connected to email. Of course, the best way for me to use data in the UK or Spain is with local SIM's in my unlocked Nokias. On average the cost is under two dollars a day, or on par with what I pay for AT&T Media Net, Sprint or Verizon here in the USA for mobile broadband.

With a trip to London coming up next week (yes I will have been in London three times in five weeks) I'll again have my "bag of phones" but this time, after the last month of intense testing, the Nokia E71 and SkypePhone will be getting the lions share of the use, with the Novatel MiFi playing a supporting role with local SIMs that create my own personal hotspot, all the while keeping the data costs down.

Me and My MiFis

A quick note about the Novatel MiFi devices, both the CDMA version that works on Verizon and the GSM/HSPA version that works here in the USA on AT&T and on any GSM operator's network around the globe.

1. Verizon's network smokes the current edition of AT&T Mobile Broadband in the Bay Area for real time communications. After a day of use of the HSPA version, while it works very well, but I found that it is highly susceptible to the totem pole affect of GSM and great signals and amazing connectivity become simply marginal connectivity, especially if you are in a high traffic area. The Verizon CDMA version is not affected by this totem pole effect.

2. Voice communications-on Verizon the call quality is equal or better to being on a T1 line. On AT&T the call quality varies from good to great to sometime drop outs or packet loss. However I've held conference calls on both networks using Skype and HiDef Conferencing and the calls have gone well. This experience mirrors what iPhone users have experienced as well. I'm looking forward to putting this through its paces next week in the UK on a variety of networks.

3. SSID and Connectivity-I've easily latched my Nokia E71 and made calls using Truphone, as well as my iPod Touch to the MiFis. Talk about saving money. A few month's of calling via the iPod Touch over Truphone (or Skype) will pay for the device and be the gift that keeps on savings. (Note Truphone is an agency client of mine as is Nokia.)

4. Set Up- Simple and easy. I used the web interface.

5. Software-I could not install the software from the HSPA MiFi but did download it from a web site on my NetBook. I have been unsuccessful at installing the Mobilink software from Novatel on my MacBook Pro but suspect it is a version issue as Novatel is habitually behind on Mac centric software and has been that way for years. That said, they do make the best USB Dongles around and the MiFi is no exception.

Bottom line--Buy a MiFi.

A note. The HSPA MiFis are not yet for sale in the USA but you can find them internationally, and unlocked. For a road warrior like me, knowing I have one of these in my bag and a pay as you go data plan means less reliance on hotel broadband when I'm in Europe or the need to only grab a meal where WiFi is available.

Comcast Gets The Global Nature Of Voice

Hat Tip to Doug Mohney for his discovery of Comcast's new International plan, which is another broad shot cross the bow taken at Vonage and Skype by the cable companies.

While not a "free" offer, this is a move by the cable giant is offering another reason to buy their triple play (voice, video and data) and then upsell the customers with more options. In this case $15 dollars buys you an added 300 minutes (six hours) of international calling.