T-Mobile phones ride your Wi-Fi router

Wouldn't it be great to have your own cellular tower at home? You'd always have a strong signal on your mobile phone, and you wouldn't be paying to use the carrier's network.

It sounds like a pie-in-the-sky idea, but it's actually the gist of what T-Mobile USA is rolling out Wednesday: the option to use your Wi-Fi router instead of the cellular network on two new T-Mobile phones.

I tried out the system for a few weeks, and found it worked well. For those who have poor reception in their homes and would like to drop their landline, T-Mobile HotSpot AtHome appears be a good choice. For others, I'm not sure the extra cost is worth it, particularly since T-Mobile's long-term pricing isn't clear.

This isn't like having a cell phone that also happens to work as a cordless phone. You have the same number, whether you're on Wi-Fi or cellular. And in an engineering feat, the new phones will hand over calls that are already in progress from Wi-Fi to the cellular network if you leave the hotspot, so you can start a call at home and then keep talking as you walk out.

Even Apple Inc.'s much vaunted iPhone, launching on Friday, doesn't do that, even though it has built-in Wi-Fi, providing a great opportunity to take the presumably proud new owners down a notch. ("So how much did your iPhone cost again? And it can't do seamless handover between Wi-Fi and cellular?")

T-Mobile's phones also automatically connect to the company's 8,500 commercial hotspots in the U.S., including many Starbucks locations.

The technology behind the service is known as UMA, or Unlicensed Mobile Access, and has broad support among cell-phone manufacturers, so we can expect to see more of it. European carriers are already using it. T-Mobile is the first major U.S. carrier to get on board, after trying it out in the Seattle area since October. Cincinnati Bell launched a similar service last month.

I tested the cellular-to-Wi-Fi handover a dozen times, and now and then noticed a momentary audio drop-off. One call was apparently dropped at handover, but it seems acceptable to have that happen occasionally.

There was no noticeable difference in sound quality between the two wireless technologies, an impressive result considering the often spotty audio yielded by other services that use broadband connections for phone calls. UMA is clearly quite different from standard Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP.

The new phones, the Nokia 6086 and Samsung t409, cost $50 with a two-year contract and a calling plan that costs at least $40 month (but remember that taxes and other fees bring the actual cost closer to $50). They're unremarkable camera phones. I tested the Nokia, which was solid, but has rather poor audio quality overall.

Unlimited free calling on Wi-Fi then costs an extra $10 a month for a single line, or $20 for a family plan with up to five lines. Those are, however, promotional offers. The regular price for each plan is $10 higher. The company hasn't said how long the promotional offers will extend, but if you sign up at the lower price, you get to keep it.

The phones will connect to any Wi-Fi router, but for your home, T-Mobile recommends either of two routers it's providing for free, after a $50 rebate. The one I tested was a modification of the Linksys WRT54G. That's a popular model, but setup was a hassle, as it usually is for routers, with a misleading manual and installation software that didn't work.

The company says the payoff for using its router is threefold:

• It gives calls higher priority, so if you have a computer download going at the same time, your call won't be affected. I'm not sure how great this benefit is. I used the Nokia phone on my own router while using the computer and didn't notice a problem. The phone's bandwidth demand is quite small.

• It has a button that will allow the phone to connect to an encrypted router without typing in the Wi-Fi password. This is a great feature. Strangely, I couldn't find any documentation, and had to call the company to learn how to use it, but T-Mobile will no doubt straighten this out and update its manual.

• It quadruples the phone's battery life. I wasn't able to stringently test this claim, but it's clear that even without the T-Mobile router, the Nokia phone did quite well. Wi-Fi is much more power-intensive than cellular, and I've tested phones before that used only Wi-Fi and generally went dead after 24 hours on standby. The Nokia phone ran for about two days in mixed cellular and Wi-Fi use with my own router, and three days with the T-Mobile router.

T-Mobile says the phone has up to a week of standby time on cellular, and up to three days on Wi-Fi.

At the promotional price of $10 a month for a single line, I think this is a reasonable value if your home coverage is spotty. T-Mobile, a rather distant fourth in wireless subscriber numbers in the U.S., doesn't have the most extensive network.

