With LTE, the complexity of including a reasonable number of different frequency bands in a mobile device not only for LTE but also for GSM and UMTS is once again getting trickier. Here's a how I see things from a historical point of view and where I think we are heading: Once upon a time … Continue reading The LTE Band Challenge
France is one of the countries in Europe where the 900 MHz band has been opened up for technologies other than GSM and where a 3G network operator has started deploying UMTS 900. Some UMTS 900 / 2100 MHz USB sticks have been available for a while and especially Nokia puts UMTS 900 MHz into … Continue reading UMTS 900 Coverage in France
Another history post today. 6-7 years ago, one could still compare technology advances to fixed line modems. Today, that's hardly imaginable anymore for two reasons. First, the speed difference between the few kilobits then and the multi-megabits available today becomes harder and harder to imagine. And second: While 6-7 years ago I still knew people … Continue reading The Modem – History Now but Not 6-7 Years Ago
Back in June last year I wrote a post on my very positive experiences with the satellite based Internet access on board the Thayls high speed trains. Multi-megabit speeds, it was a joy to use it. Now, only a little bit more than half a year later the system is not much more than a … Continue reading Internet Access on Thalys High Speed Trains – What Happened?
Wait a second, some of you might think now, why is a cellular guy like Martin writing about Wi-Fi hotspots? The answer is simple: Along train routes, cellular coverage is often patchy but some train operators (such as Thalys or German Railways) offer Internet access over Wi-Fi with a land- or satellite based backhaul. While … Continue reading A Home VPN for Secure Use of Wi-Fi Hotspots
Most "all you can eat" wireless Internet access offer these days do come with a traffic limit per month after which the connection is either cut, the speed is decreased or further charges apply. The aim of these measures is to ensure that a few users do not disproportionally use the network. Especially in wireless … Continue reading Throtteling at the Base Station
Despite its name, the Flying Scotsman is not a plane but actually a train with lots of history, running daily between London and Edinburgh. From a wireless perspective, a recent trip with it was interesting because free Internet access is offered to all passengers during the ride. A bit of background research revealed that the … Continue reading Internet Access on the Flying Scotsman
A short post today to link to the "Round the World Connected" Website of NSN. Great videos of how fixed and wireless communication systems are used around the world today and shaping our daily lives. They also have a video of the high-speed satellite based Internet on the Thalys trains which I used and reported … Continue reading NSN Telecom Videos
There are quite a number of initiatives these days that aim at bringing the Internet to developing countries. From my point of view the ones which I think will have to most success are those using the infrastructure that is already there, the GSM networks. Satellites with local distribution over Wi-Fi might be an option … Continue reading Focus Africa: Mobile Internet
It doesn't happen often but every now and then I see a book, and without opening it, the title just does it and I have to buy it. It happened again at the Mobile World Congress. While doing my book presentation at the Wiley booth, I spotted "Less Walk More Talk – How Celtel and … Continue reading Book Review: Less Walk More Talk – How Celtel and the Mobile Phone Changed Africa