[JasW]

Almost anytime I'm in a wifi hotspot with my Bold, I connect to it. (And my Bold automatically connects to wifi in my home.) I was in a hotspot on Saturday, connected to it, and then I wondered -- why am I doing this? It's not really giving me anything I don't have with 3G and an unlimited data plan.

I'm not saying I don't need wifi -- obviously, if I'm traveling and I'm in an area without 3G reception it would come in handy.

But the rationale for it -- at least for those of us who with unlimited plans who live in an area where good 3G service isn't lacking -- is that wifi is faster than 3G. I haven't really seen that, however. Maybe it's a bit faster, but gauging speed can be highly subjective. I haven't scrutinized the numbers, but my recollection is that the data transfer rates for wifi, at least in my house, are the same as for 3G, something around 112 mbps.

You Tube runs fine for me on both 3G and wifi. Websites load at more or less the same speed on both. In short, there's really nothing I can't do on 3G that I can do on wifi.

So why am I still driven to connect to wifi hotspots?

[TheLastPanda]

Wifi is faster, and uses less battery power.

[bt224]

I hear it saves battery, but have seen no proof of this. I don't sweat it either way.

[Spawn12]

Hmmm interesting...i get excellent 3G coverage here in London UK with my network Tmobile UK but my wifi at home is a 22mb line and i find that theres a massive difference between my 3G and WIFI..ie ill get full bars on 3G but the net isnt as fast as i would like it to be. Whereas when im on my wifi at home its blazing fast ie downloads are done within seconds whereas my 3G connection sometimes takes a bit longer.

Prime example is right now im downloading viigo from the app world on my 3G connection and its got to 664 out of the full 1062kb and its stalled but i have full bars. I know for a fact that is i was at home on my wifi it would have been done and dusted by now ie downloaded and installed.

So for me wifi is handy to have as my Bold is much faster on it. I have it set to connect as soon as i walk through the door.

[giantfan30]

Almost anytime I'm in a wifi hotspot with my Bold, I connect to it. (And my Bold automatically connects to wifi in my home.) I was in a hotspot on Saturday, connected to it, and then I wondered -- why am I doing this? It's not really giving me anything I don't have with 3G and an unlimited data plan.

I'm not saying I don't need wifi -- obviously, if I'm traveling and I'm in an area without 3G reception it would come in handy.

But the rationale for it -- at least for those of us who with unlimited plans who live in an area where good 3G service isn't lacking -- is that wifi is faster than 3G. I haven't really seen that, however. Maybe it's a bit faster, but gauging speed can be highly subjective. I haven't scrutinized the numbers, but my recollection is that the data transfer rates for wifi, at least in my house, are the same as for 3G, something around 112 mbps.

You Tube runs fine for me on both 3G and wifi. Websites load at more or less the same speed on both. In short, there's really nothing I can't do on 3G that I can do on wifi.

So why am I still driven to connect to wifi hotspots?

if the data rates for WiFi are the same as they are for 3G in your house there is seriously something wrong with your internet connection at your house

exactly what method are you using to measure your WiFi speed?
in my experience WiFi is on the minimum twice as fast as 3G with an average speed internet connection

[angelydaniel]

How can you watch video in Youtube. My bold doesn't let me.

[Spawn12]

How can you watch video in Youtube. My bold doesn't let me.

That could be due to a number of reasons...one could be that your data plan doesnt support such services or your network provider has blocked the ports that are needed for youtube access.

Best ringing them and asking them if they are blocking youtube access or streaming.

[JasW]

Maybe my wifi at home is twice as fast, technically, but my point is that for what I do -- and what I presume most people do -- it doesn't really make that much of a difference.

I'm not regularly d/l'ing files, which in any event have a 2.5MB or whatever it is limit imposed by AT&T. (And even if I were, it's not like I'm going to be in Starbucks or McDonalds and suddenly say, "Oh, boy, now I can finally download that 1.5MB file attached to my email without waiting 15 extra seconds!")

I don't see any difference in battery life, either. Again, that's a very subjective thing.

