Laptop users turn to wireless

Before getting down the today’s topic, I wanted to let you know that this is my final ISP News Report. Starting next week, the newsletter will be in the very capable hands of my Network World colleague, Senior Editor Carolyn Duffy Marsan.

Marsan has been with Network World for the past four years covering Internet infrastructure, standards and policy issues. Prior to joining Network World, she served as a reporter and editor for 10 years at the then IDG sister publication Federal Computer Week. There, she focused on supercomputers, high-speed networks and government contract issues. In addition to covering the high-tech arena, Marsan’s articles have appeared in Crain’s Chicago Business, the San Diego Union-Tribune, Investor’s Daily and cnn.com.

Her breadth of knowledge and experience will surely bring new insight to this newsletter, which we hope you’ll continue to enjoy.

If you just can’t get enough of my insights please turn to my weekly Weblog on our WAN Services Research page (https://www.nwfusion.com/topics/wan.html). And you can always turn to Network World’s print and online editions for my regular news coverage.

I’ve been author of this newsletter for the past four years and it has been a great outlet for me as a news reporter who doesn’t often have the opportunity to editorialize.

Thanks for all of the e-mails over the years and please keep reading!

And now back to today’s topic: Wireless is becoming the network of choice for business users with notebook computers.

More than 50% of laptop users access a wireless network for at least an hour a day, according to a recent study entitled “The Balance of Power” by Power Strategies, Alpha Beta Planning and marketQuest.

The group surveyed 619 mobile computing users, 311 of whom use notebook computers.

From mobile wireless data networks, to Wi-Fi to Bluetooth, users are choosing to download e-mail and synchronize their PDAs untethered.

Business users have more wireless network choices everyday. With the continued proliferation of public Wi-Fi networks and the work of national mobile carriers such as AT&T Wireless, Sprint PCS and T-Mobile to upgrade their networks with 3G compliant gear, it is becoming easier for customers to choose wireless over dial-up when traveling.

And infrared and Bluetooth support is also becoming the technology of choice for PDA users who were once tethered to their desktop PC every time they needed to synchronize their devices.

The entire study will be presented at the end of September at the Portable Power Conference & Expo in San Francisco. While a large portion of the report does focus on power issues for users on the go, the report promises much user information including network preferences and mobile user habits.