Millenicom Cellular data

[Kurt Hulst]

Has anyone heard of Millenicom. I have read up on some of there gear and noticed that they use Sprint towers but charge 10 dollars less than sprint. So that would be about 50 a month without any contracts. I read that they maynot be as fast as Cable/DSL but its faster than satellite. There is also no cap on data like Verizon or AT$T.

Does anyone have any opinions on this company or know how they operate? Are there any catches?

 

[Kurt Hulst]

Well I have done some more research and found there site its not the greatest but I also searched for any forums that were around. So heres a few links.

Forum/ Reviews info

http://groups.google.ca/group/misc.consumers/browse_thread/thread/50484fdfbad98a75


Reviews:
http://www.dslreports.com/comments/3165?filter=pos
http://www.dslreports.com/comment/3165/66471


MILLENICOM website: some what lacking but support is said to be excellent.
http://www.acun.com/






Does anyone have any input about this Data provider? I have only heard good things bout them. But I am unable to find out how long they have been around.

 

[Skip Talbot]

What a great find, Kurt.

With no contract and a low setup cost, I might just try this for the heck of it this spring. I'm currently using ATT data, and would love to be able to tap Sprint's coverage as well. My only concern is how good of reception the USB dongle modem gets inside the car.

 

[Derek Weston]

From what I'm reading they're a reseller of sprint. Seemingly, the performance should be the same as what you'd get from Sprint.

I'm going to investigate further, but this appears to be quite a find.

Cheaper Sprint without a contract? I'll take that.

 

[Jarrod Cook]

Great find. I sent the inquiry form off. We'll see what kind of response I get. Seems too good to be true almost. Especially with sprint's coverage.

 

[Jarrod Cook]

Hhmm, well I got the following reply from them:

We are sorry to report you are outside our coverage area. Please note we
can provide dial-up Internet access at your location for $9.95/month.

Thank you for providing us with the opportunity to be of service.

Millenicom Sales

Kind of confused. I know of others who use sprint for data around this area and they have no problems. The only thing I can think of is maybe the majority of that usage is on Verizon towers. I'm not sure if this company lets you roam on other non-sprint towers or not. I asked them but haven't heard back yet.

 

[Kurt Hulst]

From what I had read in the forums I found they are easier to get answers by calling them. Your question is one that has been raised in my mind and I would like to know if they charge roaming fees. I will try to call them sometime this week or next week, time allowing.

So maybe if you call you can post some info you findout.

 

[Jarrod Cook]

Well I called them. Turns out they do offer service here, but it's their "slower" service of 50-70 kbps. Probably 1xRTT. He said the faster service is near Chicago, Quad Cities, etc. I'm guessing this aligns with the Sprint EVDO coverage. He said there was no issue with roaming on other towers. However, based on what he said (and various forums I've checked), the problem may be that if you roam on another tower (Verizon or Alltell for example), you may not get their high speed, even if it's available. That would be a bummer. Does Sprint normally let you use other carrier's higher speed service if available?

 

[Derek Weston]

Well I called them. Turns out they do offer service here, but it's their "slower" service of 50-70 kbps. Probably 1xRTT. He said the faster service is near Chicago, Quad Cities, etc. I'm guessing this aligns with the Sprint EVDO coverage. He said there was no issue with roaming on other towers. However, based on what he said (and various forums I've checked), the problem may be that if you roam on another tower (Verizon or Alltell for example), you may not get their high speed, even if it's available. That would be a bummer. Does Sprint normally let you use other carrier's higher speed service if available?

Not sure on that with Sprint. I had thought that'll default to slower sprint network speed before jumping on someone elses faster service... but I could very well be wrong.

From talking with people who have Millenicom, they seem to imply it is the same exact dang thing as you'd get with Sprint. (reselling sprint service) Again, just what they're saying...

 

[Adam Bennett]

Sprint data cards work like this:

Sprint EvDO
Alltel EvDO
Sprint 1xRTT
Alltel 1xRTT
US Cellular 1xRTT
Verizon 1xRTT
Other Carriers 1xRTT

You will get Alltel EvDO even when Sprint 1xRTT is available. You can not use Verizon EvDO.

 

[Jarrod Cook]

Sprint data cards work like this:

Sprint EvDO
Alltel EvDO
Sprint 1xRTT
Alltel 1xRTT
US Cellular 1xRTT
Verizon 1xRTT
Other Carriers 1xRTT

You will get Alltel EvDO even when Sprint 1xRTT is available. You can not use Verizon EvDO.

Thanks for that. Mind if I ask you were you obtained the info?

 

[Brandon Sullivan]

Hhmm, well I got the following reply from them:

We are sorry to report you are outside our coverage area. Please note we
can provide dial-up Internet access at your location for $9.95/month.

Thank you for providing us with the opportunity to be of service.

Millenicom Sales

Yep.. Got the same message too! Bummer

 

[Jarrod Cook]

Yep.. Got the same message too! Bummer

That's because you live 2 counties from me.

 

[Mike Peregrine]

Just wanted to say thanks to Kurt for posting this.

I got my Millenicom card last week and it's working great off the local Sprint EVDO network. The cost has gone up to $59/mo., but it's worth it for contract-free unlimited high-speed data.

For those who have received the message that you are not in the coverage area ... this is most likely because you live in an area currently covered by a provider who has an agreement with this company. You can still order and use this card, however. I also got this same message ... but ordered the card through the website anyway. Super fast delivery ... and now I have a contract-free card with unlimited data that should work with both Sprint and Alltel towers.

I'll be using thiswith the EVDO package from Maximum Signal to hopefully have data just about everywhere this year.

 

[David Drummond]

Sprint data cards work like this:

Sprint EvDO
Alltel EvDO
Sprint 1xRTT
Alltel 1xRTT
US Cellular 1xRTT
Verizon 1xRTT
Other Carriers 1xRTT

You will get Alltel EvDO even when Sprint 1xRTT is available. You can not use Verizon EvDO.

Not exactly. I am in an area where Alltel has EVDO and Sprint does not. I cannot get Alltel EVDO unless I am out of range of a Sprint 1xRTT tower. I even forced it to roam, and it roams to the Sprint 1xRTT tower. The only way it will go to Alltel EVDO, is to get out of range of Sprint.