Mobile Computing: Hotspot Hopping With a PDA

By James A. Martin, PCWorld Aug 5, 2004 1:00 AM

Feature: Wi-Fi on a PDA

During the course of one recent afternoon, a group of kids threw ketchup on me. I experienced awful indigestion. And I looked like a complete nerd at one of the hippest places in town.

I endured it all for you, dear reader.

In my tireless efforts to bring you useful information, I went hotspot hopping around San Francisco, one of our more Wi-Fi-savvy cities. My goal: To discover how easy (or challenging) it would be to make a wireless Internet connection using a Wi-Fi-enabled PDA at various commercial hotspots.

I've used my notebook at commercial hotspots before. But this time around, I chose a PDA for my tests. More models today come with Wi-Fi networking built in. And PDAs, because they're far easier to carry than notebooks, seem like an ideal tool for hotspot jumpers.

Using a Dell Axim X30 Pocket PC, I signed on (or attempted to) as a new customer with Wi-Fi services from Wayport at McDonald's fast-food restaurant, T-Mobile at Borders bookstore, and Starwood Turbo Net at the W hotel. Overall, I found that a PDA is a bit more difficult to use than a notebook when signing onto a hotspot service, mainly because the screen is much smaller and there's no built-in keyboard (on most PDAs, anyhow). I also discovered that some commercial hotspots don't do much to help new customers sign up for service.

Here's my diary from that memorable day.

Expecting Compliments, Receiving Condiments

After a late-morning swim at the University of San Francisco, I stopped for lunch at a nearby McDonald's. I had researched McDonald's locations before leaving home and determined this one offered wireless Internet access through Wayport. Window signs next to the restaurant's front doors also advertised the service.

Because I'm a health-conscious Californian, I ordered a grilled chicken Caesar salad (which came with a tacky pedometer). Because I'm originally from the South and take health consciousness only so far, I also ordered a medium Coke. After consuming my meal, I removed the Pocket PC from my bag and attached it to a fold-out, full-sized keyboard. Almost instantly, I received attention from a group of unruly schoolboys nearby (some might call them hooligans).

"Hey! Look at him!" one said to his cronies. "He got the stuff!"

I prepared myself for awe-inspired compliments and questions about my Pocket PC. Instead, I was greeted by a plastic packet of ketchup flying through the air. The condiment capsule landed near my feet and exploded, splattering my left pants leg.

Was I being punished for having "the stuff?" And what recourse should I take? I decided that since it was a beautiful day, life was short, and these kids were destined for San Quentin anyhow, I would turn the other cheek.

I opened the Dell WLAN Utility, which locates and helps you connect to wireless networks. I found a network called "Wayport_Access" and connected to it successfully. According to the Dell WLAN Utility, the wireless signal was excellent.

Next, I launched the pocket version of Microsoft Internet Explorer, which all Pocket PCs include. In my past experiences connecting to commercial Wi-Fi services, the first launching of your browser normally causes a sign-up page for the Wi-Fi service to appear. No such luck. I went to the McDonald's and Wayport Web sites but found nothing that showed me, as a McDonald's customer, how to sign up for the restaurant's wireless network. (Typically, a commercial hotspot location like a McDonald's configures access to their network so that you can sign up for Internet access by going to their home page, or that of the provider. But you can't surf to other Web sites without signing up for the full service.)

Given that the adolescent rapscallions were still nearby, I packed up my equipment and sought sign-up assistance from clerks behind the counter. Only the manager had an inkling of what I was talking about. "You should just go to the Waypoint site to sign up," he instructed me. (I decided not to tell him it was "Wayport," not "Waypoint.") I explained I had done just that, and he shrugged. To make matters worse, there was no literature to be found in the restaurant providing sign-up instructions, either.

After a second unsuccessful attempt to sign up for service, I accepted defeat and departed. I may have had "the stuff," but I had no Internet connection. And as for that grilled chicken Caesar salad and Coke, my stomach wasn't the same for hours.

Postscript: The next day, Dan Lowden, Wayport's vice president of marketing, told me there should have been a brochure at the McDonald's counter explaining how to sign up for Wi-Fi service. The brochure includes a toll-free number as well for further assistance, Lowden said. In addition, I should have seen a McDonald's sign-up page as soon as I launched my Web browser. The page is even optimized for viewing on small handheld screens, he added.

