Built-in access to Verizon’s wireless broadband technology, EV-DO, will be featured from three big makers.
“Can you see my commercial via wireless broadband now? Good.” That could be the next step in the evolution of the Verizon can-you-hear-me-now guy. Dell, Lenovo, and HP separately announced agreements to offer connectivity to Verizon’s EV-DO wireless networking.
For Dell, the answer to Inspiron and Latitude users requests for wireless broadband in its available markets will be: “order the V620 card.” That PC card offers speeds of 400 – 700 kilobits per second connectivity to the Verizon network.
Dell plans to sell the card for $249; data plans will cost $79.99 per month for the unlimited Broadband Access plan, but will be cheaper if bundled with a voice plan. Both plans will demand a two-year service agreement from the customer.
Lenovo, which now own IBM’s personal computing business, has been stuffing EV-DO connectivity into its Z-Series ThinkPad notebooks. The Z60t and Z60m machines, both widescreen laptops, will build the Verizon-compatible antenna into the laptops themselves.
HP, like Dell, will offer an external PC card for its laptop models, but will not have them available until this fall. And like Lenovo, HP will begin building the antenna technology into laptops; those models should be available in early 2006, according to a press release.
Verizon’s pricing and partnerships all focus on the business market. The speeds offered with EV-DO make common enterprise tasks like email and Web browsing much easier. Verizon EV-DO connectivity can be found in more than five dozen airports and about as many metropolitan areas.
For usage in entertainment and gaming applications, the speed available from EV-DO or another wireless technology will have to be much faster than the advertised speeds of 400 – 700 kbps. For now, productivity, not fragging, will be the focus of these products.
David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business. Email him here.
