Email/Web Acccess During Travel

[Judy Kingery]

Hello!

Recently during a rather long trip, it came to mind it would be nice to have remote access to email, although we do use a cell and are aware email distruption might be akin to cell service disruption in some areas. I also prefer a lap top or keyboard/remote mouse (regular keyboard) as opposed to a blackberry or texting type of keypad (numerical).

What laptop (or other device) and service would you recommend to access the web and email regardless of where you, i.e. in the car, are when you travel? And why?

Any recommendations/suggestions and experiences would certainly be appreciated as we're thinking of doing this for our next trip. Thank you so much in advance!

Jude

[Gene Howe]

Look for a lap top with built in WiFi. Most motels, campgrounds have free wifi.
You can even roam around neighborhoods and pick up a signal from someone who is using wifi in their homes and has not protected the signal....like me:o

We are going to get this one:
http://www.shopping.hp.com/store/product/product_detail/NF795UA%2523ABA?

In case the link doesn't work, it's an HP G70-250us Notebook PC, Black and Silver
This one has a built in web cam. If you don't need that, it might be less expensive.
Go to their site and look around.

[Myk Rian]

You can even roam around neighborhoods and pick up a signal from someone who is using wifi in their homes and has not protected the signal....like me:o
And that, is against the law.

[travis howe]

I'm not sure how valuable it would be to you if you're only needing it for this one trip but sprint and at&t have "aircards" which go into a pcmcia card slot on most all laptops or can be external and connected to usb port...they are high speed internet access via cell carriers. The new gen 2 stuff that is out now is very reliable and surprisingly fast.

If you search for at&t wireless Internet you will see several options they have.

[Judy Kingery]

Ok, I appreciate the responses very much, and it makes sense on hotels and truck stops with WiFi available through their providers; that'd be easy.

Second response is the reason why I added an inquiry about a service you prefer? Anybody else have any additional ideas?

Sure would appreciate it, thanks!

Oh, didn't see the additional response from you, Travis, I'll take a look - thank you much!

Jude

[Ted Shrader]

Judy -

We use a Dell laptop w/ a wireless LAN card or, if required, the built in LAN card w/ ethernet cable in a hotel.

We have Cox internet service and with that you can go to their web page and get to web mail from there. Works just fine. Check with your provider to see if they have that feature.

Regards,
Ted

[Ed Hazel]

My daughter has an I pod Touch that has built in WiFi but that still limits you to a cellphone type keyboard.
When I travel I take my laptop with me, like mention before Wifi is relatively easy to find, hotels, restaurants, coffee shops ect.
You can purchase wireless cards from Version, Sprint ect they are about 50 bucks a month with two year subscription.

In my area the Libraries have Wifi and most all have computers you can use free of charge to access the Internet.

[RickT Harding]

I have a nokia E71 cell phone. What's great is that while I can get email on it, I can also plug it into my laptop or connect with it via bluetooth and use it as a modem. It's not as fast and has more latency than my home cable connection, but it works pretty well at about T1 speeds.

Can't live without it, that's for sure.

[Brad Wood]

I use a Blackberry. It is connected to work email using the Blackberry Enterprise server. I am pretty sure home users can install some software that will link it up to to your home email.
I can check my hotmail, gmail, home email via the web access, and corporate email... also have internet access.

Works great if you don't need super high speed access all the time wherever you go

[Bob Moyer]

Staples has a 17" HP DV7-1232 for $649.99 their sku 772622 it is in this week's flyer 4GB ram 320gb hard drive. Bought one on Sunday, nice laptop!

[Gene Howe]

And that, is against the law.

Yep, and I've been known to speed a little, too.:o

[Chris Krysinski]

If you only plan to do basic email and internet then you might want to consider those little netbooks which have 8-10" screens and cost between $300-600. They're small and light, perfect for travel and light computing.

[Eric DeSilva]

And that, is against the law.

Really? Got a cite for that, or are you assuming? I know there was a FL case where someone got arrested, but I never heard the outcome. That is the only instance where I've heard of someone getting busted for using a Wi-Fi network that was not password protected. (The dude in the FL case seemed to be acting... a bit strange.)

