USB EV-DO Modem from Sprint

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Just found this on Engadget, thought folks might be interested:

Although there have been inklings in the past that Sprint was working on a USB EV-DO modem with Novatel Wireless, recent FCC approval documents have confirmed its existence and given us a first glimpse at what the modem actually looks like. In comparison to its peers, the U720 is visually appealing, although the single shot of the device doesn't provide a very good idea of its size thanks to the USB port being out of sight. Not that the style of the modem matters: we know people (read: MacBook owners) that would kill to see a USB EV-DO modem come to the States -- it's probably a good thing that the FCC approved the device then, eh?
Link: http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/30/fcc-find-novatel-u720-usb-ev-do-modem-for-sprint/

Sounds great to me. Thoughts?

--Chris
 
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What is the difference between this device and using your sprint EV-DO phone as a modem?
 
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Actually, they are likely both pretty bad from a speed perspective. I used an EV-DO PCMCIA card in my laptop a week or so ago when all else failed, and never got about 80 Kbps, despite Verizon's claims that it could reach into the mega bps. Granted, this is just one example, but as a modem, I would say that EV-DO is not quite up to what it claims.
 
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I surmise the speed you had is due to it being on the Verizon network. Having been a Verizon user, and now a Sprint user, Sprint's EVDO service using their wireless card is EXTREMELY faster, in my opinion of course.
 
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I'll answer a few questions with this post.

The Sprint USB u720 has missed 3 launch dates, and is now expected sometime in december (but don't hold your breath). Several were accidentally sold in early november, and one Mac user has reported it does not work with any Mac that he's tried it with.

An alternative that *is* shipping is the Franklin CDU-550 EVDO USB Modem, sold and supported by the Mac/EVDO Experts at EVDO INFO.

As to the difference between using a data-only EVDO device, versus an EVDO enabled phone with data-service... Cell phones don't have the processor power to compete with laptops, and the latter will see higher top speeds. for casual users, EVDO phones work fine, keeping in mind that you can't talk and surf at the same time. roadwarriors who need the best speeds, and who must be able to talk on a phone at the same time, tend to get the dedicated evdo devices for data-only.

Between the two major EVDO carriers, Verizon is far more Mac-friendly than Sprint is. Verizon contracted Smith-Micro to write their VZAccess Manager and it simplifies getting connected.

Conversely, Sprint seems not to care about Mac-users as nothing they currently ship is Mac-compatible, and no Mac software exists at all. Read this blog post for more: Sprint EVDO and Macs November, 2006

FYI, I work for EVDOinfo.com, where most of us are die-hard Mac-users who spend our days answering sales and support calls from Mac users everywhere, who want to get their EVDO groove going as fast as possible.

Whenever any of you Mac users have any EVDO questions, feel free to find us on iChat as 'BoosterAntenna', and we'll take good care of you!
 

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