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4g Mobile Hotspot Face-off: At&t, Verizon Lte Hotspots Fight To A Draw

#1 User is offline   PCWorld 

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Posted 16 May 2012 - 05:31 PM

Post your comments for 4G Mobile Hotspot Face-Off: AT&T, Verizon LTE Hotspots Fight to a Draw here
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#2 User is offline   fenry79 

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  Posted 16 May 2012 - 07:03 PM

I don't get how the Verizon device wins in your speed category. You state AT&T speeds that are 2-3x the Verizon speeds, but declare Verizon the winner. I fully understand the fear that AT&T will slow down as more users appear, but I don't understand how you can possibly justify anything other than "AT&T is clearly faster, and is the winner" based on your own printed results.
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#3 User is offline   fenry79 

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  Posted 16 May 2012 - 07:04 PM

By the way, the Elevate 4G also has an optional large capacity battery (3600mAh), as well as a desktop cradle w/charger and an external MIMO antenna, all offered on Sierra Wireless' website.
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#4 User is offline   karps 

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Posted 17 May 2012 - 04:48 AM

View Postfenry79, on 16 May 2012 - 07:03 PM, said:

I don't get how the Verizon device wins in your speed category. You state AT&T speeds that are 2-3x the Verizon speeds, but declare Verizon the winner. I fully understand the fear that AT&T will slow down as more users appear, but I don't understand how you can possibly justify anything other than "AT&T is clearly faster, and is the winner" based on your own printed results.


Where I live, Verizon would win with the following speeds:

VZW Some Mbps
ATT Zero Mbps

It's an easy call. Verizon has a network; AT&T has a patchwork quilt with huge panels missing. Give it a few more years, and the average nationwide speeds may even out.
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#5 User is offline   MarkSullivan 

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Posted 17 May 2012 - 09:01 AM

View Postfenry79, on 16 May 2012 - 07:04 PM, said:

By the way, the Elevate 4G also has an optional large capacity battery (3600mAh), as well as a desktop cradle w/charger and an external MIMO antenna, all offered on Sierra Wireless' website.


not sold through AT&T....
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#6 User is offline   MarkSullivan 

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Posted 17 May 2012 - 09:02 AM

View Postfenry79, on 16 May 2012 - 07:03 PM, said:

I don't get how the Verizon device wins in your speed category. You state AT&T speeds that are 2-3x the Verizon speeds, but declare Verizon the winner. I fully understand the fear that AT&T will slow down as more users appear, but I don't understand how you can possibly justify anything other than "AT&T is clearly faster, and is the winner" based on your own printed results.


Verizon = 256 markets
ATT = as of today, 38.

add up the total bandwidth that creates, then compare.

thank you.


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#7 User is offline   rknapik 

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  Posted 17 May 2012 - 05:29 PM

I know Att does not sell the extended battery, but I have it, and I can go from 8 am to 6 pm for business use. email, web, postings and other things.
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#8 User is offline   jwsnowden 

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Posted 17 May 2012 - 07:54 PM

View PostMarkSullivan, on 17 May 2012 - 09:02 AM, said:

View Postfenry79, on 16 May 2012 - 07:03 PM, said:

I don't get how the Verizon device wins in your speed category. You state AT&T speeds that are 2-3x the Verizon speeds, but declare Verizon the winner. I fully understand the fear that AT&T will slow down as more users appear, but I don't understand how you can possibly justify anything other than "AT&T is clearly faster, and is the winner" based on your own printed results.


