Digital Home Thoughts - News & Reviews for the Digital Home

"What if all you needed to do was pick up a wireless modem and plug it in to the wall? Clear, the company behind Sprint’s 4G WiMax network, actually offers a $44.99 unlimited 4G home Internet plan today with a special home modem that doubles as an 802.11n router. And even though neither company offers a 4G plan designed for home users, the speed of T-Mobile’s 4G HSPA+ network and Verizon’s brand new 4G LTE network could make them home or small business options now or in the future."

Wireless Internet access in North America has seen an explosion of late. Gone are the days of poker 2G or even 2.5G connections where it takes longer to load up a webpage than it does to pass a bill through Congress. Granted, some areas in North America have access to Internet speeds in the double digits to transfer speeds, many still plod along with DSL and older Cable Internet connections. Wireless connections seem to have reached that level and in some ways even exceed those speeds. Laptop Magazine's test should be taken with a grain of salt though, as it can vary wildly from region to region, but going wireless is possible without any real sacrifice in the quality of conneciton that you get.

However, I think to truly take off, a few things do need to change. It is still more expensive to go fully wireless through a 3G or 4G connection, and the data caps are a lot lower. One thing that I am waiting to see is the bonding of multiple 3G/4G data connections into one plan. Up in the cold barren of Canada, Rogers does offer some plans where you can share certain devices, but it is not all inclusive. I have a 6GB bucket, which is adequate for a lot of use, however, it all has to go through my smartphone. As hard working as my Android is, I'd like to be able to split that bucket between my smartphone, a USB stick, a netbook with built in 4G and maybe a home router.

Has anyone already made the transition? Any suggestions you would make to those considering going wireless only? What challenges did you face? What quests did you have to undertake to reach the holy grail of cable free Internet?

"Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced that the Amazon MP3 music store will be pre-loaded on the T-Mobile G1, the world's first Android(TM)-powered mobile phone in partnership with Google. T-Mobile G1 users can search, download, buy and play music from Amazon MP3, which offers over 6 million DRM-free MP3 songs from all four major music labels and thousands of independent labels that can be played on virtually any hardware device and managed with any music software. "Amazon wants to make it easy for customers to discover, buy, and play their music wherever they happen to be--whether sitting at their computer or on the go," said Bill Carr, Amazon.com Vice President for Digital Music and Video. "We look forward to the release of the T-Mobile G1, which will put Amazon MP3's vast selection of low-priced DRM-free music at the fingertips of even more customers in more places." The T-Mobile G1 comes pre-loaded with an Amazon MP3 application, giving customers a phone-optimized version of the Amazon MP3 store and the immediate gratification of buying and playing their favorite music. Amazon MP3 has worked to make its DRM-free music available through numerous products and services, such as Pandora MySpace Music, and now Android and T-Mobile G1."

The mobile music downloads market just got a lot more interesting with Amazon.com announcing the availability of the Amazon MP3 music store on the Android-powered T-Mobile G1. Its biggest rival is, of course, the iTunes Store on the iPhone and iPod touch, followed by the Zune Marketplace on the Zune. However, Amazon MP3 trumps one or both in a few areas: (a) all tracks are DRM-free; (b) most content is better-priced; and (c) tracks can be browsed, previewed, and purchased on the T-Mobile network, and later downloaded via Wi-Fi.

What can Microsoft and Apple conjure to match or beat this?