HIGH-SPEED TEST DRIVE - Review 3.1mbps Data Cards from Tata Photon+ and Reliance Netconnect

CAN 3.1 mbps really be possible on a datacard? Well, a lot of phone calls I have been getting for the past fortnight from Tata and Reliance claim so. Since the only reason some people don’t buy datacards is the horrible speeds they offer, I was keen to put the high speed claims to test.

I filled up the online forms for the Tata Photon+ and the Reliance Netconnect Broadband Plus demos. When I failed to hear from them for four days, I called up my account manager with Reliance and was told that he did not have much idea about the “new product”. However, after working the phone lines for a few more days, I had guys from both companies at my place for demonstrations.

But, since I could not use either of the cards for more that five hours, the tests may not have been as thorough as I would like them to be. But the results should be able to answer most of your questions.

Can old cards give high speeds? The new data cards — the ZTE Black USB data card from Reliance look like any other old card — uses new technology and you will not be able to get the high speeds on existing cards.

Is it really going to give me 3.1 mbps? Well, it is faster than the old cards, but not as fast as you would have thought 3.1 mbps would be. But if you download a lot of files and your life is spent using Flickr, Google, Yahoo and Facebook, you will see a remarkable difference.

Will the companies upgrade my old card? No, they will not. They will also not migrate the phone number mapped to your old card, so the money you spent on your card goes down the drain though it is just a yearold. Plus you will need to spend Rs 3,500 to buy the new hardware and service.

How much does the service cost? There is a slight change in tariff from old cards. I found Tata’s tariffs to be more consumer-friendly. Reliance offers an unlimited night time usage plan — but the fine print says unlimited as per Reliance means only 10 GB of datadownload.

Is the service available every where? Well, yes and no. The service will work every where, but since most cities still have old networks, you will get the 3.1 mbps only in select cities for now.

Who should I prefer, Tata or Reliance? Well, they are both good. I need Internet access during my frequent travels and keep using data cards. So I would prefer the Tata Photon+ since there is the option for an additional wireless router (costs approximately Rs 14,000) which connects to the Internet at 3.1 mbps speed any where while linking to my laptop wirelessly. I loved the product, but it is still not available with most dealers.

Are they Mac/Linux compatible? The Reliance website claims they have a Mac and a Linux driver, and as usual a Windows driver. The demo units were installed on a Windows machine and the executive who came for the demo had no idea about Macs. Will have to wait till I buy the product, or till the companies decide to send over Macs for testing.

Should I upgrade? Well, I will not take the plunge right now. I have about four data cards in my office,and all of them seem to have become redundant now, though they are just over a year old. So I will wait and see if we get 3G from Airtel, Idea or Vodaphone. Once 3G is available, I will preferably use it through the GSM phones. Better to see how the market evolves.

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TEST RESULTS
Maximum Download Speed: 2mbps. I did not touch 3.1 mbps in any condition
Maximum Upload Speed: 1mbps, though the compnies claim a max speed of 1.8 mbps
Over all browsing experience: Great
Voip/Skype: I had some trouble. But I think this was due to thes low powered laptop used for the demo Torrent download: Very slow, could manage only about 200-300 kbps Connectivity: Tata was stable but experienced drops in connectivity with Reliance
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For more information, click here for Tata Photon+ or here for Reliance Netconnect

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The above article appeared in the Indian Express, on May 3rd 2009