Can it be done ?
Is anyone doing it?

It would be nice just to pay for 3g service and voip and drop my actual cell plan.

2/11/2008 11:24:27 AM

i would think it would be possible on a pocketPC cell phone, if you could load up skype or something

2/11/2008 11:53:32 AM

doesn't seem like a very viable solution seeing that 3G coverage isn't great yet and paying for the voip service would come close to costing what your voice plan does--well, maybe not now that I think about it.

Basically no, I don't...but it's an interesting idea. I do know of a company in Germany that sells basically phone call encryption software/service and with it phone calls actually use the data network to communicate encrypted data with this company's servers and in no way uses the normal voice channels. Pretty cool but last time I checked it was pretty pricey and wasn't even secure at all unless both you and who you were talking to were using the service.

Obviously that's not really what you're after but that's the only implementation of such an idea that I've ever heard of

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 11:54 AM. Reason : http://www.securstar.com/products_phonecrypt.php]

2/11/2008 11:54:15 AM

http://www.skype.com/download/skype/windowsmobile/download.html

i have this on my treo 750

i have skype pro for $3/month... unlimited calls to the US and canada.

works perfectly.

sound is actually better than at&t's voice plan.

2/11/2008 12:12:56 PM

How much is your cell plan etc?

2/11/2008 12:22:07 PM

that's fucking awesome, back to a treo we go for this purpose... does it work on edge or not enough bandwidth?

nvm

Quote :

"In order to use Skype for Windows Mobile, your device must have a high speed wireless Internet connection over WiFi or 3G."

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 12:27 PM. Reason : quote]

2/11/2008 12:24:22 PM

VOIP is latency sensitive. 3G wireless service varies from area to area too much to make VOIP an attractive alternative.

2/11/2008 12:31:08 PM

Also, for [user]/sumfoo[/user]'s qestion... I have an unlimited data card for $49 a month but you only get that price if you have a voice plan on another line on the same account... Unlimited data on a phone with cingular usually costs $20 (or used to anyways). Sometimes they try to charge you more depending on what kind of phone you have--that's how it used to be anyways. Smartphone data used to cost more than say a razr's data. I just always lied to them about what kind of phone I had and they never seemed to figure it out.

Cool as hell idea though, I was planning on getting a treo 750 sometime in the next month anyways and turn down my voice plan significantly and cancel my $49 data plan. Also, if they somehow came up with a way for text messaging to work through a data plan so you would get unlimited texts through skype or whatever that would be worth a few dollars a month easy.

2/11/2008 12:31:13 PM

yeah, unlimited data is $20.

they'll try and make you get the PDA connect unlimited plan, which is $40/month, but it's not necessary. keep calling back and you'll find someone who will do it for you.

i set my voice plan to be the lowest offered (it's like $40/month?)

$60/month for unlimited data and unlimited calling is not bad at all

and there's 3g coverage all over durham, raleigh, cary, and charlotte... only place i go without 3g is wilmington, and i just use my regular cell minutes there.

it won't work over edge, i tried.

2/11/2008 12:33:16 PM

I assume you have a different number for your voice plane vs skype account?

2/11/2008 12:35:45 PM

can any phones be used as 3g modems too?

so i could rig my laptop through it too?

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 12:47 PM. Reason : .]

2/11/2008 12:46:58 PM

most can... there's a program that makes it super easy on the treo's in particular. on a lot of phones you can't do data and voice at the same time... so if you're using 3G on your laptop through your phone all your calls will go to voicemail.

pda.net I think is the name of the app, worked fucking AWESOME on my treo I used to have

2/11/2008 1:05:02 PM

Know anything about the pantech duo ?

thing looks slick & has simultaneous voice and data.

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 2:13 PM. Reason : bad reviews on the slider mech any other simul voice/data? ]

2/11/2008 1:50:54 PM

you can do simultaneous voice/data with HSDPA but not UMTS (or it might be the other way around, i forget...)

what you're talking about is called tethering, and just about any bluetooth 3g phone can do it.

2/11/2008 5:12:37 PM

ok does that mean i have to have a plan setup for tethering and how will they know if i'm using it or not?

2/11/2008 5:14:29 PM

doesnt matter if it has bluetooth or 3G for that matter... but yea just about any decent phone can do it

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 5:57 PM. Reason : they don't know if you're doing it so don't tell them--get the $20 "media max" is what it used to be]

2/11/2008 5:57:23 PM

Could i go ahead and upgrade plans now and when i get a 3g phone just plop the sim card in and call it a day ?

2/12/2008 10:59:48 AM

Yep, that's what I did.

2/12/2008 11:05:30 AM

Quote :

"they don't know if you're doing it "

yes, in fact, they do. your computer sends a different user agent than your phone does upon ppp auth, and they keep track of this.

at&t generally doesn't care as long as you don't use it excessively. i've used it for almost a year - i use it when i'm on long road trips, in places/offices where i can't access their wifi, outside, etc... i basically check email, get on AIM, and do a little bit of web surfing... at&t hasn't said a word. i have the $20 media max plan. all the unlimited data plans are exactly the same, despite what at&t might tell you.

i've heard of some people that get 200 or so page bills in the mail detailing their data usage... apparently this is at&t's "warning" that they're watching your tethering usage... and the next month, they got slammed with $0.01/KB rates whenever they were tethering. so, be careful, and don't go crazy with it.

Quote :

"doesnt matter if it has bluetooth or 3G for that matter... but yea just about any decent phone can do it"

correct, but the majority of users will use tethering for this purpose. i usually don't even bother unless it's 3G, as it's painfully slow on a laptop. i also like the fact that i can keep my phone in my pocket/backpack/briefcase instead of keeping it attached via USB.

2/12/2008 11:10:56 AM

word.. didn't know they could tell the difference.

they haven't busted my ball about it (yet)

2/12/2008 11:12:39 AM