If you’re ever out and about looking to quickly “do something” on your laptop but can’t find a free public Wi-fi network, you’re not alone. Carrying hardware to run your own Wi-fi hotspot and purchasing the data to run it can be cost prohibitive, but there’s a solution today for those of us on a budget.
Harvey Norman is clearing out Optus Wi-fi hotspot products – both a Pre-Paid Portable Modem (a Huawei E5251) for a dirt cheap $10, and a USB Portable Modem (a Huawei E3351) that includes a SIM with 2GB of data for a whopping $5.
The devices are limited to 1 per customer which, at that price, is hardly surprising.
If you’re keen for the bargain, head to your local Harvey Norman store.
What pocket hotspot do you use? If these prices aren’t enough to entice you to buy one, what will? Tell us in the comments!
um, i use my phone, is that weird?
It depends on what plan you are on and how much data you have/ use. In my case it makes a lot of sense as I hardly make any phone calls or sms’s so can be on a very cheap prepaid long life account but have as much data I want. True I could try the Kogan option but that would still be more money than I am paying on average per month.
Not at all – depends on your data plan and battery life on your phone though.
I already have one of these and they are good but not great. Their reception can be a bit hit and miss at least where I have tried using it. I do normally get signal but it is slow and can have high latency. Also the battery is not great giving you maybe 4 hours at most of use but often a lot less if you use it hard. Still when I got it it was the cheapest way of getting extra data. I am now looking to see if I can find the 4g version cheaper as I hope… Read more »