You wouldn't know it from hefting my backpack, but I'm always looking to lighten my load with clever, compact, versatile cables. With so many devices now using USB for both data and power, I'm always on the lookout for nifty new cables. Here's a quick overview of a few cables that I found useful recently. StarTech 2-in-1 Mini-USB and Micro-USB Combo Cable Perhaps sensing my … [Read more...] about In Search of the Perfect USB Cable
Novatel
Hands-On Review: Verizon 4G LTE (and the Novatel MiFi 4510l)
Somewhat disappointed in the Clear PXU1900, I decided to try another 4G mobile broadband solution. Verizon began their LTE buildout after Clearwire's WiMAX was already widely deployed, but they have moved aggressively to catch up. And Verizon has the benefit of better if less-plentiful spectrum for their network. My experience with Verizon's 4G LTE service, and their Novatel … [Read more...] about Hands-On Review: Verizon 4G LTE (and the Novatel MiFi 4510l)
An Inexpensive Mobile Broadband Alternative When Traveling in the UK
Traveling overseas is challenging in many ways, but mobile phone and data service is especially difficult. While it's fairly easy to find a reasonable deal locally, it's almost impossible to transfer these deals abroad. The best way to avoid a huge ripoff is to use a local provider, and this is exactly what I did during my recent trip to the UK. I picked up a Huawei E585 "MiFi" … [Read more...] about An Inexpensive Mobile Broadband Alternative When Traveling in the UK
How To Reset Your MiFi and Get Back Online with Virgin Mobile USA
Virgin Mobile USA had a massive data outage on July 11, 2011, leaving me without mobile broadband for almost 24 hours. After service was restored, my Novatel MiFi 2200 was left in a state in which it would not connect, requiring a complete reset and re-authentication. Virgin's customer support wasn't very helpful, so here's what I did to get back online. Symptoms of an … [Read more...] about How To Reset Your MiFi and Get Back Online with Virgin Mobile USA
Building a Combination 3G/4G/Wired Wi-Fi Network
The Tech Field Day events I run are hotspots of social media, but it has been hard building an Internet presence to keep up. Constantly on the move, I need a flexible network with scalability and failover (and fail-back) between 3G/4G and wired Internet. My latest design relies on CradlePoint's MBR1200 "Failover Router", which can load-balance across multiple 3G and 4G data … [Read more...] about Building a Combination 3G/4G/Wired Wi-Fi Network