How to Get Around Satellite Internet

Up until about two months ago I had absolutely no internet. A quick search around the internet revealed that the only way to get internet to my house was through a satellite connection. This was upsetting to me, as I have become well aware of how finicky satellites tend to be in less than ideal weather and the upload/download speeds were not quite up to par. On top of that, the most basic of the available connections was $50. I'm no cheapskate, but that was unheard of. When I had a house closer to the city, I was only paying $25 and the connection offered decent upload and download speeds. I knew my cell phone plan was going to be up soon, so I decided to look into phones that offered internet as an available option. Enter: the Apple iPhone.

From the first time I browsed the web on an iPhone, I was hooked. Normally, smartphones that have internet capability are quite limited in that they offer only partial HTML (the web's "language") support. Meaning, they may be able to connect to the internet but your experience is going to be quite limited. On the iPhone, it's different. The iPhone offers rich HTML support on its native Safari web browsing application. Web pages look crisp, clean. Almost as if they were being viewed on a full size computer monitor. Obviously the difference being the small form factor of the iPhone. To address this, Apple incorporated multitouch into the software allowing the user to use two points of contact (two fingers) to zoom in or zoom out.

Through the App Store on my iPhone I recently picked up a spiffy application called iSpeed. Basically, this app tests your internet connection on your iPhone/iPod touch and gives you the exact bandwidth number, whether it be through Wifi, Edge, or 3G. Inside my house I can routinely pull around 200 Kbps. Browsing the web on the EDGE network seems to be prompt and along with the rich HTML support, the two combine to provide a pleasant, well rounded web experience. It's not the same as having a full size laptop computer, but you can't fit one of those in your pocket.

On my cell phone bill, I pay $40 for internet access. Now, that might not seem like too drastic of a deal but look at the additional capabilities that come along with the iPhone. I can, and usually do, take my iPhone with me anywhere and almost always, I will have at least a slow connection to the internet. Had I gone with the satellite internet, the only access point for me would have been my house.

If you are in a position in which your options for stationary internet do not suit your wants, I strongly encourage you to venture over to your local mall and check out phones that can access the internet. There are many, many options available and accessing the internet through the cell network can give you wireless freedom. You may not need something as advanced as an iPhone, and there are many phones with internet capability in the sub-$100 category.