Novatel turns individuals into walking hotspots

Current Analysis analysts Bill Ho and Avi Greengart, who are both trialing MiFi review units today, agreed that the MiFi concept is a solid value proposition, as well as confirmed that the service works in a conference room that otherwise lacks a Wi-Fi connection. From a service point of view, Ho said the device is all good for any carrier that offers it given it expands the value proposition for a mobile broadband service plan from consumers to small-and-medium sized businesses.

"I also have a USB EV-DO modem, but you can't easily share that signal with colleagues, and the form factor of the MiFi is extremely compelling – it's freakishly small and doesn't stick out the side of your computer…Obviously, cost of the service is still an issue for casual users, but for road warriors and gadget lovers, this is a terrific product," Greengart added in an email sent over MiFi.

The MiFi 2200 will be available on May 17th from Verizon and the first week of June from Sprint. On both carriers, the device will cost $100 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a new two-year service agreement. Sprint customers can sign up for the service with a $60 mobile broadband subscription or a $150 Simply Everything plan plus mobile broadband. That gives them 5GB per month plus 5-cents-per-megabyte overage. Verizon is offering two plans – $40 for 250MB monthly allowance and 10-cents-per-megabyte overage or $60 for 5GB monthly allowance and 5-cents-per-megabyte overage. Verizon subscribers can also get daily access for $15 for a 24-hour window for those consumers who wish to purchase the device at full retail without a monthly service plan.

The device could meet some challenges when it is mass deployed. Potentially, 30 users crowding a conference room using their MiFi devices could lead to interference or bandwidth constraints when the same cell tower is shared amongst many users. Letting five neighbors share a MiFi connection could also mean the data cap of 5GB is easily met and exceeded. Peter Jarich, Current Analysis's networks research director, added that as a concept, it's a nice way to extend mobile broadband to a broader set of devices, but it remains to be seen how consumers will respond.

"On some level, it does represent a tacit acknowledgement that operators haven't been successful at getting 3G into laptops as once hoped," Jarich said in an email. "Ultimately, we'll need to hear from the field on how well it performs.  But, consider the scenario of multiple users being backhauled by a single DO connection.  Better than nothing, sure, however, I'm dubious on how compelling people accustomed to enterprise or even coffee-shop Wi-Fi will find it."