O2 has entered the Mobile Wifi arena with O2 Pocket Hotspot , a new pocket-sized device and tariff that will enable anyone to get a “Wifi hotspot in their pocket”. The new service launches on 2 August 2012.
The new device enables up to five devices to connect simultaneously, sharing mobile internet access. The device is the perfect partner for a growing number of Wifi-enabled mobile devices that consumers increasingly want to be able to use on the move – including tablets, games consoles and cameras, as well as conventional laptop users. It will mean customers can use all their internet-connected devices on the move.
The new device will come with two Pay & Go data options: a daily top-up and 1GB or 2GB bundles (both of which have a 30 day term). Offering a Pay & Go mobile Wifi solution means that O2 Pocket Hotspot customers can get some of the most competitive rates available for mobile internet access without having to sign up to 12 month (or longer) contracts.
Gary Booker, GM Consumer at O2 says of the launch:
“We saw a big gap in the market for a Mobile Wifi package that offered lower start-up costs and competitive data.
“Customers have told us that they want access to the web on the go, but that they don’t always want to sign up for year-long contracts or to buy lots of data from the outset. O2 Hotspot has been designed to cater for exactly those needs: lowering up-front costs and offering customers lots of options when it comes to the amount of data they buy – what they need, when they need it.”
Starter package costs: O2 Pocket Hotspot
|
Device Cost
|
Starter Data
|
Data Cost
|
Total Cost
|
|
£59.99
|
Pay daily (200MB/day)
|
£2.04
|
NA
|
|
£59.99
|
1 GB (lasts 30 days)
|
£10.21
|
£70.20
|
|
£59.99
|
2 GB (lasts 30 days)
|
£15.32
|
£75.31
|
Ongoing cost: O2 Pocket Hotspot Pay and Go data
|
Data
|
Cost
|
Term
|
|
1 GB
|
£10.21
|
30 days
|
|
2 GB
|
£15.32
|
30 days
|
O2 Pocket Hotspot offers 802.11b/g Wi-Fi connectivity and maximum download speeds of 21.6 Mbps and upload at 5.76 Mbps.
Gary Booker added:
“There are growing numbers of consumers wanting to be able to use the devices they get internet access on at home while they’re on the move.
“Whether tablet users who want access to the web, gamers who want to carry on playing wirelessly while they’re on the move or business customers who are fed up with slow connections on trains or hunting down the nearest WiFi point, O2 Hotspot is the ideal solution.
“Because you can connect up to five devices at once, we also think that this product will appeal to students who want a fast connection but don’t have a telephone line for home broadband or even those who want internet access out of the range of their home router – in the garden for example.”
To find out more, visit: http://www.o2.co.uk/broadband/mobile-broadband/o2-pocket-hotspot
The gears could start to turn as early as this month for the production of a smaller iPad.
