As a consumer trying to decide which broadband option is best you ,one of the points you need to consider is whether the hardware you buy is compatible with your laptop or desktop computer. So besides wading through the question like "3G/HSDPA or iBurst" or "capped, uncapped or prepaid ADSL" you need to ensure that the broadband modem you get for your solution will work with your hardware.

Broadband hardware type categories

There are 4 categories of hardware that you need to consider. Hardware is categorised by the physical connection to your laptop or desktop. Fortunaltey this is made a bit easier by deciding if you want to use the hardware on a laptop or deskstop. The hardware categories are as follows:

• USB -Dekstops/Laptops,
• PC Card or PCMCIA (yes they changed the name of the slot just to make it more confusing!) - Laptops,
• PC-X or PC-Express  - Laptops,
• Network connection - Desktop/Laptops

USB - Universal Serial Bus Broadband modems

Well the U in USB stands for Universal.  Nearly all computers and laptops that have been purchased in the last 5 years should have these slots. If you look on the sides/ back of a laptop or the front/bakc of desktops and you can see a narrow 2cm long about 0.5 cm thick oblong shaped port, then your computer supports USB. There is usually more than one USB port available so you may see two or three together. Basically, unless your computer is older than 5 years you can be assured that you have a USB port. (see wikipedia article here)

Advantages and disadvantages of USB modems

USB based broadband modems for 3G/HSDPA and USB modems for iBurst are by far the favourite way of connecting to the Internet if you are looking for mobile/wireless access. The advantage of USB is that it is small size maks it very portable and that it can be used on desktops and laptops. The disadvantage is that they are the most expensive modems available.

PC-Card/PCMCIA and PC-Express broadband modems

These slot only come with laptops. You can get an expansion card for your desktop computer but this is very seldom used and never comes by default with the desktop.

First lets deal with PC-Card and PCMCIA cards. There is some confusion about this because, for the first years of the slots existence, it was called PCMCIA. Later the marketing people decided this was a bad idea and rebranded the slot as PC-Card slots. So if you laptop's manual says it has a PCMCIA slot it will take any PC-Card based hardware and vica-versa. Most older laptops have this type of slot. This slot is usually on the side of the laptop, is very thin and long. If you look at a credit card the side on you will get an idea of what the slot should look like. The slot usually has some buttons you can push to eject the card after insertion. Most of you will be familiar with the older 3g option pc-card. The PC-card is considered passe.  We sell a cheap, refurbished 3G option card which is used by companies or individuals with older laptops who are price sensitive and need basic connectivity. (See wikipedia article here)

To make the compatibility matter worse, a newer version of the PC-Card or PCMCIA slot has recently been released called PC Express. Most newer laptops will have this type of slot. Deceptively the slot for PC-Express looks exactly like a PC-Card/PCMCIA slot! The only real way to tell which type of slot you have is to consult your laptops manual or the manufacturers web site! The only way to see the difference between the PC-Card and PC_Express card is by the indentation on the card itself.  (see wikipedia article here)

Advantages and disadvantages of PC-Cards/PCMCIA or PC-Express cards

The advantage of PC-Card or PC-Express cards is that they are cheaper than USB based cards. The disadvantage is that they only work on laptops unless your desktop has an expansion card. Besides this the confusion over which type of slot your laptop supports means that PC card or PC-Express based hardware is not that popular. People who make use of the 3G option pc-card or the hsdpa based globetrotter pc-card usually have older laptops or are using a linksys based 3G router which has a PC-card slot.

Network based broadband routers

Like USB nearly every computer these days including many older pcs has a network port. The network port looks like a larger version of the telephone plug you have at home. It is usually located at the back of desktops and on the side of laptops. Network based broadband hardware is usually used when one is sharing a connection. Nearly all ADSL hardware uses network based connections some router also support wireless networking if you computer supports this.

Besides ADSL connections network based broadband hardware is also available for iBurst. Network based hardware for 3g/HSDPA is seldom used. This is because 3g/HSDPA is very expensive and not ideal for use by many people at the same time. However there is the Linksys router which requires a separate PC-Card and the Globesurfer 3G/HSDPA router which has a card built in for those people who can't get a telkom ADSL line or have poor iBurst reception in their area.

Conclusion

Well I hope this makes it easier for you to make a decision on which broadband option is best for you. If you are still confused please call us on 011-781 8014 and one of our consultants will be happy to assist.