The free unlimited calls on Wi-Fi are a nice bonus, but most of T-Mobile's plans already provide free calls on nights and weekends or free calls to your five favorite numbers, so the actual savings are likely to be small. However, you can increase your savings by using a tip I gleaned from the company: If you start your call on Wi-Fi and then head out onto the cellular network, the whole call is free.

The regular price of $20 a month seems high, especially since you'd be paying T-Mobile to use your own broadband connection for calling, taking the load off T-Mobile's cellular network.

If you already have enough minutes on your cellular plan, what you can do is this: Buy one of the UMA phones, but don't sign up for the monthly Wi-Fi add-on. You'll be able to place calls over Wi-Fi, but they will be counted toward your monthly plan just like cellular calls. Use your own router — you won't get the rebate that makes the T-Mobile router free if you don't get the Wi-Fi add-on.

UMA could be a real money saver if T-Mobile would combine free Wi-Fi calling with prepaid cellular — the company has cheap rates for low-volume callers.

T-Mobile has gotten a tricky technology to work here. The fact that it doesn't work optimally with regular routers is perhaps its greatest weakness, but by no means a large one.

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T-Mobile First Out With Service That Melds Cellular And Wi-Fi

T-Mobile USA on Wednesday plans to begin selling a service nationwide that lets customers use one mobile phone over its cellular network and over Wi-Fi hot spots, hoping to entice more people to go wireless-only.

The HotSpot@Home service is the first of its kind in the U.S., analysts say. T-Mobile says the service makes it easier for customers to replace landline phones in homes.

T-Mobile's Wi-Fi service aims at improving the quality of in-building calls, where cell phone reception can be weak. Some people have resisted giving up their landline phones largely because of poor cell phone reception inside homes.

T-Mobile's approach offloads indoor calls to Wi-Fi networks. Users must have broadband Internet service via cable or phone company wires. T-Mobile customers plug a wireless router into cable or phone modems. Router software whisks wireless calls over Internet pathways set up by T-Mobile.

The new service makes T-Mobile a stronger rival of local phone companies, analysts say. Since T-Mobile -- unlike rivals -- doesn't operate a landline phone network, it's pushing wireless-only products.

"T-Mobile is the only cellular company that really is going all-out on the message of cutting the (landline) cord, pushing wireless substitution," said Charles Golvin, a Forrester Research analyst.

The No. 4 U.S. wireless firm, T-Mobile USA has more than 26 million subscribers. Its growth has been a bright spot for parent Deutsche Telekom (NYSE:DT - News) .

But T-Mobile must innovate to compete with much bigger AT&T (NYSE:T - News) and Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - News), analysts say. Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S - News) is No. 3.

"(The HotSpot@Home) is a good way for T-Mobile to tap into the zeitgeist of wireless substitution and generate some additional revenue," Golvin said.

AT&T and Sprint have tested products similar to T-Mobile's service but haven't offered them yet.

"U.S. wireless operators have resisted Wi-Fi because they expect dollars would be siphoned from (their) landline networks," said Randy Giusto, an IDC analyst.

"T-Mobile has come up with a rate plan that could work," Giusto said.

HotSpot@Home users will pay fees in addition to regular cellular plan fees. Regular plans cost $39.99 and up. Through September, T-Mobile plans to offer HotSpot@Home introductory plans at $9.99 and $19.99 for families. Charges then will rise to $19.99 and $29.99.

While overshadowed by Apple's (NasdaqGS:AAPL - News) launch of the iPhone, ThinkEquity analyst Anton Wahlman says "the long-term impact of T-Mobile's HotSpot@Home will be epic."

The dual-mode service also gives T-Mobile the benefit of reducing the load on its cellular network. That's key for T-Mobile, because it has the least radio spectrum among the big four wireless carriers.

To offer the new service, T-Mobile has developed software that provides smooth handoffs between cell and Wi-Fi networks.

"We think this is a big deal," said Joe Sims, T-Mobile's vice president for new businesses. "We know that about one-third of the calls placed on our network today originate in the home, and we know that the No. 1 concern that customers have is coverage in the house."

Some users worry about wireless-only service in emergencies. But Sims says T-Mobile has taken steps to ensure that 9-1-1 service works.

"We're in the landline displacement business," he said.

