Laptop Connect

[Cedrica-the-Bard]

Does anyone here have any experience with the Laptop Connect internet connection? In terms of playing DDO?

The plan available to us starts at $30 a month (stick is free) and increases depending on usage but caps at $100 per month. Just wondering how much usage DDO actually takes up assuming I play 3-4 times a week for 4-5 hours.

If anyone uses this as their internet connection, I'd love to hear some feedback.

[Beherit_Baphomar]

Are you talking about wireless?

If you are then yeah, I play on wireless.

Sometimes its absolutely insanely horrible, sometimes very little lag.

It depends on where you live too Cedrica. Do you live in the boonies like me? Im talkin' 'bout thee boonies...hell, Im lucky I can get a landline where Im at. I dont get
3G speeds, but I get good EDGE coverage. I can deal with playing on wireless, but it sometimes gets too much.

Oh and a lil tip. Tinfoil makes the signal stronger.
I swear to God.

[SqtYork]

I wouldn't even think about it unless you can get unlimited data. The bandwidth is good enough. I've even used Internet capable cell phone as a bluetooth modem and avoided the USB device and separate data service charge for that device.

[woundead85]

It very much depends on the network IPS uses. I have very good expirience with my laptop (DDO-wise), though during overloaded hours the game is not playable. When it is - I get better game than home landline/Wi-Fi. Ow, yeah, my Inspiron 1525, surprisingly have better DDO performance, than my Quad-Core 2.8GHz 1024MB Graphix. Weird.

[Sapience]

Hi All! Tolero pointed me in this direction since I have some experience in playing via wireless service.

You can do it. It does work and it's not horrible (usually). There are however, some caveats.

For starters,check the coverage maps of whichever provider you're considering going with. Then see where you are. If you're on the edges of a zone, consider the map a fairy tale. You probably won't get anything close to advertised speeds and you may find dead spots in or around your home. Some companies give you a 30 day period to 'test'. See if yours has one. You might find you spent money on something you can't use.

Then get the unlimited plan. Yes you'll pay $100 or so per month but there's nothing worse than buying the lowest tier thinking it's enough only to open up a $300 bill (been there done that).

Accept that you are going to be introducing an additional layer of lag. Even if we're talking 3G you're going to have increased latency. If you are in a location where it's Edge only, then you're talking marginally better than Dial up and even more severe latency. But you will be able to play.

Don't assume a good signal when you use your phone is going to mean a good signal when using your laptop connect device. I have been in places where my call signal was full bars and the card couldn't find a network.

You can, as suggested above, 'sneak' connections using a bluetooth connection and your cell phone. Just be warned; Most companies charge for tethering. If you get caught (and a ton of data 3-4 times a week for 5-6 hours is a BIG red flag), you'll get a bill. A big one.

If wireless is your only option, then most of this is moot. You can play, it may not always be the best but it will work. It's just going to cost you a good chunk of change. If you have any other option. Even if it's the lowest level of DSL or Cable, it's a far better and likely cheaper, choice.

Hope it helped.
S.

[Cedrica-the-Bard]

Just a quick update on my experiences with this.

Unfortunately, the coverage in my area is only EDGE. So, I can log on, run around, solo quests and explorer areas no problem. As soon as I'm in a group, well it just gums up REALLY bad. The speed is on average 150 kbps with Edge. So, while the game is playable versus dial-up, I can't do raids or intensive group quests while at home.

Whenever I want to raid, I take my laptop to a friends house where the towers are configured for a 3G network. MUCH better! The speeds are about 1.2 Mbps and I don't even notice the latency.

If only they would upgrade the tower to 3G by my house!

Finally, I was told that purchasing an amplifier for your home to boost the tower signal to 5 bars will improve performance, even if you only get EDGE. I havn't bought this because I'm switching to satellite (long story, but in the Province where I am, there is finally government induced hope for us rural people...), so I don't know how accurate this is. I know the amplifiers go for around $200 plus installation.

[woundead85]

Well, considering the prices you said, it's ~30$ where I live (Israel) for an unlimited data plan. I do have HSPA always. I took my laptop with me in January to Gaza (fighting zone, I'm a soldier) and always got a good signal. I even managed to play DDO! About the latency. I have a landline home, but I still prefer to use my laptop with Air-Card, cause the speeds are insane, and I'm not their promoter . I just have this little problem when between 8PM and ~11PM-12AM I can't log. But I think this is more of a network problem. I just have to know how the network works, so I can try to explain my ISP what to tweak in order for me to play. Except for that, I always carry my laptop everywhere and I really enjoy this connection.