How do i connect my Mac to the internet

[macguy]

How do i connect my Mac to the internet with a wireless phone? I can't find a provider that can connect my Titanium G4 with OSX 10.2 via a wirless modem. The Sony/Ericsson T68i is great for it's iSync abilities, but it doesn't seem to have modem ability. What speed should I expect to be able to connect? Is there a phone poised for release I should be waiting for? What providers are making Mac friendly systems? I can't find any.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-confused.gif[/img]

OS X actually has quite good support for cell phones connecting to the Internet. Trouble is, most of the providers and manufacturers haven't figured this out yet. For example, Apple fully supports the Motorola V120, and Verizon's scripts support any AT-standard phone, which includes all of Motorola's lineup. But some carriers block out the wireless analog modem functions of their phone (you pay or have time deducted for the minutes you use just like with a voice call) to force you to use their faster but pricey medium to high speed digital connections (you pay an excessive rate per MB of data downloaded, which almost invariably costs more than using minutes unless you're web surfing as opposed to BBS or email) -- AT&T is a prime offender in this regard; as I understand it they have disabled the Siemens S46 in this way, a shame to do that to a good phone.

Here are some helpful links, covering both your GSM phone, the T68i, and also anyone out there who is trying to do the same with CDMA (eg Verizon)

ID express OY -- for programming your GSM phone with your Mac

GSM Remote - FAQ and support

Cell Phone Modems & Mac OS X -- useful for Verizon customers

First bit of advice to anyone else reading this thread; if you don't already have Mac OS X, get it. The vast majority of what's out there seems to depend on it. I haven't tried any of this myself but I have been looking into it as I decide whether or not to keep Verizon or switch, and I'm in the market for a laptop.

Another note: Motorola claims not to support their phones on the Mac -- yet the evidence on the net is clearly that Mac OS X already recognizes the phones sufficiently well that Motorola doesn't even need to worry about it.

Siemens S46 is allegedly not mac-compatible, but, if you have a PowerBook with IRDA, or an IRDA adapter that plugs into any USB port, there's a third-party fix at least for the calendar and address book functions that I saw in a forum dedicated to Siemens products. Can't remember the link though; try entering "Siemens S46" IRDA Powerbook "OS X" as search terms on Google and you should get closer.

Just two more examples of manufacturers not bothering to check the broad degree of hardware support and especially networking support in OS X. (even if OS X is a bit flaky yet on SCSI for hard drive backup on one brand of SCSI card that shall remain nameless, but that's not the subject of this website of course)

[cx3473359]

Verizon Wireless is the best provider yet for support with the MAC.

[DHM]

Originally posted by: cx3473359
Verizon Wireless is the best provider yet for support with the MAC.

That's nice to hear! So how do I sync the calendar and/or phone book in my Verizon T720 with Palm Desktop running in OS X?

Thanks

[Rushkoff]

Originally posted by: cx3473359
Verizon Wireless is the best provider yet for support with the mac.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Nice to hear - but, as I've posted elsewhere - so far both of the Verizon Wireless support people I have spoken to have informed me that Verizon Wireless does not and will not be supporting Mac. "None of our phones are Mac compatible" said one. "The network does not support the Mac" explained another.

Does anyone know of a phone number or email address at Verizon where I might be able to find anyone who will acknowledge Verizon's support of the mac or, better, get a Mac user online through a cellular phone modem?

[macadamant]

Anybody have experience connecting their Mac to the Internet w/ a Sony EricssonT68i or Samsung S105 via T-mobile? I need a new cell phones, but want one with easy, seamless wireless connectivity to my G3 powerbook. I'm having a lot of trouble figuring out which phone might be the most Mac-friendly and how to ensure I'll have the proper modem scripts (I realize OS X has a lot of them, but haven't upgraded to that yet). Doesn't seem to be a lot of info available and tech support people at cell providers (and at Apple) are relatively clueless about this.

[macadamant]

Please share any tips on wireless connection of your Mac to the Internet. I'm shopping around for new cell phones/providers and it would be great to pick one that worked easier with the Mac. But, OF COURSE, nobody in customer service at any cell provider can give you any good info. Nor do they provide it on their Web sites.

[isired]

my t720 works fine as a modem on my tibook - see http://homepage.mac.com/jrc/contrib/mobile_office/

[Brentano]

Using the v60i with Verizon works. All you need is the Motorola USB cable. OSX.2 has all the drivers it needs to recognize your phone. Motorola and Verizon's cooperation are not required, so most of their employees are clueless about the compatibility. I believe the same applies to the v120 and t720.

Don't waste your money on the $70 Mobile Office Kit. None of the software will work. All you need is the cable. If you can't get the cable alone, you should be able to find a cable with "TrueSync" software for $30.

Once your phone is connected to the computer, go to System Preferences: Network and the phone will be one of your options.

