Thread: Need advice on mobile broadband in India

Hi,

I plan to take my iPhone development work and try out working in India for a while. It won't be my first time in India, I love the country

I will bring over my own iPhone and MacBook to develop on, and I would require them to be connected to the Internet as much as possible.

I have a couple of questions that if anyone can assist me with, it will be of great help.

The setup I thought about was to get a mobile 3g modem and a mobile router to go with it. This way, I can create my own WiFi network to connect both the laptop and the iPhone wherever I go.

My Questions are:
- Is this setup viable?
- Can you think of a better setup?
- Will local mobile providers support it?
- Which mobile provider would you recommend?
- At what price?
- should I buy the modem & router before I get to India, or should I buy once I get there?
- Where in India can I expect to get 3G reception and where not? (I am hoping to stay away of big cities)
- What download/upload speeds should I expect to get?


That's a whole lot of questions, I know, but it's a big unknown for me, and I would love to have more information before I actually get there.

Again, any kind of help would be appreciated

Thanks,
Omer.

There are only two service providers providing 3g services

Mtnl : Delhi and Mumbai

Bsnl : Rest of India

3G spectrum has just been sold and others who won the spectrum in recent biddings are yet to roll out 3g services.

Your best bet would be Reliance netconnect broadband plus or Tata photon+ which will provide you speed of "upto" 3.1mbps but in reality you should expect something like 512kbps to 2mbps depending upon the signal strength.

Both the above mentioned services are on CDMA platfor and use EVDO technology and a 3g modem wont help.. Its not too costly.. Less then Rs3000 I guess .. might be even less.. havent checked recently.

Bsnl has rolled out 3G pretty much every where in India but it would be safe to say that Bsnl does not cover all rural areas and even some parts of some cities.

Mumbai and Delhi on the other hand are almost 100% covered by Mtnl's 3g service.


When are you planning to come to India? If it is by the end of this year then you might get more then 3-4 choices on 3g providers alone.

Do not buy anything ... You will get it all in India and have a guarantee that it will work here and there wont be any surprises for you.

Prices are something like Rs1500-2000 per month for a 10GB limit per month for Reliance Net connect broadband plus and almost the same for Tata.

Bsnl evdo is cheaper I think 650 a month for unlimited but will have to confirm... I am talking a year and a half ago.

Any one got any idea about Bsnl 3g tariffs?

Thanks,
that's a big help.

Do you happen to know if these providers also offer a mobile router, so I can share the connection between my laptop and my iPhone?

Come to think of it, here's another question:
can I make do with an unlimited iphone program and tethering my laptop via the iPhone? What kind of speed can I hope for?

Thanks again,
Omer.

Originally Posted by omer

Do you happen to know if these providers also offer a mobile router, so I can share the connection between my laptop and my iPhone?

None of the mobile service providers sell anything apart from the usb modem.. You can buy the router from cities like Newdelhi and Mumbai from one of the computer hardware markets that we have here.

Originally Posted by omer

can I make do with an unlimited iphone program and tethering my laptop via the iPhone? What kind of speed can I hope for?

You can get a Bsnl 3g sim card (GSM) and use it with your Iphone. It will give you decent speeds or lets say browsing and sending small files wont be an issue. I have an Mtnl connection that uses Bsnl network when I am out of Delhi and I normally get 256kbps+ speed but it does not work "every where" You might have a hard time getting a 3g signal in places away from large cities and especially places like Himachal pradesh which I strongly suspect is on your radar for your stay in India..

It is best to get your connection from where you going to stay instead of buying something before hand and finding out that it doesn't work at the place you want to stay... Locals know what works best at their place.

If you can list out your options (where you want to stay) you might be able to get some specific information on what works where as we have members here from all parts of India.


If you can live with a 100kbps kind of speed then get an Airtel or vodafone sim card and use their gprs EDGE service which will be less then 500-700 Rs a month.

Nice guess, but actually not Himachal Pradesh.

2 good options on my mind are Rishikesh and Tiruvannamalai. Far apart, but I like both.
If you have any recommendations for somewhere That is close to nature, relatively cheap, and still with goo dinfrastructure, I'd love to hear.

Thanks again,
Omer.

Originally Posted by omer

Nice guess, but actually not Himachal Pradesh.

2 good options on my mind are Rishikesh and Tiruvannamalai. Far apart, but I like both.
If you have any recommendations for somewhere That is close to nature, relatively cheap, and still with goo dinfrastructure, I'd love to hear.

Thanks again,
Omer.

You can try Kerala. Aleppy is a place in Kerala and is very famous for its backwaters. Very nice place and cheap too. You will get luxurious set up if you are willing to pay. Try Kerala Tourism in Google. You will get everything you want.

As for connection your iPhone to the main connection, simply use Connectify. I presume that your laptop/desktop runs on Windows 7.

More details

Connectify - Turn your Windows 7 laptop into a Wi-Fi Hotspot

Kerala is a good idea,
and connectify as well. There's no Connectify for mac, but I discovered you can do the same (share your internet connection with the iPhone) manually. Good thinking.

thanks,
Omer.

Try Coming to Mumbai
Youll have all the services availiable in Mumbai in India
+If you feel hungry @ 1am you can still order food

Originally Posted by omer

Do you happen to know if these providers also offer a mobile router, so I can share the connection between my laptop and my iPhone?

Just for the record of anyone who might be browsing this old thread, TATA now provides a mobile EVDO modem + wifi router under the brand name Photon+ WiFi

Originally Posted by panchabhut

Just for the record of anyone who might be browsing this old thread, TATA now provides a mobile EVDO modem + wifi router under the brand name Photon+ Pro.

How much does it cost ? By wifi router, you mean you share the connection through wifi to other computers ?

Any wifi connection, including PC, Laptop, Mobile, VoIP Phone etc.

Portable Wi-Fi Router. Comes with inbuilt rechargeable Li-ion Battery. Router has a slim and compact design. This makes it extremely convenient to carry in a pocket.

Supports one RJ45 Ethernet Port & upto 5 simultaneous users on the go. You can now create a portable hotspot anytime anywhere.

Speeds Up to 3.1 Mbps (Downlink) and 1.8 Mbps (Uplink) distributed across connected users. Compatible on 1x services where HSIA is not present.

Simple activation and installation with User-friendly web-based interface. Switch on and start surfing. Secured Access. The connection is password protected.

Price of Device - 4999
Starter Kit - 100
All Photon+ postpaid plans available

Presently available in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore

Co. Website

Originally Posted by panchabhut

Any wifi connection, including PC, Laptop, Mobile, VoIP Phone etc.

Portable Wi-Fi Router. Comes with inbuilt rechargeable Li-ion Battery. Router has a slim and compact design. This makes it extremely convenient to carry in a pocket.

Supports one RJ45 Ethernet Port & upto 5 simultaneous users on the go. You can now create a portable hotspot anytime anywhere.

Speeds Up to 3.1 Mbps (Downlink) and 1.8 Mbps (Uplink) distributed across connected users. Compatible on 1x services where HSIA is not present.

Simple activation and installation with User-friendly web-based interface. Switch on and start surfing. Secured Access. The connection is password protected.

Price of Device - 4999
Starter Kit - 100
All Photon+ postpaid plans available

Presently available in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore

Is there any roaming charge? So for example, if I buy the router and service in Mumbai, could I also use it in Delhi and Bangalore without any roaming charge?

No additional roaming charge. Normal data usage charges apply.

Router needs to be bought in the Metro. Can be used anywhere in India where TATA Indicom services are available.