Nov 8, 2007
Now you can surf the Net on a
bus
From Friday, a free high-speed mobile broadband service will be
available on 12 bus routes, with more to come
By Stephanie Gwee
Telecom company Nokia has installed the high-speed mobile broadband
service, known as High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), to
allow commuters to surf the Web for free on 12 popular bus routes
that criss-cross the island. -- PHOTO: NOKIA
BUS commuters will be able to while their time away on bus rides by
checking movie timings, replying to e-mail messages or watching
YouTube clips.
Starting on Friday, they can surf the Web for free on 12 popular
bus routes that criss-cross the island.
The SBS buses ply the routes which carry commuters to and from Ang
Mo Ko, Toa Payoh, Bukit Timah, Orchard Road and Jurong.
Commuters can use their laptops or mobile phones which can tap
wirelessly into the Internet.
Telecom company Nokia has installed the high-speed mobile broadband
service, known as High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), to
allow for this free surfing.
Ang Mo Kio and Toa Payoh Bus interchanges will also offer this new
wireless access by the end of next week, with Nokia promising that
it will extend the wireless service to more bus routes and
interchanges next year.
The service links users to the Internet once they switch on the
Wi-Fi function of their mobile devices, regardless of brand and
telco service provider.
This initiative, said the Nokia spokesman, was largely inspired by
the Government's effort to improve wireless coverage of the country
through the [email protected] drive.
Launched last December, [email protected] already covers most shopping
malls and cafes in Singapore, with 7,200 Wi-Fi hotspots found
nationwide.
As of July, about 520,000 people have signed up for
[email protected]
A test conducted by The Straits Times assessed the
user-friendliness and effectiveness of logging online on these
buses. Bus numbers 88, 147 and 143 were tested.
Once online, we checked our e-mail, streamed music from online
radio stations and watched a video on YouTube. All activities could
be done easily on buses 88 and 147.
However, we were unable to connect to the Internet on the 143
service.
Copyright © 2007 Singapore Press Holdings.
