SubscribeCricket Wireless Broadband Internet
Do you need to access the internet anywhere? Cricket broadband offers 3G speed on your laptop or netbook. It works with both PC and Mac so feel free to use your MacBook with Cricket Broadband, you’ll love it. I know I do! Check the Cricket Broadband Coverage Map to see if service is available in your area. (Read More…)
Overview:
Cricket Wireless has recently begun offering 3G wireless broadband service throughout the United States. They are one of the more recent players to the cellular 3G modem game but they are aiming to win. The wireless provider currently offers several different external modems that will attach to your laptop or netbook VIA the USB port. When you initially plug your USB modem in for the first time it will take a few moments to walk you through the installation of the software you will need to connect. After the software is installed all you have to do is plug in the modem and hit connect. (Read More…)
Cricket Mobile Broadband Review:
We tested both the Cricket UM185C and the Cricket A600 Modem from Dec 2009 to Feb 2010 with some varied results. The tests were done in two separate Cricket markets (San Diego & Las Vegas) and under many different conditions (Downtown San Diego, Travel on Interstate 15, Inside MGM Grand, Las Vegas Convention Center).
For all “light” internet use this modem worked absolutely phenomenal. We pitted it against a 4G Modem from ClearWire. So it wasn’t very fair to compare speeds because the Clear 4G modem absolutely killed it. What did suprise us was that Cricket held it’s own. It offered decent speeds (READ: comparable to slightly above dial-up) HOWEVER, it offered these speeds consistently and in almost every area we tried them in.
For instance during the 2010 CES Conference at the Las Vegas Convention center the A600 performed excellent. It allowed us to login and read/reply to e-mails, make blog posts, and even watch a little YouTube. Users of the iPhone were jealous as their 3G network was too crowded for them to get any precious air-time.
Our main complaint lays within what Cricket defines as “unlimited”. At time of publishing they offer $40/month for up to 5Gb of data transfer. After that they begin to limit your speeds so you cannot take up more than your share of broadband. We disagree with this practice and really wish that Cricket would rethink this policy. On the other hand, if they do, perhaps their network will end up like the very crowded network the iPhone finds itself stuck to.
The bottom line is that if you need some consistent, light, internet-use on the road then Cricket broadband is an excellent option for you. Even with the bottom of the barrel “free after rebate” USB Modem we were able to reach some decent speeds and maintain a continuous connection. They are an excellent option as opposed to the minimum 2-year contracts most big wireless players offer. (Read more about Cricket Broadband)
Cricket Broadband Speed:
Cricket Broadband SpeedTest…
Throughout our tests speed varied depending on location. Here are some posted results and our location:
Downtown SD at the W Hotel: 0.95mbps download / 0.30mbps upload - It took less than 1Minute to download a 4mb song.
Interstate 15: 0.60mpbs download / 0.20mbps upload – Downloaded 35page PDF in approximately 50seconds.
MGM Grand, Las Vegas: 0.90mbps download / 0.35mbps upload – Watched several YouTube videos in basic quality with less than 10second buffer.
Note: These speed tests will vary with your own testing. We used SpeedTest to conduct these tests. Check Cricket Mobile Broadband coverage maps to see if it is available in your area.
External Links:
- DSL Reports : User reviews of Cricket Broadband
- PCMag Cricket Wireless Broadband Review
- Broadband Speed Test
