A client recently asked me about the possibility of purchasing a notebook computer with a built in Verizon data card. I am a big fan of the Verizon data service but not a fan of having a built in card that cannot be removed from your system.
Overall having a Verizon (or other carrier) network card is very helpful. Free wi-fi connections are helpful when they are available but they are difficult to count on. Sometimes they are hard to find and occasionally they are misconfigured or partially functional. A commercial data card is usually something you can count on to be reliable almost no matter where you are.
Some of our clients have a few of the cards that they share across their user base - based on current need. It is very simple to move the cards from one system to the next. Getting employees to “share” the card can be a tricky non-technical problem though!
Here is my comment to our client about built-in wireless cards,
Dear Client,
You can buy a number of notebook computers preconfigured with a Verizon data card,I don’t think a built in Verizon card is a great idea though. I prefer that my wireless service not be tied to a specific computer. If my notebook computer breaks, I need to be able to easily move my wireless service to another system.
The Verizon wireless service is great - it works almost everywhere and the connection is very fast. The speed is somewhere between dial-up speed and a typical home based DSL connection.
Using building based wireless (wifi) systems can be frustrating. Some building based systems are mis-configured or troublesome for any number of reasons. Often I just skip a building based system (wifi) and use my Verizon card instead - the speed is about the same.
Also note that you can also use a Blackberry to provide a data connection for your computer. This might be another option for you. If your phone and computer support Bluetooth connectivity this can work very well.
What about the fact that PCMCIA Cards lead to diminished battery life and that many new laptops have only One slot. To have a wireless card in there all the time is very limiting. In addition the integrated antenna in most laptops is far superior to the very small antenna that can be integrated into a PCMCIA card. Other than sharing the card what downside is there?
I haven’t had any reception problems with PCMCIA based cards so I haven’t thought much about the small antennae that a PC card includes. I can imagine that a better antennae would be helpful for some people though.
I didn’t know built in cards use less power than PC based cards. If that is the case then I suppose that would be a point in favor for “built ins.”
I never have any use for my single pc card slot, other than the wireless card that runs in there all the time. What other sort of pc card would you want to use?
Lastly, pc card slots are fragile and if a pc card suffers a hard impact while it is plugged into your computer it can break the pc card slot solder connections inside your notebook. This actually happened to me - rendering an expensive notebook just about useless. I actually opened up my machine after the impact and I could see where the very tiny connections for the PC card slot had been damaged, probably requiring a new system board to repair - not good!