Laptop/WiFi help...

[cooprules]

Looking for a laptop and I'm just getting info. I'm a Mac guy at work but have a PC at home. I would rather have a Mac but not sure paying twice the price is worth it. My main objective is to have a computer I can surf with anywhere. I am not familiar with the whole wi-fi thing at all. I'm assuming I'd have to get a internet service through my cell company which can't be too cheap can it? If someone can just point me to a help website comparing different companies that would help. I don't need to start a whole long thread about it. Thanks.

[bjkrautk]

You've got your technologies a bit mixed.

 

Wi-Fi - 802.11(b) = wireless networking. Wi-Fi only gives you an internet connection if your wireless access point is connected to something with an internet connection; for most household setups, that would be a cable modem. (For reference, anything with the 802.11 prefix is likely to be Wi-Fi. 802.11(a), (g), and (n) are all different Wi-Fi standards - offering faster speeds and better range - but all of them are compatible with (b) devices.) Virtually any laptop you find will have Wi-Fi built-in.

 

Wi-Fi access points are available at many public locations (just about any airport or Starbucks, among other places). Some businesses charge to access the existing Wi-Fi network; others allow free access. Your ability to connect to the Internet "out in the wild" is limited by your ability to find an access point.

 

Cell-phone Network Cards are just that. You buy a data plan from your cell-phone company, plug in the network card, and dial in to the network to access the internet. They are relatively expensive. On the plus side, however, you have much greater freedom in where / how you can connect to the Internet.

[cooprules]

Boy, I'm really not in touch with the wireless stuff. So it seems wi-fi would work well in my house, connecting wireless to my regular DSL modem. But I'd need a cell plan if I wanted to surf in my car or in an RV, for instance.