Last month I got an horrendous bill for my Internet usage even though I use it very sparingly when connected via mobile. So, I decided that it was time to get a decent connection while on the road. Looking around, there's a fantastic special from Cell C in South Africa. It works out to be 5c/ MB. which is much cheaper than any of the current offerings. There are currently 2 options - the 7.2 and Mbps and 21.6 Mbps. I went for the 21 Mbps option with 5 Gigs/month at R3000 once off, which works out to be R250/ month.
I was a little unsure of how easy it would be to get working on my Kubuntu, but it turned out to be a breaze (as usual with most things Linux/ Ubuntu/ Kubuntu). I just plugged it in, created a new "Mobile Broadband" connection, entered "*99#" in the "Number" field and "internet" into the "APN" field, selected "Connect Automatically" and I was done. No need to install any Cell C software to use it... Just one more reason to love Linux!
For other non Cell C readers of this post - I found out the settings by running the Cell C software which comes on the modem in Crossover and could see the settings there. So hopefully, you can determine any required settings for other providers.
Edit: I've reinstalled Ubuntu 10.10 and when setting up the modem, was asked for a password. Took me a little while to work it out - turned out to be 0000 for what it's worth....
I've had quite a few questions as to the speed of the Cell C network. So here's a screen shot of a speed test. I've had better connections (up to 14 Mbs download), but this seems to be a good "normal" connection. The connection speed is very dependent on the location though, so check out coverage in your area first.