Besides, there are so many access points out there that are free, how the heck are you supposed to know the difference?

[Eric DeSilva]

In my area the Libraries have Wifi and most all have computers you can use free of charge to access the Internet.

Hotels often also have guest-use computers, and there are internet cafes all over the place as well.

One cautionary note about using a computer that isn't yours--take some precautions. I would recommend getting a USB thumb drive and installing Geek Menu, Portable Firefox, and Portable Thunderbird. All are free, open source applications that run and leave no trace on the host computer. As long as the host computer hasn't somehow disabled USB port access, you can run the applications off the USB key without admin privileges. For higher privacy, look up Portable Tor and FoxTor or TorButton.

[Judy Kingery]

Thanks everyone for your generous information; Chris a friend here also recommended something like that called 'Acer,' would fit my needs pretty easily. Just email and web access on the road, nothing more. I'm not sure if it's outfitted with WiFi or what, I'll take a closer look at them.

Thanks to call!

Jude

[Matt Meiser]

I'm actually posting from my phone right now while waiting ti pick my daughter up but its a pain typing on the tiny keys. If you want true mobile access then a wireless broadband card from any of the major providers will probably meet your needs. Since most are USB now you can use pretty much any laptop. The plans run $60 per month. Places like airports, book stores, Starbucks, etc typically charge for service and you can get a variety of plans from them or pay for a day pass as needed. I've used it at airports several times when I've had long waits and work to do that required access and its not too bad for very occasional use.

[Judy Kingery]

Thanks to all who responded with such great suggestions - went with an Acer Aspire, suits me to a T, easy to carry, yet still has a keyboard (I dislike texting on a cell phone) - next will see what kind of plan our current provider has - thanks again everyone!

Jude

[Frank Hagan]

Thanks to all who responded with such great suggestions - went with an Acer Aspire, suits me to a T, easy to carry, yet still has a keyboard (I dislike texting on a cell phone) - next will see what kind of plan our current provider has - thanks again everyone!


People have mentioned two different types of wireless access. One is buying a monthly plan and a wireless card to connect to a network (usually operated by a cell phone company). Verizon's service is called BroadbandAccess and AT&T's is called DataConnect (both are about $60 per month in my area). This is a great solution for those on the road within a defined area where you know there is coverage, but less ideal for occasional travel to places you haven't been before (and where you don't have assurance there will be coverage for your plan). And, you're paying $720 per year for the privilege.

The other type of access is standard WiFi access through your laptop's built-in 802.11 wireless adapter. Access is available "free" at McDonalds, Starbucks, many independent coffee shops and other businesses if you go in and buy something (do NOT sit in the parking lot and "surf for free", as some communities are cracking down on this practice ... the assumption is that you are a hacker, as the companies providing free wifi service often use the same network to transmit credit car info to their servers. Even if you are innocent, your laptop can be seized and held while they check it out.)

Hotels, cruise ships, etc. use this type of standard WiFi access as well, but often will charge for connecting. Hotels I've stayed at range from free to $10 per day. The advantage of this type of access is that there is no monthly fee, and it is available nearly everywhere at fixed locations. But if you are a contractor or woodworker installing something at a customer's house, and want access to the internet from their driveway, this option won't work as well.

I've carried a laptop for on-line access from before the days of the Internet (we used to have to remove the jacks from the hotel walls and use special alligator clips to connect to the phone lines .... now most hotels have either a ethernet jack or wireless). I still take my laptop on most vacations, but when we go on a cruise ship I don't bother ... they charge .25 per minute to access their wireless, and its lousy service. So now I find an Internet cafe in each port (nearly every port has one) and pay $3 to $4 for an hour's access.

Your Acer laptop probably has a wireless adapter already, so head on down to the nearest McDonalds or Starbucks, buy a cup of coffee and see if you can log on!

[RickT Harding]

People have mentioned two different types of wireless access. One is buying a monthly plan and a wireless card to connect to a network (usually operated by a cell phone company).

Just to be complete. The third option is a tethering plan that allows you to tether your 3g cell phone to your laptop. That's a $15 ad on for my current cell phone plan (AT&T). Not nearly so bad if you use it enough. Especially when you hit places that want $7-12 to connect to wireless for a day.