[the-peoples-poet]

I have a 3 Network mobile broadband modem HAUWEI E220 HSDPA USB Modem. Yesterday, (saturday) I was able to log on perfectly well, and today, I have not been able to. Sometimes I get online and most of the time I don't it seems to just be pot luck. Sometimes the internet pages don't show up and I have to disconnect and reconnect again and this takes ages. The connection takes a long time to connect and to disconnect again takes longer than normal too. Sometimes when I try to connect it stays on the 'connecting' window for a while and then comes up as 'connection failed'. I have done several system restores to try to solve this problem, as this solved the problem before, and the system restores, I don't think, made any dufferent. I also tried using different USB cables in different sockets and uninstalling and reinstalling the modem itself. I am on now by sheer luck, if I disconnect, I may not be able to get on again and I am having to, sometimes, restart the pc to make the connection.

Is there a problem with my modem or a problem on the pc somewhere? I have had this modem for about 6 weeks or so now and it has never been 100% functioning. I know that I am covered network wise because I have checked this on the 3 website before I bought the product.

It is incredibly frustrating not knowing what is causing the problem or how to fix it.

I got this because it was great that I could go online at broadband speeds without having a landline phone. I do not want a landline phone, I have no use for one.

If anyone knows of another way of getting broadband at home without having a landline, I would love to know. I live in the UK.

Does anyone have any advice for how I could solve these problems?

[Hands0n]

Hi and welcome to Talk3G.

I would make a start by suggesting that it is probably three's DNS servers possibly being a bit flaky. The symptoms you describe are seen on other mobile broadband networks.

One thing you could do is manually set the DNS Server in your PC's connection to use Open DNS - https://www.opendns.com/start - this is independent of your mobile broadband supplier, and can be much more reliable source of DNS lookups.

Try it and see how you get on.

[the-peoples-poet]

I don't quite know what that means, when it comes to net connections and things, I am quite a novice. What is it that that website does?

Will it 'knock off' anything else on the pc? Which part should I click on, the DNS server icon?

I am on Windows Vista Home Basic.

[chagle]

One thing you could do is manually set the DNS Server in your PC's connection to use Open DNS - https://www.opendns.com/start - this is independent of your mobile broadband supplier, and can be much more reliable source of DNS lookups.



I must admit, even on home broadband I've never really thought about using such a service. I often have issues with the occasional site which could be a DNS issue.

Is this sort of service perhaps more reliable than the standard ISP?

[Hands0n]

Open DNS is not bullet proof but it has proven to be a bit of a savior where the ISP or mobile broadband operator's DNS is not up to scratch. Even the giants like Vodafone have inherent DNS issues that they have not completely solved.

One possible issue with Open DNS is that they occasionally hijack the DNS requests particularly if they cannot resolve it themselves. Nothing sinister, mind. Merely you end up on some advert page or suchlike. It has never happened to me, but I have heard about this happening. But if it is solving the DNS issue it is probably a small price to pay.

[Hands0n]

I don't quite know what that means, when it comes to net connections and things, I am quite a novice. What is it that that website does?

Will it 'knock off' anything else on the pc? Which part should I click on, the DNS server icon?

I am on Windows Vista Home Basic.

The specific Vista instructions are here --> https://www.opendns.com/start?device=windows-vista

Just work your way through these. It may be best you print the instructions out using the link on the page before you start. That way you can go back and reverse any changes you made if it makes things worse, or does nothing at all ...

[Ben]

Are you able to test if connection is any better when you're in a different geographic location? I.e. travel a few miles away so you're being served by a different mast and see if things are any better.

Perhaps there are network issues in your area. If you haven't already, it'd be a good idea to start talking to 3 CS to get your issue logged.

[the-peoples-poet]

I have a desktop, not a laptop, but it seems to want to co-operate with me today.

Thanks to everyone who posted, you were all very helpful.

[Ben]

Ah, yes, driving around with your desktop might not be an option ;) ;)

Hopefully mobile broadband will approach the reliability of wired broadband sometime... soon.