Wi-Fi Alternative

Forbes.com has an awfully cheerful article called The Wireless Workplace Goes Cellular that touts the billions spent on upgrading networks to handle greater amounts of traffic. That upgrade means, theoretically, workers can get online anywhere they can get a cellular signal. Outfitting corporate road warriors’ notebook computers with cellular access cards could not only make their lives easier, the story says, but cut costs and increase efficiency. Cellular data services are not as fast as Wi-Fi (the story doesn’t discuss security issues), but they provide a cheap, efficient alternative. Forbes writes, “Cellular even helps users improve the quality of their time off,” and quotes the chief operating officer of Houston-based financial consulting firm John M. Floyd & Associates, who recently used it on a boat trip to Key West. “We stayed in contact the whole time,” she says. “If you had wireless, you wouldn’t be able to do that, you’d have to go to a Starbucks or something.” Hm. You might want to think twice about putting that access card in your own computer if you’ve got a vacation coming up.