I know nothing about mobile broadband

Question from Oman:

I know nothing about mobile broadband, so this may be a daft question! Does it work over normal mobile phone networks, 3G (whatever and wherever that is) or wifi - such as internet cafes etc??

Answer:

Not a daft question! Yes, mobile broadband operates over the mobile phone network but only where the system supports what is called a 3G service. It is not wifi which only usually works in a small radius.

Essentially, you have a modem which plugs into your laptop, (usually via a usb port), and you plug a normal mobile phone sim card into the modem and away you go.

You can use it anywhere there is 3G coverage over the mobile phone network.

This may mean, however, that service can be patchy.

In South Africa, I understand coverage is restricted to the main population belts even though there is mobile phone coverage nationally.

Here in Portugal, we have about 95% coverage, the main constraint being that people in places, such as steep valleys, where there is no "line of sight" coverage, cannot get reception.

In Oman, Oman mobile offer the C 120 modem with the following specs:

- 3.5G 7.2 Mbps Downlink Ready
- Plug and play (No installation CD required)
- Quad Band
- Support Windows and MAC Operating Systems

They say there is national coverage but me suspects that in some of the mountains down south near Salalah this may encounter the same problems I mentioned above.

Nawras also offer mobile broadband here:

http://www.nawras.om/nawras_promotions_overview.shtml

However, their coverage is not as great as claimed by Oman Mobile.