In this day of 3G and 4G cell phone coverage and many users doing much of their computing using smartphones, remote connection speed is often forgotten. After all the email, some web surfing and texting that is commonly the work done on smart phones and most tablets the cell connection speed is usually just fine.
What do you do when you have to work using a remote connection?
It could be using a hot spot when you are on the road and you need to be able to develop a longer or more complex document and get it stored into your remote cloud based storage. It could be when you are traveling and you are using the WiFi provided in your hotel to connect to carry out some much needed work. It could be simply using a free WiFi connection from MacDonalds, Hortons, Starbucks or other services. Many community centres, public libraries and other public facilities like parks offer Free or low cost WiFi as well. Given the proliferation of connection options often the relative speed they provide is not understood or taken into consideration. The quality of the connections can vary substantially and before you want to depend upon them you need to determine how critical your connection needs might be.
Asynchronous or synchronous connections
Most connected businesses today use Internet connections where their ISP provides them with fast download speeds probably at a minimum of 10MB per second and slower upload speeds often less than 1 MB per second. Since in many instances the work they do on the internet involves primarity pulling information off of sites with less need for upload these types of asynchrous connections work fine.
When you start using cloud based applications and your work begins to involve more upload of data from your in house systems to the outside application then your office network usually gets connected with a more balanced system with more upload capability and an equal or slightly higher download capability. This permits the changed bandwidth use pattern to be better supported and your work continues with less interruption.
So what happens when you start to carry out similar work using the WiFi connection provided in a remote location? You suddenly find out that the transactions you are used to doing back at the office take longer, are a bit harder to manage and you have to adjust your computer use to accommodate the more traditional connection patterns. In most instances simply slowing your typing speed, waiting for the browser to refresh your work accurately or watching the remote application to see that it is accepting the information accurately will be enough to make it possible to carry out the tasks you need to perform.
Of course this change in connectivity does have a potential to have an impact on your productivity as you have to work a bit more slowly than normal. The benefit of being able to get your work accomplished offsets this adjustment, potentially.
What else could you do?
One way of avoiding the issues associated with the use of Free or common remote connections is to carry your own with you. This works best if you are traveling in a known area and where you repeat your travels. The big three Canadian Internet providers offer smart card (USB based) devices which permit Internet connectivity over the same high speed cell networks that smart phones and connected tablets utilize. The speeds and prices vary but they are fast, faster than some office connections in the right locations and portable.
For example Rogers offers a new LTE Rocket device that claims a connection speed of up to 100 Mbps download and 50 Mbps upload speed (manufacturer's design specs) but running on the fastest Rogers network Roger's website claims downloads of 12 to 40 Mbps. Of course you have to setup a data plan and either buy the device or get it as part of your plan.
Bell focuses many of its mobile device offers on small cell based network hubs. These devices generally offer technical speeds of up to 75 Mbps download (expected average of 12-25Mbps) and upload of up to 50 Mbps. Their smallest device weighs only 120gm but is designed to be plugged into a power outlet for most use having only a 1/2 day battery life. It is not as portable as the Rogers Rocket but perhaps offers more flexibility if you want to connect more than one device.
Telus offers both the portable hotspot devices and the stick type fully portable device similar to Rogers. Again the technical speed claims are in the 75 Mbps download with similar upload claims to the other vendors.
It is also possible with most current smart phones to enable a hotspot capability on them which permits the connection of bluetooth or WiFi enabled devices such as laptops and tablets which do not have cell connection capability. The speed of these devices will closely match the speed of your smart phone. Of course your rate plan must be able to handle the data usage that such connections entail otherwise you will quickly find your costs escalating.
For some users both consumer and business who are located in more remote areas these types of cell based systems are the only really viable means to obtain internet coverage and in fact become the base station tools.
Of course the costs associated with any of these portable systems must be considered when you look to manage your remote connection capabilities. If your usage is simply casual then the Free public WiFi connections may be adequate to handle your needs. On the other hand if you are going to be needing to carry out significant work that is critical to your business investing in a device that you can rely on, pre test and ensure will work to match your needs may be worthwhile.
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Photo credit: Device images from Telus, Rogers, Bell.
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