Phones that do WiFi Hotspots. Good Enough for Browsing from a Laptop/Wii Netflix?

[warwick.hoy]

So in my quest to stick it to Comcast; I'm wondering if 4G phones that throw out WiFi hot spots would be comparable in speed and able to put up with how I use wifi in my home.

I do a lot of hockey watching on my laptop via NHL Gamecenter. Also have a Wii (for netflix) hooked into my current wireless from comcast. I want to upgrade the Wii to a PS3 since NHL Gamecenter is available on that (and I think Netflix as well). A lot of the time computer and Netflix are running simultaneously.

Current phone carrier/plan = Sprint Data Everything. I'm elligable for an upgrade in a few months and am considering some of the phones that do the WiFi hotspot, if for nothing else to have my iPod connectivity through that.

The HTC EVO and EVO Shift look promising and as far as I know 4G is available in this area.

Sorry for the noobish nature of these questions.

[MichaelScott]

They will be fine for checking email and occasional surfing. But you'll miss your cable modem if you try to download stuff and stream videos.

Check www.speedtest.net on your phone and on your computer to compare speeds.

[warwick.hoy]

I figured as much. Thanks.

[MJ5150]

I have no problem using my Droid as a WiFi hotspot for my iPad and laptop. I have even had a few people all connected at the same time without issue.

-Mike

[MIJ-VI]

...I wonder if something like this might be handy:


http://www.i-glassesstore.com/i-3d.html

$299.00

[bassman1185]

Make sure you actually have a real unlimited plan, and not a "virtually unlimited" plan. Most phone companies only actually include 5GBs of data with their plan, which won't go very far if you're streaming movies.

[mrpackerguy]

Blackberry + "Tether" = wifi hotspot

Works great.

[DwaynieAD]

this is the reason At&t did away with the unlimited data plan on the iphone

[bassman1185]

Originally Posted by DwaynieAD

this is the reason At&t did away with the unlimited data plan on the iphone

...Except that AT&T's version of the iPhone wouldn't do a hotspot, or even a USB tether program.

For what it's worth, I have a Samsung Mesmerize, and I use PDA Net to tether it to my laptop via USB. There is only 3G in my area, but for general browsing, it works fine, and runs pretty quickly. It's a little bit on the slow side for image-oriented stuff, or video viewing, though.

[MatticusMania]

Originally Posted by warwick.hoy

The HTC EVO and EVO Shift look promising and as far as I know 4G is available in this area.

Sorry for the noobish nature of these questions.

My roommate does exactly this with his EVO. He watches football games online, plays CoD online, and streams Netflix through his phone. It'll work fine.

[warwick.hoy]

While I still want to upgrade to the EVO; I will probably continue to keep Comcast. I called em up and got my bill knocked to $40 a month for internet access. This same old story,...call every 6 months to get on the new promotion. Kind of a PITA but thems the breaks.

As much as I dislike Comcast,...there isn't anyone cheaper for the same level of service (IE speed) it seems.

[jady]

Every now and then we "forget" to pay our Att DSL bill.

On these occasions I tether my Mytouch 4G and get pretty decent speeds. Surfing, light streaming, and World of Warcraft all run just fine.

Almost if not all of the wireless providers have a 5G cap though now.