QLVR Version 0.7.0

Funny.. I posted a very quick howto on free WiFi in Starbucks and stumbled across this today on CNN: T-Mobile Sues Starbucks Over Wi-Fi Deal.  Apparently, Starbucks soon to be ex-wife, T-Mobile, doesn’t like the new girlfriend, AT&T.  If I were T-Mobile I’d just let it go.  When you signup for the 2 hour complimentary WiFi, it’s very clear that AT&T is providing this - not Starbucks.  Sure, it’s only words and the intent is what T-Mobile is fighting but get over it!  T-Mobile should concentrate on figuring out how to compete with AT&T on other fronts.  Perhaps, T-Mobile could use their $$$ to upgrade their wireless data networks or work out a deal like Sprint/Clearwire WiMax (and Comcast and Google and… ) deal.  

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This is may or may not be news to you but Starbucks has joined the loyalty market. Guess the economy has hit them where it counts. Anyhow, might as well take advantage of the following perks by purchasing (and occasionally refilling) their stored value/loyalty card. To gain full advantage of the perks, you need to signup before July 14th, 2008.

The Benefits and some comments in parenthesis:

• Two Hours of AT&T Wi-Fi
• Refills on Brewed Coffee (if you’re nice to your Barista then they may include Americanos)
• Beverage Customization (Soy milk and syrups are free)
• Free Beverage with purchase of Whole Bean Coffee

To receive the perks you need to do the following:

1. Buy a stored value card at the register or online
2. Create an account at Starbucks page (www.starbucks.com/card)
   
3. Register your card in your account.
4. Signup for WiFi access & link your card to your account (www.starbucks.com/retail/wireless.asp)
   

That’s it. It’s pretty straightforward. I’m not sure what happens when the two hours expires but it’s nice that you *only* have to use the card once a month to keep this perk alive.

Hopefully, Starbucks will not kill this when their stock price goes back up and the economy recovers. Should they do so, you might as well enjoy it while you can!

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I’m not sure if Sprint turned up the juice or put in a new transmitter but the EVDO connection is quicker than usual. I grabbed a couple of screenshots from two different sources - Speedtest.net and Speakeasy’s site. Both reported similar download speeds rivaling home broadband connections (well - not our FiOS connection but you get the drift…)

The first screenshot - Speedtest.net.

• POP: NYC - Optimum Online
• Download - 1496 kb/s (T1 baby!)
• Upload - 751 kb/s

The second screeshot confirms the results above are not an anomaly:

• POP: Speakeasy NYC
• Download: 1792 kb/s (T1?  It’s better than a T)
• Upload: 662 kb/s

Can’t wait to see what WiMAX will offer in real world deployments.  Provisioning problems could be a thing of the past once WiMAX is in the wild.   That silly Verizon BS of “we’ll be there sometime between 8AM and 6PM on some day next week” will be a thing of the past.  The future is so… rosy.

Have a great weekend!

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I spend a bit of my morning at Starbucks juicing up on Java and working on tasks that generally require Internet access. I could easily go the WiFi route and pay only $30-40/mo for unlimited access or I could give myself an option to not always be around a WiFi hotspot.

With this goal in mind I set out to find the best (current) option for wireless data access. The solution to this problem must:

1. Work on Macbook Pro. Sadly, support is not ubiquitous yet. Sure, it’s much better than Linux but nowhere near Microsoft’s OS
2. Have the widest range of “fast” access available. In other words - give me the fast stuff in my location of Central New Jersey. I previously subscribed to Ricochet from 2000/2001 and loved the service on my Linux based laptop at the time. It was much faster than GRPS and even EDGE speeds unsuitable for today’s pages. They’re much larger and richer…

From the criteria above, I decided that EVDO access from either Verizon or Sprint was the way to go. The option of using HSDPA was not chosen since it’s very limited in the States through AT&T/Cingular. I was really not interested in paying for HSDPA access and receiving much slower EDGE, or worse yet, GRPS access rates.

I then compared Verizon and Sprint. I chose Sprint for the following reasons:

1. Do not cap their “unlimited” service like Verizon does. Verizon’s cap of 5GB/mo is great but it’s still a cap. While I don’t plan on running a server it’s the concept that bothers me.
2. From cursory research on the Net, I noted Sprint’s data network is better than Verizon’s. It’s hearsay because I don’t have a way to prove it but I’m not a huge fan of them. Besides, that “Can you hear me now” jingle annoys the crap out of me.
3. Sprint will eventually roll out WiMax with or without Clearwire. I figure it may be an upgrade path but who knows.

I did have some concerns about Sprint’s service from comments in various forums including evdoinfo.com. Luckily, the issues noted in the forums were non-existent and I had a great experience at the local Sprint Store in Union. The store manager helped me get setup quickly and easily after I made my decision on which device to purchase. I chose the Novatel Merlin EX720 because it was an Express PCI card and not a fragile USB key that could break off when I put my portable space heater/MacBook Pro in my lap.

Steps for Purchase and Installation

1. Download & install the drivers *BEFORE* you get the card. The downloads are available at http://www.sprint.com/downloads. As of January 9, 2008 the direct link is here
2. Purchase a card online or in the store. As noted in the article, I purchased a Novatel Merlin EX720. I know this one works on my MacBook Pro!
3. Next, activate the card on the premises. There may be some values that are required that are not prepopulated on the activation. I highly recommend doing this if you’re in the store. If you purchased online then contact Sprint via phone. I did not have to do this but you could start with (866) 866-7509 (found on their page.)

That’s it! It’s a fairly straightforward process. On with the screenshots…

Screenshots

The activation and Location Based Services applications:

General Usage

Once your card is setup correctly, you can connect quickly by clicking on the Sprint utility present in your Menu Bar as noted in this screen shot:

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If you are interested in the what that Network Preferences looks like then take a look at this screen shot:

Location Based Services / aGPS integration

One of the nice perks of the Sprint network is the aGPS (Assisted Global Positioning System) that uses cell tower triangulation. If you want to use this application located in your Applications folder, then you must opt in. The opt in terms and conditions:

_________

Once you accept the fact that you can be tracked and your location has been found, you are provided some options for what you may be looking for including:

• Custom search
• Find Nearest Sprint Nextel Store
• Find Nearest Restaurant
• Find Nearest Bank
• Find Nearest Hotel
• Find Nearest Gas Station
• Find Nearest Coffee House

_________

Considering I’m in New Jersey, I’ll search for the state food , pizza, in the search box above. Executing the search, I receive a Google Maps listing of the nearby pizza places:

This is great but I’m more interested in the closest one and I’m also a bit curious on how accurate my location has been pinpointed. Zooming in, you can see that the Starbucks I’m in is accurately shown and that Saporito’s in Springfield, NJ is a hop, skip and jump away. The screenshot:

Speed Test Results

I tested the card against two different services took place on the morning of January 8th, 2008 from the Starbucks in Union, New Jersey. I did not compare the results against T-Mobile’s hotspot since I’d think that would be a bit unfair.

When I grabbed the screen captures, I was a bit disappointed with the speed this day. Previously, I had seen between 800 kbps and 1.2 Mbps down. As you can see in both screenshots below, there’s a bit of a delay hitting the gateway (110ms on up) so don’t expect to use this for voice. No issues using a remote shell (SSH) but forget gaming/other interactive traffic. On with the results…

Speakeasy - NYC

• Down: 724 kbps
• Up: 497 kbps

Speedtest.net Results

• Down: 759 kbps
• Up: 497 kbps
• Delay to first hop/gateway: 110 ms

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