Earlier I stated that I'd be interested in seeing how wireless connectivity shapes up in the broader world outside the major metropolitan areas. Well, in short, my fears were confirmed. In Southwest Florida, GSM/GPRS connectivity is spotty at best -- we spent the weekend in Fort Myers, a community of approximately 330K (most of this in overdeveloped gated communities), and at no time did my Sidekick think it was online. Now, granted, the Sidekick isn't trimode, so maybe that would have been the secret. But it was a harrowing experience, if I keep my tongue in my cheek.

Nor did I discover any WiFi hotspots in my voyaging.

A trip earlier in the venture to Lakeland, Florida did show connectivity; odd, because Lakeland (according to my contacts in Fort Myers) is not as advanced as Fort Myers. Having dealt with technology companies in the past based out of Southwest Florida, this does seem to be a common view. So the relatively more primitive infrastructure for Fort Myers would seem to be an impediment to a technology company success (hey, they must be successful - they had their sign on a building!)

Ponce de leGeek... - spoiled in the big city.

Posted by esinclai at January 21, 2003 09:17 PM |