Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

Anyone use this to play poker?

If so, are you happy with it?


...and are there any competing nationwide services I should look at at?

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

Greatest thing ever.

I got it about a week ago. During my one hour bus commute each way every day I can just finish a set of turbo sngs. It even seems to work when I'm under the Hudson River in the Lincoln Tunnel.

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

cingular and sprint both have competing services I believe.


I have the Verizon broadband access for 1 full year now and love it.

Not quite hi-speed in the major markets. But still pretty fast.
Outside of major markets (on the highway, anywhere you get a cell-phone signal pretty much) it is typically 2x speed of dial-up.

But this is if you are way outside the major markets.
For example, on the map it looks like the entire 1-hour drive from Cincinnati to Dayton (and swinging over to Oxford) would ALL be broadband-access coverage even though you're not really in a city at all.


Anyway, it works great for me. Switched my cell-phone coverage to Verizon too...so broadband-access only costs $59/mth for me (not sure if they still give same discount).

Consider if you travel a lot that many hotels (and airports) are now charging $10/day for hi-speed internet.
So just 4 or 5 days in a hotel or airport and you are already breaking even because of the Verizon access.


Even the non-broadband speed is decent.

Memphis wasn't in the broadband market yet when I first got Verizon and it worked for me pretty well.
Just visited my family in small-town Destin, Fla. and the 2x dial-up speed was still working great for me down there.


highly highly recommended.

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

MicroBob,

So it works outside the miniscule listed coverage area for Broadband?

Just at slower speeds?

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

The Broadband-access coverage area is for major-markets mostly (haven't looked at the map lately...but it seems to be growing all the time).

When you get outside of that area you are USUALLY in National-Access mode (slower than Broadband-Access mode).

National-Access works on the major highways and pretty much most places where you can at least get a cell-phone signal (maybe it needs to be a digital cell-phone signal as opposed to the old analog cell-phone signal).

Usually about 2x speed of regular dial-up (100kb or so).

Broadband access usually gets up to 500kb speed or faster.


Short-answer - yes, most places you are outside the Broadband Access coverage area you are getting the 2x dial-up speed (unless you are travelling in the Nevada desert or something I guess).


1. I found their phone-support to be extremely friendly and professional in answering all my noob Q's.

2. Last year when I signed-up I think there was a 15-day free-trial period where I could get a refund if I wasn't satisfied.
So you do get some time to feel it out.

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

Cool, thanks

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

update - My Broadband Wirless speed peaked today at 1.6Mb.

Not consistently in that range but still pretty solid.

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

Just got this about 3 weeks ago. We drove from Vegas to NY then up to Canada and it worked most of the way. As I'm writing this, I'm in a train station in London, Canada, and it's pretty fast. Also worked in Toronto.

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

Didn't know this worked in Canada too.

Are you sure you're not paying extra charges or anything weird?

Re: Verizon Wireless Broadband?
 

[ QUOTE ]
Anyone use this to play poker?

If so, are you happy with it?


...and are there any competing nationwide services I should look at at?

[/ QUOTE ]

Just to add to the glowing reviews. I have this service and thinks it is the best invention since sliced bread! I have had it for about a year and can play 3 tables and mine 6 others (large market areas, which are being added almost everyday), so the throughput is enough. Plus, because I am a consultant that travels all the time I have my company pay for the monthly service charge! woohoo!

So far this month (4-5 days usage), I have used it to a tune of over 750MB of data transferred. I can't even imagine how long that would have taken me when I used to tether my "hi-speed" gprs phone as a modem.