Verizon = 256 markets
ATT = as of today, 38.

add up the total bandwidth that creates, then compare.

thank you.

at&t offers higher speed hspa+, approximately 2-3 times faster than vz CDMA. So at&t offers a total faster experience overall on a nationwide basis when you blend all data. Plus at&t continues to expand lte service. I agree with fenry79

This post has been edited by jwsnowden: 17 May 2012 - 07:55 PM

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#9 User is offline   waldojim 

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Posted 18 May 2012 - 12:01 AM

View Postjwsnowden, on 17 May 2012 - 07:54 PM, said:

at&t offers higher speed hspa+, approximately 2-3 times faster than vz CDMA. So at&t offers a total faster experience overall on a nationwide basis when you blend all data. Plus at&t continues to expand lte service. I agree with fenry79

faster speeds come in two forms. Latency and bandwidth. As low as my LTE latency is, I will be done with what I am doing long before your request is even made.
"There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'" -- Isaac Asimov
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#10 User is offline   AlGray 

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  Posted 21 May 2012 - 06:48 PM

Can these (or any other 4g personal hotspot) also share a wifi connection? When in a hotel I frequently get charged for two connections when using my computer and tablet on wifi.
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#11 User is offline   JoeyButafuocco 

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Posted 06 August 2012 - 06:07 PM

View Postwaldojim, on 18 May 2012 - 12:01 AM, said:

View Postjwsnowden, on 17 May 2012 - 07:54 PM, said:

at&t offers higher speed hspa+, approximately 2-3 times faster than vz CDMA. So at&t offers a total faster experience overall on a nationwide basis when you blend all data. Plus at&t continues to expand lte service. I agree with fenry79

faster speeds come in two forms. Latency and bandwidth. As low as my LTE latency is, I will be done with what I am doing long before your request is even made.


@waldojim

Actually you are completely WRONG.

There are two factors to connectivity in a network:
bandwidth and THROUGHPUT.
"latency" as you put it is term used for what is actually TCP overhead.
This is something EVERY SINGLE COMPONENT on a TCP/IP network (which is why some use UDP) suffers.

So you are wrong. You have latency the same as any AT&T user. The THROUGHPUT which is probably what you meant to say, could vary however it's typically determined by a number of factors including the endpoint itself (your laptop and/or device)

When you do network speed tests (like at speakeasy or DSLreports.net) you are really getting a "guess" because of how this test is being performed.
The only true way is to run etherpeek or wireshark on your laptop while connected and transfer a file to a known element where other throughput speeds are also known and you can compare your results.

Frankly, I service and sell both devices/networks and I can tell you the throughput on the 4g side is quite negligible.
Since the switching on AT&T stays within the same format whereas there are moments where Verizon is traversing more archaic platforms, actually at the end of the day AT&T will be able to provide a more nominal throughput.
Again it's very negligible... like 300mb download of an installer file, let's say from the same site would be 9 minutes 24 seconds on one network and 8 minutes 48 seconds on the other... really hardly worth choosing your plan over...

This post has been edited by JoeyButafuocco: 06 August 2012 - 06:08 PM

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#12 User is offline   JoeyButafuocco 

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Posted 06 August 2012 - 06:13 PM

View PostAlGray, on 21 May 2012 - 06:48 PM, said:

Can these (or any other 4g personal hotspot) also share a wifi connection? When in a hotel I frequently get charged for two connections when using my computer and tablet on wifi.

Dude start staying at better hotels.
Hilton Honors (Hampton inn, Homewood Suites, etc) do not do this to you.
Holiday in Express doesn't even do that....
In fact what hotel are you staying at that whacks you for dual device usage?

I once had my toshiba (windows 7) laptop (for watching netflix on the hotel tv) my macbook and iPad and my iPhone all connected and didn't get charged anything for the wifi (it's complementary and not device restricted)

I was using the macbook, a friend was on the iPad and the iPhone being on was just to avoid 3g usage for emails and app updates.

But you do bring up a good point and AT&T offers 5 pcs at once. 10 devices on Verizon's unit but frankly after splitting a 5gbit~9gbit connection across 10 machines, it's probably crappy anyhow... 5 is really all you'd want to have connected.

This post has been edited by JoeyButafuocco: 06 August 2012 - 06:13 PM

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#13 User is offline   HillaryJacobs 

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  Posted 18 August 2012 - 08:09 PM

this is correct: When it comes to hotspots, most people have uncomplicated needs--they just want to get onto the Web, pronto. As a hairstylist whose clients show what they want from the Web, this is so true. I've been on AT&T here in Austin for as long as Austin has had 4G LTE and haven't been disappointed. And, I have to work between appointments. I can't have downtime when I need it.
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#14 User is offline   waldojim 

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Posted 18 August 2012 - 08:52 PM

View PostJoeyButafuocco, on 06 August 2012 - 06:07 PM, said:

@waldojim

Actually you are completely WRONG.

