Mobile broadband has become a really hot topic! I have recently gone out to a few customers that have been mis-sold the mobile broadband technology with the conception that it is a replacement for conventional broadband. So I decided to write an article outlaying the technicalities behind why these packages should not be used in replacement of an ordinary broadband connection.

For those of you who are unaware of mobile broadband, the idea is that you can use the internet on the go without being connected to someones broadband connection, or a wireless hot spot. The technology has been around for many years for business users but there has now become a boom as the technology has been released to the average consumer.

In order to get an internet connection on the move this technology relies upon the mobile network – and this is where the problems lie. As we all know when using a mobile phone the signal can fluctuate and this is especially noticeable in rural areas. Due to this fluctuation in signal and low signal in many areas this makes these mobile broadband devices virtually unusable. A mobile phone can quite happily work with a low signal (one or two bars of signal ) however a mobile broadband device won’t.

These devices also come with a very low data limit and although many are sold as an unlimited download limit, if you look in the terms and conditions (small print) there is often a fair usage policy limit of around 1 GB. This is fine for what these devices are intended for which is accessing web pages and emails on the go – however as a replacement for a conventional broadband they are unacceptable. These low cap limits would not allow someone to download windows updates for instance and would also struggle getting anti-virus updates – which means that if you are using one of these devices in replacement for a conventional broadband connection you are putting yourself at risk.

I believe that customers should be made aware of these issues before purchasing a mobile broadband connection. They should also be marketed more so as a mobile internet rather than being called mobile broadband as they are very rarely anywhere near actual broadband speed. They are however a great way of being able to access web pages and your email on the move.

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