Novatel Ovation MC990D: Modem 3G Auto Telefonica for Mac, Part II

  The modem Novatel Ovation MC990D launched by Movistar, is the first to be offered in Spanish auto and easy to use for portable Mac. The modem itself includes in its internal memory the software to automatically manage the auto and implementation movistar Desktop for Mac OS X. In this second part we will see the return of the telephone connection in travel, which offers bandwidth and a number of general considerations regarding the unit.

First let's define the terms that we used to inspect the network of Telefonica:
Latency

Latency is the length of time it takes for a packet of information traveling from source to destination. The latency and bandwidth, together, define the capacity and speed of a network. To do this you can use the Ping command in the terminal in the following format: ping www.dominio.com.

The Ping command is often used to measure the latency, or time it takes to communicate two points remote, and therefore, is used among the fans to the games in the network PING term to refer to lag or latency of your connection.
Bandwidth (lowering and rising)

It is common to call the digital bandwidth of the amount of data that can be transmitted in a unit time. For example, a line of 256 kbps ADSL can theoretically send 256,000 bits (not bytes) per second. This is really the maximum transfer rate allowed by the system, which depends on the analog bandwidth of the signal strength, the power of noise and channel coding.

An example is the narrow-band conducted through a telephone connection, and an example of broadband is being done through a DSL connection, microwave, cablemódem or T1. Each type has its own connection analog bandwidth and maximum transfer rate. The bandwidth and saturation fold are two factors that directly influence the quality of the links.
Speed Test

To make the following comparative tables, we used three different speed test to have as much data as possible reference. The Speed Test have been elected by the Association of Internet Users ADSL and Help.

Likewise, we made different tests with different time intervals: 10, 12, 16 and 18 hours to check the performance of the network of telephone lines in different work schedules.


Time: 10:00 a.m.
Association of Internet Users
ADSL help


Ping (milliseconds)
254
248


Speed Down (kbps)
735
937


Upload speeds (kbps)
357
418






Time: 12:00 a.m.
Association of Internet Users
ADSL help


Ping (by provider)
286
430


Speed Down (kbps)
745
789


Upload speeds (kbps)
370
262






Time: 16:00 AM
Association of Internet Users
ADSL help


Ping (by provider)
273
252


Speed Down (kbps)
878
950


Upload speeds (kbps)
472
501






Time: 18:00 AM
Association of Internet Users
ADSL help


Ping (by provider)
262
258


Speed Down (kbps)
905
984


Upload speeds (kbps)
571
648




A kilobits per second is a unit of measurement that is used in telecommunications and computer to calculate the speed of transfer of information across a network. An abbreviated form and is more common kbps. It should be noted that the units of data transfer rate listed in powers of 10 instead of powers of 2 as in the case of units of information relating to storage / processing.
On the road

Due to the ostentatious model, it is annoying to connect, especially if you are going to keep your computer on your knees because it leans too much and any accidental blow could damage the USB port. To do so, Telefonica provides an extension and a support to another position. The support is somewhat strange, because on the screen "dances" in portable and small can not be subject to the share of the CPU ... because just plugging the keyboard.

 

One possible solution is to use small adhesive Rozo Velcro to attach the modem is, for example, to the back of the screen.

The truth is that after some (unpleasant) experience with these types of modems and application "Mobile Desktop" on other computers, the functioning of the Novatel has surprised us: it is installed and ran to first without pain or calls of support on a MacBook First-generation Mac OS X 10.5.5 Leopard. Another thing, of course, is the availability of the telephone network. On a trip "standard" road Madrid - Zaragoza, the lack of coverage were frequent, and the terrain does not help anything about it. As you "Gears" between a couple of hills, you lose the signal. In the urban centers seem to go great, but on occasion it has been necessary to "disconnect" and to reconnect because from the very beginning of the connection is not reached or the speed of a 14,400 baud modem. But after a forced reconnection, everything returns to normal operation.

As to the "feeling" of the connection, it's like to return to the days of the first generation of ADSL, perhaps with a little more latency: a (according to data from top) 26 k downhill and climb some 12 non-web proxy cache or fixed IP, ideal for browsing (without pretensions or video streaming immediate response), download mail, perform relatively simple operations, and so on.

Regarding the battery, this device has a tendency to consume enough energy when it is running, so it is very desirable if we are not going to disconnect Internet access. On a battery life of 4.5 hours (brightness of the screen cut in half) to use the Modem Novatel cycle of the battery was reduced nearly an hour.
The best thing
Quick installation, clean and smooth
Operation (oddly) efficiency
The worst
The telephone coverage does not reach all parts
It's very important to back up the installer software (Movistar Desktop drivers) before installing the device.
Availability

The phone modem is available in stores officers Telefonica. Its price varies depending on the contract data.
Related Links
Novatel Ovation MC990D: Modem 3G auto Telefonica for Mac, Part I
How to get a good 3G Internet connection (not so bad) and cheap (less expensive) in Mac OS X, by Ramon M. Boxwood