So I'm blogging from my (rather jurassic) iPhone 3 - I love it nevertheless!
I was able to grab some free wifi from podium, albeit being slow (beggars can't be choosers). I know microblogging has been a fad but I'm still a fan of "old school" blogging using laptops and actually writing paragraphs, grammatically correct sentences and fully spelled words.
Topic aside, I've found a way to connect to the internet without leeching from an establishment's wifi. I recently bought a postpaid plan of Smart's Pocket Wifi. It literally makes a hotspot out of you! :-)
They give you this wireless router with a sim card and lets you connect to the internet using cell sites. The model and plan that I got was the basic one and you can connect up to 5 devices at any given time!
Prices:
I shelled out Php 1400 initially to pay for the Php 599/month for 50hours and Php 800 for the wireless router/modem from Huawei.
If you go beyond the 50hr limit, they charge you Php 10/ 30minutes. If you go beyond 80hrs, they set the cap at Php 999 so you basically have unlimited internet connection anytime, anywhere with 5 devices!
Perfect for roadtrips right? :-)
Usability
It's easy to use the device. You just use the power switch to turn the device on and off.
The manual was pretty bad. It says on the box that your initial password for logging in your account is "admin". The saleslady also reiterated that. After failing so many times (like an idiot who expects different results while doing the same thing again and again), I decided to call the hotline, only to find out that the actual password was "smartbro". Very smart..
Security is very easy to setup. You can assign passphrases so it's easier to recall. No need for alphanumeric mess.
The screen on the unit tells you how many hours you've consumed and how much mb you've used.
The company claims that internet speed is up to 7.2mbps. So far, I was only able to get 1.7mbps tops using my ipad's connection speed app. Hmm, poor signal?
Battery life of the unit needs more improvement as it only lasted me about 7hrs. What's good about it is I can use my blackberry charger for the unit.
I haven't checked out Globe's yet but I'm currently happy with Smart's connectivity.