Mr. Yost wrote: "I believe that Verizon's 3G network is the most advanced available today for cellular broadband connectivity. They are one generation ahead of Sprint." Sterling's comments about Verizon being better on the GL is generally supported by others who have made the same trip. However, I think you have the Verizon and ATT/Cingular technologies confused. Verizon uses EVDO, widely available in the states. ATT/Cingular and others use 3G, which is more of a world standard and likely to grow as it is already popular in Europe and parts of Asia. In the longer run, 3G has more flexibility to grow with voice and data, versus the limited "data only" of EVDO. While EVDO may have the edge for coverage now, I assume that is going to shift in favor of 3G. Maybe I'm confused, so somebody with Jeffrey Siegel's vast knowledge could set us straight. The issue is important to this group because we have to invest in equipment for whichever technology we choose to go with. No need to invest in a lot of equipment that is going to become obsolete. If you want max range out on the water, you will probably want an external antenna, an amplifier, and then probably a router as well. At the present time, the equipment for EVDO and 3G are not compatible, but you should decide which one you are going to use for the future. Martin Veiner ____________________________________________________________ Summer Spa Sweepstakes Enter for your chance to WIN a Summer Spa Vacation! http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL2131/fc/JKFkuJNzt9aKeIwSxNN6NtpwPVx08LuBL z3iZ2IZpGftGGwHEUnfnq/

> Maybe I'm confused, so somebody with Jeffrey Siegel's > vast knowledge could set us straight. > Vast? I just have more scars from getting beat up while meeting my own needs! Karen and I are in the middle of a multi-part series all about using mobile phones on boats. The third article comes out tomorrow morning at www.madmariner.com. The 11 part series (or 12-13 - we keep coming up with more things to discuss) started 2 weeks ago. The first article was an introduction. Last week discussed amplification and antennas. In there we discussed the technology differences between CDMA (Verizon, etc) and GSM (AT&T, etc). This week is about navigation. Then weather. Then tides and currents, other applications, and eventually different phones, operating systems, and other associated phone issues (air cards, tethering, etc). The articles are all freely available when they come out (on Monday mornings). I think that both AT&T and Verizon have great support along the east coast and throughout the loop. There are some places where one will work a little better than the other but they are small areas and they are disappearing. Having an amplifier eliminates the problems completely along the Atlantic coast - I checked that myself between the Penobscot Bay in Maine and Key West. The Pungo-Alligator Canal (20 nm) was the only dead zone I found. I would suspect that an amplifier would eliminate connectivity issues along the rivers of the various loop routes too. No one has told me about any problem areas and ActiveCaptain is filling up with anchorages along the loop being put in by people who are connected while anchored (the loop is generating twice the number of new anchorages compared against the coast today - someone out there is getting connected!). In general (and these are very big generalizations), Verizon voice quality is better. High speed internet (EVDO/Verizon and 3G/AT&T) is only really available in larger metropolitan areas. That will change as the cell towers get updated but the providers spend their money first where the most people live. Some of the nicest places we all take our boats are in the remote areas where getting a high speed connection will take some time to reach. Frankly, 1xRTT/Verizon and Edge/AT&T is adequate enough when you're anchored somewhere for getting email and doing some basic web browsing. That's all most people need to do in those situations. If you need to watch live streaming video, a remote anchorage on the Tenn-Tom River probably isn't the place to expect it to work. AT&T/GSM has the advantage of using SIM cards. Moving your SIM to a different phone or different device moves your account without getting the provider involved (locking issues aside). If you're only using a single phone, it probably won't make a difference to you though. Whenever I'm asked the question of Verizon vs AT&T, the deciding point usually revolves around international use. If you need to use your phone outside the US, AT&T/GSM is generally going to give better connectivity (voice and data). Canada does have Verizon/CDMA support although there are places where it doesn't work because the Canadian provider stops it from working. This might be changing. In other international places, Verizon/CDMA will just not work at all for voice or data (except in some large metropolitan areas). On the other hand, AT&T/GSM will work throughout the rest of the world since GSM is the technology that the rest of the world uses. Note that today you have to tell AT&T that you'll be going to Europe, etc. so they'll allow your account to work internationally. In general: Verizon vs AT&T for the loop? It doesn't matter. It's sort of like Coke vs Pepsi. ================================== Jeffrey Siegel M/V aCappella DeFever 53PH W1ACA/WDB4350 Castine, Maine www.activecaptain.com Content, Communications, Community ..