T-Mobile provides Wi-Fi access at more than 8,000 U.S. locations, including some hotels, airports and Starbucks (NasdaqGS:SBUX - News) stores. T-Mobile's new service is one of the first commercial products to use UMA, or unlicensed mobile access, technology for switching cell phone calls to Wi-Fi networks.

T-Mobile says its service will work with existing Wi-Fi routers in homes. It also will offer its own wireless routers, from D-Link and Cisco Systems (NasdaqGS:CSCO - News) unit Linksys. T-Mobile's router is free, after a $50 rebate, if customers sign up for two-year contracts. T-Mobile will offer cell-Wi-Fi phones from Samsung and Nokia (NYSE:NOK - News) for $49.99 with a two-year contract.

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T-Mobile USA launches home Wi-Fi calling service

T-Mobile USA, the No. 4 U.S. mobile service, said on Wednesday it was starting to offer customers a new service that uses short-range Wi-Fi networks to improve reception when needed.

The U.S. wireless unit of Deutsche Telekom AG said the service would improve indoor coverage by automatically swapping calls from the cellular network to run over Wi-Fi, a radio technology found in most laptop computers and an increasing number of cell phones.

Subscribers would pay an extra fee of up to $19.99 per line or $29.99 for five lines on top of regular monthly cellular bills for unlimited calls in a subscriber's home or the nearly 8,500 places T-Mobile runs Wi-Fi, like Starbucks coffee shops.

Mike Selman, T-Mobile USA's product marketing director, hopes the service appeals to people who want to ditch their landline home phone but are concerned about weak cellular coverage or costs.

"About 30 percent of wireless calls are made from within the home," Selman said.

Selman said the service would help T-Mobile USA compete better with its rivals. Two of them are owned by traditional wireline telephone companies: AT&T Inc. and Verizon Wireless, a venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group Plc.

Sprint Nextel Corp.,the No. 3 U.S. wireless service, does not have a landline business but has forged a venture with cable operators to provide services similar to T-Mobile USA's latest offering.

Jupiter Research analyst Michael Gartenberg said the service made sense for consumers who want only one phone.

"At that point it becomes a very strong incentive to get rid of the landline," he said. "If you have to keep your landline in addition, unless you're planning on talking on your cell phone a lot, the extra $20 may not make sense."

T-Mobile USA's service will work with Samsung Electronics Co.'s t409 phone or the Nokia 6086, which the company will sell online or in its stores.

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Wi-Fi Alliance starts testing draft 802.11n gear

The Wi-Fi Alliance launched the action phase of its plan to get faster wireless networking products into the market on Monday, kicking off certification testing of gear based on a draft version of the IEEE 802.11n standard.

The industry group that popularized wireless LANs expects 802.11n Draft 2.0 products with its seal of approval to be on the market before September. Those routers, access points, clients, and other products should work with other certified gear based on the draft standard as well as existing Wi-Fi gear that uses the 802.11a/b/g standards. They'll also need to pass security and multimedia quality tests. Eight labs in Spain, Taiwan, Japan, and the U.S. are now testing products, according to the industry group, which has about 300 member companies.

The emerging 802.11n specification, which is more complicated than earlier wireless LAN standards because it involves the use of multiple antennas and a large amount of radio spectrum, has been a tough nut for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) to crack. After watching lengthy fights over the proposed standard, the Wi-Fi Alliance last year jumped on Draft 2.0 of the standard as a common ground for vendors to build products that work together. The IEEE is still working on a final 802.11n specification and expects it to be finished in March 2009. There is no guarantee of interoperability between products based on Draft 2.0 and those using the final standard.

Wi-Fi Alliance certification is intended to let consumers buy Draft 2.0 products from different vendors and know they will work together. However, some industry analysts don't expect enterprises to invest in the new generation of technology until the final standard is approved because they need to be sure they have a wide range of products to choose from over a long period of time.

Both Draft 2.0 and the final standard are intended to run at more than 100Mbps, faster than many wired Ethernet connections. The products now being certified can deliver as much as five times the throughput and twice the range of earlier Wi-Fi gear, according to a Wi-Fi Alliance news release. In addition to working with other Draft 2.0 products, the certified products will comply with the group's WPA2 (Wi-Fi Protected Access) security specification and its WMM (Wi-Fi Multimedia) standard for ensuring high-quality voice, video, and gaming.

