At this age of technology everyone wants to surf at a high speed when they are not at home. This article will tell you about 3G services in India.
I got my first introduction to the world of blogging in late 2007 and have been prolifically writing about silicon valley juggernauts and startups since 2008.
As I chose ‘Internet & Web Technology‘ as my primary subject for blogging, I developed a natural instinct of staying current with all the happenings in Silicon valley and the whole startup fraternity and writing about them, day-in, day-out.
As my blog was meant to cover International tech news and startups, I adapted my lifestyle to an extent that, albeit, my physical location here in India, my work timings were in line with U.S. clock. Working Late nights(upto early mornings), tracking latest tech news, product launches, acquisitions and writing about them for my audience(largely International) became a daily activity for me.
Year 2011 is just around the corner and most of my work habits are still the same. To stay current and keep up with hyperactive U.S. blogging fraternity, this factor can’t be compromised. And I have no complaints about it either.
My tools for Productivity
Being a technology blogger covering International(mainly U.S.) tech news, my blogging hours, sleeping schedules, email-response habits, gadgets etc are largely inclined to U.S. I carry a next generation Android Smartphone (Motorola Milestone/Droid) for emails, status updates,apps on the go, have a laptop as well as desktop for heavy-duty blogging. And pretty soon, some sleek tablet will become a part of my gadget family as paper-thin, touchscreen tablets are great for Information consumption, a must-have for a voracious Info consumer like me.
The Painful ‘Imbalance’
For a tech blogger who spends 95% of his PC time on web, ‘Internet’ is equivalent to ‘Oxygen’. I go uneasy and literally feel out of breath(cut-off from the ever-changing tech community) when my Internet service gets interrupted, which isn’t very unusual for Indians.
To accommodate my Everytime, Everywhere need for the Internet, I make sure my Smartphone is GPRS connected (necessary evil) and I prefer cafes/hubs that facilitate Wi-Fi hotspots while moving out. But still, It’s completely disgusting experience from a productivity perspective whenever I roam outside.
I can’t explain how terrible it feels to wait for 5 minutes for mere logging into my email client while using GPRS but i just can’t help it when i am out. YouTube streaming videos on GPRS is a big NO. I can shell out hefty sum for a 3G smartphone(i already have one) or a WiFi/3G Internet tablet but i can’t build a 3G network for myself.
And that’s where the real problem lies: Lack of reliable 3G Service for ubiquitous, uninterrupted and Superfast Internet.
At one side, I carry along the latest gadgets with full 3G support and great Internet experience, just to stay current with what western people have been enjoying for couple of years. On the contrary, I am still stuck with hapless GPRS services by Indian ISPs, which significantly impacts my productivity while on the go.
I must mention here that Australians are far better than Asian counterparts in this regard as mobile phone plans and mobile broadband services offered to Australian citizens are relatively cheaper and at par with western countries in terms of broadband speed and wireless connectivity. Subsidized mobile phones and discounted phone deals are also offered by telecom companies to Australian citizens, which is still not much of an option for Indian folks till date.
That’s the Imbalance
A mismatch of my ‘next-generation productivity tools’ with ‘Old-generation Network services'(GSM,GPRS).
BSNL, being the existing 3G service provider in India, is already blacklisted from my preference list, for being famously unreliable ISP by all standards.
The Fix
As 3G spectrum got allocated to Indian telecom companies this year itself, it was expected that 3G services will start rolling out in late 2010 or early 2011.
And here we have our first ‘reliable’ Telecom giant that’s looking ready to facilitate 3G services across the country, Tata Docomo. Looking at Tata-Docomo TV commercials buzzing about ‘3G Life’, I feel excited to finally have the same 3G experience I had been waiting for the last 2 years.
To me, the impact of 3G services will surely be noteworthy. Here’s why…
With 3G
- Emails, Document attachment etc through phone will get done in a matter of seconds
- Instant Photo sharing on Facebook/Twitter won’t take ages
- Watching online videos without a streaming glitch(buffering etc) will finally become a reality.
- Video calling through Skype or any other app will surely be an amazing experience
- I will stop seeking Wi-Fi hotspots while roaming around.
- I will gain the freedom to access Broadband Internet through my laptop, anytime, anywhere (via Tethering through my smartphone)
- Mutli-tab browsing on my smartphone will no more be a trouble.
- Air/Train ticket booking, bill payment etc will get done right from my phone.
- I will have 24×7 Instant access to all my Internet resources, keeping my productivity at its best
and so on…
Thankfully, the long wait is finally over, the ‘3G Life’ is here and I am ready for it !