[LittleRedDot]

I connect to WiFi whenever available because you never know what is going to happen to your 3G signal. Signals from cell towers aren't nearly as reliable as WiFi signals, IMHO.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[BBGirl88]

I have a strong 3G signal but it still craps out on me randomly if I move in a different direction. I checked the difference with a speed test and on 3G i was only downloading 174kb/s but my wifi connection was 1050kb/s. Even if you don't download it will render the web pages faster if you're browsing the web. Just my 2 cents

[papped]

Wifi is more reliable than 3g even if you have strong signal. That and it saves battery and bypasses BIS download restrictions.

[Username00089]

Wi-fi is a huge battery saver for me.

[jd914]

I always connect to wifi whenever possible. 3G has its limitations and comes no where near the speed of wifi.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[hotice_]

You guys ..you guys...

In the great white north, home of the Blackberry, there is no such thing as (affordable) all-you-can-eat data plan for blackberry users if at ALL from our three main national carriers.

Spending a day playing with google maps or watching Youtube video on 3G...would have dire consequences for my phone bill...hence WIFI

This is unlikely to change until new carriers enter the market in Q1 2010.

[sperho]

I have a question for the folks that use WiFi a lot. Do you use it much on unsecured networks? That is what scares me into rarely using it except in a pinch. Even when visiting a site like this, I'd just rather not have my user/pass info being sent OTA unencrypted...

[hotice_]

I have a question for the folks that use WiFi a lot. Do you use it much on unsecured networks? That is what scares me into rarely using it except in a pinch. Even when visiting a site like this, I'd just rather not have my user/pass info being sent OTA unencrypted...

In such case, I wouldn't use any site that require sensitive data...unless you have BES and are using the Blackberry browser (vs Internet browser)

[asr10 user]

Ive had my Bold for a few days and I havent felt a need to use wifi other than to test it out. My 3g coverage is so far so good. Browsing/downloading apps is more than fine on 3g, and Youtube/Cellular Video is usually pretty good enough to not worry about connection.

Maybe ill test out keeping wifi on to see if my battery life improves.

[alby4ever]

Wait I don't get it. How is it that wifi uses less battery? Isn't wifi a power hog? Is this something new that I'm not aware of?

[K B]

Wifi is definitely not a power hog. Steady, stable connection. 3G is another story.

Wifi is faster and easier on the battery. I would hate to give it up.

[K B]

You guys ..you guys...

In the great white north, home of the Blackberry, there is no such thing as (affordable) all-you-can-eat data plan for blackberry users if at ALL from our three main national carriers.

Spending a day playing with google maps or watching Youtube video on 3G...would have dire consequences for my phone bill...hence WIFI

This is unlikely to change until new carriers enter the market in Q1 2010.

Affordable is a subjective concept. I have a 6 Gig contract, and I'll never use that amount of data. But I still use wifi for the speed.

[TeritaM]

I haven't used wifi since getting this device. then again I don't use the web function enough to notice which one is faster. I used wifi on my 8900 only because I had UMA dialing and it saved on using my minutes.

[volsfan0911]

would I use wi-fi over 3G? Yes. Former 3G iPhone owner. Wi-Fi rules for data transfer, HSPDA via AT&T? Can be very unreliable as above and definitely more of a battery hog. Been there, done that.

[laxmaniac81]

Question: From a speed standpoint, is it better to have full 3G and use that or run on a WiFi network that has about 2 or 3 out of 5 bars? I have WiFi in my house and it's actually not that good of reception compared to my friends houses because at their houses I get a full 5 bars and it is so fast, but mine seems pretty slow...like EDGE speed haha

[volsfan0911]

Question: From a speed standpoint, is it better to have full 3G and use that or run on a WiFi network that has about 2 or 3 out of 5 bars? I have WiFi in my house and it's actually not that good of reception compared to my friends houses because at their houses I get a full 5 bars and it is so fast, but mine seems pretty slow...like EDGE speed haha

Well, interesting results in testing right now in my house. AT&T 3G with 3-5 bars in my office (fluctuating wildly as usual) and my personal 802.11g Verizon FiOS router upstairs. Used Opera Mini on my Bold as the browser and CNet's bandwidth meter as the measurement tool. I don't believe the actual numbers reported but at least I was measuring apples to apples here.

Wi-Fi = 3347 kbps
3G = 3414 kbps

So there you have it - I'm full of **** Don't know what the above numbers mean. My wife's an environmental engineer, not electrical so I'll ask the IT geeks at work what equals better battery life on a Bold.

[papped]

I don't think you can use OM to test bandwidth, because it gives you the results of it's server backend, not your BB.