I found out about this deal yesterday. T-Mobile is creating a revolutionary new way for supplying cellphone service. It is called T-mobile HotSpot. Let me try to sum it up for you:

 

Specific T-Mobile phones (there are only 2 right now, more to come) can be purchased for T-Mobile HotSpot. Basically you sign up for whatever regular plan you want, and then pay $10 more for HotSpot. What it does is enable your phone to not only use regular T-Mobile service, but also WiFi. So you have a regular phone and VOIP as well. The awesome thing about this: When you are using the Wifi, it does NOT count against your minutes in your plan. It is free. So you can have an unlimited amount of minutes for very very cheap. You can use it at any WiFi spot that doesn't require a web page to log onto (so you can use it at StarBucks and such, but probably not at a lot of hotels.) They also send you a free (after rebate) modem for your house, so basically you pay $10 for unlimited phone service at your house and other WiFi areas, and then always have your regular plan for when you are not in WiFi. This also means that if you are in, say, Japan, in a WiFi spot, you still get free calls to the US.

 

Basically you can get rid of your expensive cell phone plan, get a cheaper one, add on $10. Oh, and you can get rid of your landline house phone, because why do you need it when you get free minutes from your house on your cellphone?

 

here is a link to a good article about it:

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/05/technology/circuits/05pogue.html?8ur&emc=ur

why do you need a landline to begin with? Cell phone all I've ever needed, theres no such thing as long distance because theres no roaming charges. It sounds like a decent thing but theres always a catch.

no the reason they are doing it is that it is far cheaper to just give everyone a wireless modem that to build more service towers. Plus it has the definate possibility of bringing in more customers.

Thats a pretty cool idea from a german company lol, I quess they do have brains lol oh wait I am german lol hahahah:D

T-Mobile's HotSpot has been out for awhile now, I have had T-Mobile service for a couple of years now and I think HotSpot has been out for atleast a year.

Are you sure about that, travis? The article says that it was just announced a couple of weeks ago...

 

nevertheless, still a fun new thing to me

Yeah, I am pretty sure...let me see if I can research this.

 

Okay it appears that HotSpot @ Home is new, the HotSpot I was refering to is where for $10 or so a month you get unlimited internet access at certain places using either a HotSpot enabled phone or PC card. I guess I should have fully read your post...