After a two week wait Vodaphone finally delivered their latest USB Modem Stick Pro.

The model number is K3760

The box contents include

The K3760
A USB extender cable
Safety Manual
Quick Start Guide
Vodafone Mobile Connect Software CD 
A SIM card

The K3760 supports: GPRS, EDGE, 3G HSUPA and HSDPA depending on mobile coverage.

Why a USB Stick based solution?

Well the plug and play ability of USB allows me to quickly internet enable any PC. So the built in WWAN of a laptop may be neater but USB is more flexible.

I don’t even need to remember my install CD any software installs from the memory inside the K3760.

Mobile broadband is also a good fall back temporary solution if my office based ADSL is playing up.

Sidebar: For optimum internet redundancy I used to have two separate ADSL connections but I have dropped down to 1 ADSL and 1 Cellular. So if one goes down I can utilize the other.

Like any mobile data solution you need good data coverage and I will build up a better picture of this over time.

Hardware

The USB memory stick like design you will be used to. The USB connector is recessed into the shell and it has a a silver switch to bring it out. The hardware holds the data sim but also has mini SD socket which can take mini SD up to 4GB. Note it is supplied with none.

Install

I have installed and tested it on both Windows XP and Windows Vista and both experiences were identical. However I got the impression that Windows Vista was doing more in the background and used nearly 1mb of data allowance just being connected.

The install on both platforms has a rather geeky dos box with some things going on.

But this disappears once the install is complete.

The version of Vodafone Mobile connect Lite is 9.3.3.10523

Connected

The speed of the connection depends on the type of network you have access to.

From my location during various parts of the day I had HSUPA all the way down to GRPS but all were functional working internet connections but of varying speed.

Other networks

You can force the Modem stick to re poll the available networks. I was surprised to see the other companies networks listed and their speed types. handy if I want to move to another provider with better converge a year down the road.

You can determine the speed of the available mobile internet without connecting. The USB modem will Blink Green if a GPRS or Edge network is available and Blue for 3G.

VPN

My primarily reason for needing mobile broadband is to be able to VPN into systems for remote administration and all my existing VPN software worked first time.

So my out of the box experience with the K3760 is excellent. It did remind me of my first experience of using broadband after years of 56k modems. The WOW look how fast that file is downloading experience.

I will write a follow up post about the K3760 in a few weeks after I have use it a bit more.

So bookmark  http://www.colindiponio.com/category/mobile-broadband/ for future updates.

Product Link: http://www.vodafonebusinessshop.co.uk/DataWelcome.html

Useful Vodafone Resources

Vodafone Homepage – Mobile Phones – Broadband – Vodafone Help

As I sit and patiently wait from Dell to squeeze my e4200 out of their production facility I noticed that vodafone have just revamped their mobile broadband range.

I only occasionally need mobile broadband but getting a USB based modem is the right choice for me. Having a USB dongle will allow me to use the mobile broadband between multiple computers.

The deal most appropriate for me was an initial outlay of £41.70 on the USB Modem Stick Pro (Pictured). Then a 12 month contract at £15 inc vat per month for a capped 3 gig service.

The reason I wanted such a relatively short term deal was I Imagine the mobile broadband market is going to expand even further and 12 months from now even better deals with be available. So being locked into an 18 or 24 month contact is not for me. Even though the deals were attractive.

I literally only need mobile internet when I am travelling between sites so my decision was based on a couple of factors:-

1) Who has the best mobile broadband service.

2) Was the Price/Contract length acceptable.

I did spend a couple of hours looking into the alternatives from O2, Orange and the like but Vodafone was the clear winner.

I will write up a review of the device once it arrives.