There are two factors to connectivity in a network:
bandwidth and THROUGHPUT.
"latency" as you put it is term used for what is actually TCP overhead.
This is something EVERY SINGLE COMPONENT on a TCP/IP network (which is why some use UDP) suffers.

So you are wrong. You have latency the same as any AT&T user. The THROUGHPUT which is probably what you meant to say, could vary however it's typically determined by a number of factors including the endpoint itself (your laptop and/or device)

When you do network speed tests (like at speakeasy or DSLreports.net) you are really getting a "guess" because of how this test is being performed.
The only true way is to run etherpeek or wireshark on your laptop while connected and transfer a file to a known element where other throughput speeds are also known and you can compare your results.

Frankly, I service and sell both devices/networks and I can tell you the throughput on the 4g side is quite negligible.
Since the switching on AT&T stays within the same format whereas there are moments where Verizon is traversing more archaic platforms, actually at the end of the day AT&T will be able to provide a more nominal throughput.
Again it's very negligible... like 300mb download of an installer file, let's say from the same site would be 9 minutes 24 seconds on one network and 8 minutes 48 seconds on the other... really hardly worth choosing your plan over...

How brilliantly wrong you are.

Do not correct someone without any understanding. Bandwidth and throughput are laregely the same thing. Namely, a measurement of how much data can be passed in a given time frame. Typically measured in bits per second. LATENCY is the amount of time needed to travel from point A to B in a network. If you ping Google.com, you will see the time it takes for a packet to reach Google.com and return. Right now, at home that time is 10ms. My 3G smartphone, averages 140ms. if you need more data on what LATENCY is, and WHY it is important, read here. Take a moment to learn something.

I feel very sorry for your customers as it is. If you work in this field and do not understand what latency is, or the effects on a network connection, you are doing yourself and your customers a disservice.

EDIT: Also, do not EVER twist my words. When you fail to understand a topic, you have absolutely NO BUSINESS trying to claim you know what was "meant" to be said.

This post has been edited by waldojim: 18 August 2012 - 08:53 PM

"There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'" -- Isaac Asimov
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#15 User is offline   waldojim 

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Posted 18 August 2012 - 08:54 PM

View PostJoeyButafuocco, on 06 August 2012 - 06:13 PM, said:

Dude start staying at better hotels.
Hilton Honors (Hampton inn, Homewood Suites, etc) do not do this to you.
Holiday in Express doesn't even do that....
In fact what hotel are you staying at that whacks you for dual device usage?

I once had my toshiba (windows 7) laptop (for watching netflix on the hotel tv) my macbook and iPad and my iPhone all connected and didn't get charged anything for the wifi (it's complementary and not device restricted)

I was using the macbook, a friend was on the iPad and the iPhone being on was just to avoid 3g usage for emails and app updates.

But you do bring up a good point and AT&T offers 5 pcs at once. 10 devices on Verizon's unit but frankly after splitting a 5gbit~9gbit connection across 10 machines, it's probably crappy anyhow... 5 is really all you'd want to have connected.

You have the nerve to try and correct me, and don't know the difference between a gigabit and megabit.

Wow.
"There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'" -- Isaac Asimov
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#16 User is offline   Laurajj 

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  Posted 29 August 2012 - 06:58 PM

I live in edge. Will the 4g elevate work.?
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#17 User is offline   professorhotspot 

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  Posted 20 October 2012 - 06:17 AM

I love h/s arguments, it all depends on where you live or work, I have used them all, currently using a sierra h/s bought at target for 60$ on virgin/sprint 3g/4g unlimited at 35$ p/m, working well in my area of Greensboro NC. I train small groups using h/s in woods, churches, schools, non-profits for education (5 to 8 is limit ) can use chip for some training, use cheap 2.3 LG androids and i-pods for handheld (60-180$) from target and wal-mart.
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