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Korea's cutting-edge wireless broadband

It's been a year since a Mobile WiMax service was launched in Seoul and one of the world's most wired cities became one of the most wireless.

The service is based on WiBro, a South Korean system that has become a part of the 802.16e Mobile WiMax standard. Whereas Mobile WiMax encompasses three frequency bands and several signal bandwidths, WiBro covers a subset of these and is limited to 2.3GHz and an 8.75MHz bandwidth per channel.

To mark the launch of its WiBro service last year, KT Corporation, the former state-run telecom carrier, took journalists on a trip around Seoul to try out the service in a WiMax-equipped bus. The reporters came away impressed, able to watch Internet video streaming while surfing the Web and videoconferencing all while driving down the street.

But what's the reality a year later? Last week I returned to Seoul to test the service again, this time outside the controlled environment of a promotional bus ride. Seoul is among the first cities in the world to have Mobile WiMax, so the results provide an indication of what the rest of the world can look forward to in the future.

I accessed the service while on the subway, in a bus, and sitting in a coffee shop, and the results were as impressive as they were in last year's staged demonstration.

This was especially true on the subway. Riding the number 2 line from Samseong Station to City Hall, the journey has both underground and overground sections. It connects the Teheran Valley high-tech district in the south, crosses the Han River, and ends in the heart of Seoul's business and media district.

Throughout the 30-minute journey I did not lose the signal once, although the speed did fluctuate somewhat. It would often drop when the train moved out of a station and increase again when it arrived at the next stop.

Web and e-mail access worked so well that I decided to try something a little more demanding and accessed streaming video news clips from the Yahoo Japan portal. The clips are encoded at 300kbps and played without any problem, even while the train was in motion.

Equally surprising was that my little experiment did not draw the attention of the passengers sitting next to me. In a country where most high-end cell phones have TV reception, watching streaming video on the train doesn't seem to impress anybody!

I also accessed an FTP site in the United States from the train and started to download a 40MB video file. The software indicated a download speed of up to 660kbps in stations, and about 320kbps when the train was in motion.

Access from a bus produced much the same results, and while surfing from a coffee shop I enjoyed a connection that hit those same top speeds and remained stable.

Technically the WiBro service appears a success, at least if the results of my small trial are anything to go by, so it's a surprise that it has attracted less than 10,000 users in its first year of service.

The service costs a flat fee of 16,000 won ($17.60) per month for unlimited use during the current trial period, and KT even throws in a WiBro adapter, which plugs into laptops via the USB port. So what's holding people back?

Until now a limited number of WiBro adapters has been available. said Yeom Woojong, a spokesman for KT in Seoul. But now more companies are offering them, he said, and KT expects to attract more subscribers as the year goes on.

At the start of the year it set a target to have 200,000 WiBro users by the end of 2007, and it's sticking to that number, Yeom said.

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Boingo Offers Worldwide Wi-Fi For $39 A Month

Wi-Fi aggregator Boingo Wireless announced a $39-a-month plan Monday that lets international travelers access more than 100,000 global hotspots.

The Boingo Global plan is immediately available at more than 50 hotspots in France and Norway. Boingo said it plans to add service in the United Kingdon, Italy, and Germany later this year.

"The days of per-minute charges and incremental roaming fees for Wi-Fi Internet access are over," said Boingo president and CEO Dave Hagan in a statement. In the United States, Boingo has focused much of its aggregation of paid Wi-Fi sites on airports and hotels.

In Europe, Boingo has partnered with France's Hub Telecom and Norway's Oslo Lufthavn Tele & Data AS. Boingo Global users will have access to nearly 50 Hub Telecom hotspots in airports, hotels, and other key business locations. Airports and hotels in Norway also are included in the agreement.

Boingo also has been expanding its paid service throughout the U.S. In May, the firm signed a deal with Fon, a firm that has been signing up users on a global basis to share and use its service.

Boingo plans are available for service across the country with, for instance, California having some 1,129 Boingo hotspots and Wyoming 8.

The latest Boingo deployment comes as Apple has heightened interest in Wi-Fi because its new iPhone has Wi-Fi capability -- still a rarity among smartphones. At the same time, free Wi-Fi access is growing at a range of locations, including hotels and libraries.

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