Is Sprint wireless internet service reliable?

Sprint wireless Internet service vs Ricochet

• Ricochet just got turned back on in San Diego and LA. How does this compare to Sprint's wireless Internet service? I need to get wireless internet for a Sony laptop and am not sure the pluses and minuses of each service.

• Answer:

  Hello sherpaj, Thank you for your question. I searched for [sprint vs ricochet] and found some targeted information: San Diego Wire-Free Internet http://www.sdwirefree.com/faqs/comparisons.html RICOCHET VS. CELLULAR PHONE INTERNET ACCESS "Ricochet is both faster and less expensive than the wireless Internet access service offered by cellular phone companies. Cellular phone networks are slower than Ricochet and support data transfer at 30-70 kbps (compared to Ricochet at 176 kbps). Speeds greater than 64 kbps are recommended for most LAN applications and full media Internet access. Sprint®, Verizon®, Voicestream®, Cingular® and AT&T® offer data transmission network services that piggyback on their PCS network using GPRS, CDMA 2000 (2.5 generation) and 3G 1XRTT (third generation) technologies. Some of these technologies are also compatible with GSM phone networks. Internet access is available from a dual mode cellular phone that switches between a mix of analog and digital types of wireless service. As an add-on, Internet access competes for transmission space on the network with other cellular phone users. Cell phone Internet access plans are available beginning at $99 per month plus a voice calling plan of $35 or more per month (compared to Ricochet at $44.95 per month)..." I then searched for reviews of both systems: ["sprint wireless internet" review] CNET News http://news.com.com/2100-1033-267604.html?legacy=cnet "Sprint's wireless Net struggles to keep pace By John Borland Staff Writer, CNET News.com May 31, 2001, 10:40 AM PT Last weekend, San Jose, Calif., resident Joe Curcio began tracking how often his Sprint wireless Internet connection actually worked. The results were distressing: The service was sporadically down for a total of 8 hours each day. Curcio is one of a growing, increasingly vocal group of Sprint customers around the country complaining that the company's high-speed wireless Internet connections aren't working as promised and that Sprint hasn't followed through on repeated promises to fix problems..." [Ricochet review] A Review of the Ricochet Wireless Internet Service http://www.wherry.com/gadgets/ricochet/ IMPORTANT NOTE: Ricochet service is no longer available in the form in which it's described here. Metricom, Ricochet's parent company, went bankrupt a while back. Since then, Aerie Networks has bought the Ricochet infrastructure and is attempting to restart it/roll it out in select markets. Currently it's only available in Denver. The new network is supposed to be quite a bit faster (128Kbit/s), but it's unclear whether there remains a market for this service. "For the past several months, I've been using a Ricochet wireless modem with my laptop computer for Internet access. The short summary? It's one awfully interesting gadget... ...I'm hard-pressed to come up with problems with the service, but I'll try..." and... ABC News.com http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/tech/DailyNews/ricochet001026.html "Speed Kills the Competition Review: Highspeed Wireless With Ricochet The Ricochet modem piggybacks on your laptop, providing wireless Internet access in nine major cities. (ABCNEWS.com) Review By Sascha Segan N E W Y O R K, Oct. 26 - For true high-speed mobile Internet right now, you’ve got to try Ricochet. About the size of a pack of cigarettes, the Ricochet modem attaches to your laptop and is designed to access the Internet at speeds of 128 kilobits/second - that’s about double the rate of a conventional modem... ...In tests in New York, Ricochet lived up to its promises. Installation was quick and painless - plug the modem into a laptop’s modem port and stick it on to the back of the computer with the optional Velcro strips. Data transfer rates hit 14 kilobytes/second, triple the speed of a 56k modem." Infinisource http://www.infinisource.com/features/ricochet2.html "Ricochet Wireless Internet Service Resurrected Ricochet appears to have a promising future providing national wireless service coverage. March 14, 2002 Owners of Ricochet proprietary modems, also marketed under the brand names of Merlin and AirCard, can think about dusting them off and using them again as Ricochet attempts to resurrect itself. Ricochet, under its previous management by Metricom, seemed assured a promising future providing national wireless service coverage without the excessive accompanying expense that other wireless competitors had to endure..." Computerworld http://www.computerworld.com/mobiletopics/mobile/story/0,10801,60249,00.html "Ricochet Wireless Faster Than Advertised But availability is limited, say users By BOB BREWIN MAY 07, 2001 In an era of endless techno-hype, the high-speed Ricochet mobile wireless service