(Telstra) Wireless Broadband USB Modem under Linux?

Will Kemp <[email protected]> wrote:
[...]

[About configuring/using a Bluetooth USB-'stick' and mobile phone under
Linux:]

> I think so, if you get the right one. However, that depends on whether
> or not there's decent bluetooth support in the distro you're using (if
> it's what comes pre-installed on the computer, and the computer hasn't
> got bluetooth, it may not have it. You'll need to ask about that in a
> forum that's specific to that distro.
>
> Last time i did it was about a year ago and i was using fedora 8. It was
> reasonably easy, although it took me a little while to work it out. Of
> course, i intended to write it up at the time, but i didn't - and now i
> can't remember clearly what it involved.
>
> Basically, the phone acts as a modem - which is a standard bluetooth
> service. You have to pair the computer and the mobile, using hciattach
> (with the help of hcitool to find the phone's bluetooth address). This
> creates a pty (pseudo tty). Then you use something like wvdial to
> connect to the modem/phone via the pty and dial. The principle's simple
> really, but it's not necessarily easy to work it out.
>
> The above is my recollection from a year ago - i'd recommend googling
> >connect internet bluetooth linux 'mobile phone"< or something along
> those lines. You'll need to find the code to "dial" for an internet
> connection over telstra NextG (although i think that's standard and not
> provider or network dependent). I got it off the web somewhere, when i
> did it. I'm sure i documented it somewhere, but i can't find it now!

Thanks for your explanation and help! In the meantime I have
re-searched the "Acer Aspire User Forums" [1]. The information is all
over the place (Software - Linux, Networking / Communications /
Internet, How to Guides and Drivers / Downloads), but some of the
bluetooth stuff and "wvdial" you mention looks familiar, so it's looks
like everything I need is there somewhere, I 'just' have to find the
needles in the haystacks! :-) Your help enabled me to realize *which*
needles I'm looking for, so thanks again.

However there's also 'bad' news: I thought I checked the costs per MB
for the USB-'stick' NextG modem, versus using a NextG phone as the
modem, but apparently I made a big error. The costs for the latter are
*much* higher than for the former:

USB-'stick' NextG modem (Telstra "Pre-Paid Wireless Broadband"):
----------------------------------------------------------------
Recharge Amount: $20/150Mb, $30/225MB, $40/300MB, $50/625MB, $60, 750MB,
$80/3.5GB, $100/6GB, i.e. 13.3/13.3/13.3/8/2.25/1.65 *cent*/MB.

NextG phone as the modem (Telstra "Pre-Paid Mobile Broadband"):
---------------------------------------------------------------
Browse Plus Packs: $5/5MB, $10/20MB, $29/80MB, $59/200MB, $89/1000MB
i.e. 1/0.50/0.36/0.30/0.09 *dollar* per MB.

I.e. on the low end, the USB-'stick' NextG modem costs more or less
*start* (13.3c), where the NextG phone as the modem costs *end* (9c).

So I guess I'll have to prepare (at home) for both using a NextG phone
as a modem and using a USB-'stick' NextG modem. When I get to Oz, I can
first buy the phone (which, as I said, I probably need anyway for rural
coverage) and try that, and when I can't get it to work or the data
costs are too high, I can buy and try the USB-'stick' NextG modem. Don't
ask what will happen if I can't get neither to work! :-)

Responding to your other post:

> Frank Slootweg wrote:
>
> > N.B. An added complication is that I have to prepare, configure, etc.
> > this stuff at home in The Netherlands, *without* the phone, NextG
> > network, etc., because I can only buy the phone on arrival in Oz. And
> > once I am in Oz, I have no (other) Internet access, so I can't lookup
> > things on the web before the mobile Internet connection works, Catch-22.
>
> Has your current phone got bluetooth? If not, can you borrow a bluetooth
> phone? If so, you can try getting it to work using that phone. Even
> without 3G connection, the principle's the same for GPRS. The dial
> string might be different with Telstra's network, but at least you'll be
> able to find out if you can get it to work.

Great minds think alike! I was thinking the same thing. No, my phone
has neither Bluetooth nor GPRS et al. My wife's phone doesn't fit the
bill either, so I'll have to be very nice to my son or/and son-in-law
and hope they have something which I can borrow.

Thanks again for all your help and that of the other respondents. I
think I have all the information I need, but feel free to continue the
discussion, afterall this is Usenet, isn't it!? :-)

[1] <http://www.aspireoneuser.com/forum/index.php>

---

› See More: (Telstra) Wireless Broadband USB Modem under Linux?

>> OH and BTW I saw a "news" item the other day where a young bloke had used
>> his mobile as a modem. In two months his bill had risen to some $40,000.

Is that all? seen double that in less than a month

> From posts on this newsgroup, i believe Telstra do a "bolt on" 5GB data
> pack for $89 per month. Whatever your data allowance, you really don't

Correct.

And 9gb for about $119