So, an hour later, I used PC World's HotSpot Finder to locate another nearby wireless McDonald's. Upon arrival, I discovered this restaurant had no signs indicating it was a hotspot. The manager behind the counter said I wouldn't be able to make a wireless connection, either. And once again, there was no literature about signing up for Wi-Fi service to be found.

Intrepid adventurer that I am, I tried anyway. This time, the sign-up page appeared in Internet Explorer just as Lowden promised. I was signed up and Web surfing within 8 minutes. And no condiment packages soared toward me, either.

My less-than-happy experiences at McDonald's were most likely because, at the time of my tests, its Wi-Fi service was transitioning from a test program to full implementation, says Lisa Howard, a McDonald's spokesperson. By late August, McDonald's restaurants with wireless access should have literature available at order counters or beverage stations, providing basic sign-up directions and a toll-free help number. Order takers and managers alike should be trained to answer customer questions as well. There's also a Web site providing information on McDonald's hotspots.

Net Effect: At $3 for 2 hours, Wayport Internet access at McDonald's is extremely affordable. But the restaurant chain needs to better educate its employees and customers if it's to succeed in this venture. Also, as of this writing, Wayport doesn't list McDonald's restaurants among its locations on its Web site. To find a wireless McDonald's, you have to use a third-party Wi-Fi search site, such as PC World's Hotspot Finder.

Bill Clinton at Borders

Later that afternoon, I visited the Borders book store near San Francisco's Union Square. Bill Clinton's memoir had just hit stores that day, and his face (in multitude) followed me throughout the store.

In the store's second-floor cafe, I found a pamphlet next to the cash register explaining how to get wireless Internet access through T-Mobile. The information was clearly worded and helpful. By following instructions, I signed up for my free day pass and was online in about 9 minutes. The Dell WLAN Utility declared the wireless reception "excellent."

Surfing the Web in this crowded, humming bookstore cafe was a particular delight. Vintage jazz played over the stereo. On one side of me sat a dude with a Dell notebook, deeply immersed in an instant messaging session. On the other side, a guy was deeply immersed in a huge slice of cake and a book on computer animation.

As I left, I asked a sales clerk how Bill's book was selling. "It's flying out the door," she replied. Then, in a conspiratorial whisper, she added: "But Hillary's book was far more interesting."

Net Effect: The T-Mobile service was as easy to use as its literature claims. First-time users get a free 24-hour pass, but there's a catch: You must sign up for a T-Mobile service plan. After the 24 hours is over, and you try to use the T-Mobile service again, the service plan you signed up for kicks in. I chose the "pay as you go" option, which is $6 per hour.

Wireless at the W

The W Hotel chain, owned by Starwood, is known for its trendy, hip boutique hotels with their trendy, hip lounges. Lately, the chain has been promoting its "W Wired" package, which includes high-speed Internet access, Wi-Fi access at most properties, free Apple ITunes music downloads, and a three-month subscription to Wired magazine. San Francisco's W, next to the Museum of Modern Art, seemed like the ideal place to end my day's Wi-Fi experiments.

Wandering through the too-cool lounge/bar area, I found no signs or information indicating this was a hotspot (of the Wi-Fi variety). When I inquired at the hotel's reception desk, a helpful young woman dug through an accordion file and produced a printed piece of white paper. The paper contained instructions for making a wireless connection.

As she explained, I was to pay her $7 in advance for 24 hours of Wi-Fi service through Starwood Turbo Net, which is accessible on the hotel's ground level only. (Plans are to add in-room Wi-Fi access throughout the hotel later this year, she said.) After charging my credit card, she gave me a four-digit access code.

I managed to find one vacant table in the bar, ordered a $10 cocktail, and set up my PDA and keyboard. Though I looked like a hopeless geek, only a few of the in crowd stopped sipping their cosmopolitans to notice. Within 5 minutes, I had a wireless connection and a slight buzz from my drink.

Oh, by the way: I changed clothes between visits to McDonald's and Borders, in case you were wondering.

Net Effect: With its loud techno music and great people-watching, the W is a cool place to take your cool Wi-Fi PDA. Just be sure to wear black.