from Metricom Inc. stands out for delivering more than it promises, according to users. But those same users are frustrated because its availability is limited to only 15 U.S. markets. San Jose-based Metricom promises a connection speed of 128K bit/sec. in all but two of its markets-Seattle and metropolitan Washington, the company's original service areas. Those two markets, offering 28.8K bit/sec., have upgrades planned, but those have yet to be scheduled. However, users in the other areas told Computerworld last week that they routinely connect at about twice the promised 128K bit/sec. data rate..." Wireless Review http://www.wirelessreview.com/ar/wireless_speed_kill/ "Speed Can Kill By Rhonda L. Wickham, Editor-in-Chief Wireless Review, Aug 15, 2001 This month, Metricom and its Richochet service filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. When Metricom launched its Ricochet service, it was dubbed the country's fastest mobile wireless network and hailed as a model of what wireless data should be like. It bragged of 128kb/s data rates, something other wireless networks couldn't hope to achieve until months, maybe years, later... At the time, Ricochet's performance made Sprint PCS' wireless Internet service sort of, well, ho-hum. It backfired because Metricom saw speed as the silver bullet. This strategy actually ricocheted off of a few key fundamentals. First, customers want speed, but they also want functionality and sexiness. In the Sprint PCS-Metricom example, the Sprint phone may have been slower, but it wasn't a laptop... So, you will find limited reviews on the recently revived Ricochet, but previous users of the system seemed to have only good things to say. You will find one current discussion at Broadband Reports http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/23743 Ricochet Hits San Diego Service slowly regaining footprint "Any Users? Does anyone actually use this anymore? I know it was kind of a consumer favorite when Metricom was in charge. I'm curious if people are enjoying the new service? Re: Any Users? Yes, I have been using it all week. I have 1/2 dozen of my clients on it already and I am waiting for more modems for others. I am getting around 200k from spring valley to downtown. worked while I was driving around also. I was told by another consultant it works all the way up to escondido." Yet another user disagrees: "Hello people, I'm one of the ricochet wireless subscriber. Don't be fooled the other's review. They said, that they are getting great signal in downtown san diego. That's a big lie. I was few days ago, I took my laptop around downtown san diego, and there's only few spot that gives me a good signal. the rest are either poor, bad and fair. And some say, that they are getting a good signal all the way down to escondido. That's another lie. Once you get to mira mesa blvd. The signal will fade and go away. When you get to poway. Then you will recieve a great signal in I 15. Spring Valley has a very poor signal. as a matter of fact Spring Valley is not even with the coverage open network. Right at this moment I am using my laptop inside my house but my signal is poor..." So opinions and experiences vary. A Sprint discussion can be found here at Broadband Reports: http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/20753 "Sprint's 3G Network Goes Live - First coast to coast 3G network Long after their competitors had released their own high speed wireless networks, Sprint today officially joined the 3G party, offering the only coast to coast 3G network to date. Costs for the new network range from $49.99 to $119.99, depending on the number of minutes and the volume of data used. The speeds still aren't terribly impressive, with transmission rates topping out at 144 kbps with average user speeds of 50-70 kbps...but the speeds are still 2 to 5 times faster than current wireless phones... Its an interesting discusion on this service. But, based on what I have read, Ricochet is the superior technolgoy and provides a faster connection at a reasonable price. With "Grand Opening" offers, faster speeds and lower costs I would be very tempted to go this route. For example: NetHere http://www.nethere.net/ricochet/ We have three offers to welcome Ricochet back to San Diego. 1. Get a FREE Ricochet modem, a $99.95* value, when you sign up for 6 months of service at $44.95*, while supplies last. Call NetHere at 1 888 NETHERE to get your FREE Ricochet modem today, while supplies last. 2. Activate your existing Ricochet modem, and get your second month FREE, a $44.95* value! Offer available only online at www.ricochet.com. 3. Buy a new Ricochet modem for $99.95* and sign up for monthly service at $44.95*, with no monthly service contracts or commitments. Offer available online at www.ricochet.com or from NetHere by calling 1 888 NETHERE. I trust my research will help you decide on your provider. If a link above should fail to work or my research require further explanation, please do post a Request for Clarification. Regards, -=clouseau=-