Syncing is a different issue. Apple's iSync only supports bluetooth connectivity between the computer and phone. However, it's widely rumored that iSync 1.1 (coming soon) will support a USB connection to Motorola phones.

Even better, you can get your address book entries into the phone now. There's a shareware utility called OnSync. It will trade address book entries back and forth between your USB or IR connected phone and your Apple Address Book, or Eudora Address Book. From Palm Desktop, it's fairly simple to export your entries as vcards and import them into Apple's Address Book. The unregistered version only works one entry at a time, but it's only $10 to register.

http://homepage.mac.com/antonioferraioli/

For me, it was a pleasant surprise to actually find a device not made by Apple (other than a digital still camera) that would work so easily with the Mac. Many other products in audio and video and PDA have been disappointing in that regard.

Good luck!

[polonius]

Originally posted by: DHM

That's nice to hear! So how do I sync the calendar and/or phone book in my Verizon T720 with Palm Desktop running in OS X?

Thanks

At present, Apple synch support for mobile phones is limited to a handful of SonyEricsson models. Nokia just doesn't seem to be interested in mac users. But even the SE line-up is limited -- I find it almost unbelievable, but you cannot for example synch with a P800. I understand Apple is working on this, and I think some 3rd party people are working on some conduits, but at present, apple synching is basically the t68i.

However, you can use the GPRS or CS DATA functions of many phones, and of course there are many data cards (GPRS and/or 802.11b) that can be used in the Powerbook. The new powerbooks also have built in bluetooth, which gives another connection option besides the USB port or IR.

[mikemccue]

Does anyone have any information specifically for the 4400?

I have the dial string, number, and the username/pass for verizon, I know how to do this on a windows box, I'm failing at figuring out how to get the Mac to see the phone... Windows box you can set the port, but I can't seem to do that here. The phone is seen, just not as a modem, and it's not selectable anywhere as a network/dialup device.

Any ideas how to setup this up on the Mac? (Running 10.2.6)

[VZWguru]

Originally posted by: Rushkoff

Does anyone know of a phone number or email address at Verizon where I might be able to find anyone who will acknowledge Verizon's support of the mac or, better, get a Mac user online through a cellular phone modem?

as far as the support, yes that is correct what you have been told... this just took place within a few days ago. Its not that the phones are not compatible with MAC, its the drivers that are a real pain in the ___ to load. With OS X, its pretty easy...usually theres no driver installation involved...just need modem scripts. This is especially helpful with Verizons motorola phones. Cuz the Mac's chipset is manufactured by motorola.

now the whole reason behind the support issue is because we have very few ppl Apple trained. And we are getting flooded with more calls then the techs can handle. And getting a MAC connectivity issue escalated is like pulling teeth from an elephant. but hopefully in the near future verizon will change its view. anyways, hoped that helped. late

[scribemcg]

Thanks for your help. Just ordered the usb cable through cellpoint. I've bookmarked your info to help when I have to install software? drivers? after the cable comes. Hope it works for me, too! I have a 120e Motorila and an iBook G3 laptop. Thanks againm Macguy. I'm at ammcomm03@aol.com.
Milt

[aznjeep]

The official word from Verizon Wireless is that we no longer support the connectivity of Macs... This means that up to a certain point at the beginning of this year, we did support Mac connections, both with our qnc (14.4) and express network connections (and for those that had a serial cable, the use of a Keyspan USB-serial hi-speed adapter took care of that problem)... however, we couldn't get the manufacturers to produce a "kit" for us to sell, and therefore, dropped the support. I, along with a few others in the department, came from a time where we did support Mac connections... we even had a link on our site to download the Verizon Wireless STD modem driver (which is no longer there)... but as others have said, we learned that the usb cable that is now available for the v- and t- series phones is compatible w/ OS X (Jaguar)... unfortunately, I cannot comment as to if we ever will support Mac again...

[scribemcg]

did you ever get any help? I've had the same experience and only John Chang's post has helped me. But I have a 120e and his info is for a 120c and nobody at Verizon can tell me the firmware update that would help.
Milt

[WirelessBeachBum]

I have not tried this myself, but some customers have told me it works.

1. Go to this web site:

http://tech.prolific.com.tw/visitor/v_fileBrw.asp

2. Select the following item from the list of products:

PL-2303 USB to Serial Bridge Controller

3. Select your OS from the dropdown list (Mac, Windows, etc.):

Click the download button and you have your driver!




VERSION 2 for MAC OS10.2.3 using handset (minor adjustments when using (aircard):

These instructions are for the Samsung A500 but should work just as well for any SprintPCS Vision enabled phone.
With your computer turned off and your phone turned on, connect the phone to your Mac with the data cable making sure the connection to the phone is square and secure (the plug should be square to the phone which will look like the right side of the plug is in all the way, but the left side is not - if you push in the left side all the way it will look more flush, but you might not make contact on the right side - your experience may vary). Power up your Mac and login normally. Launch "System Preferences", select "Network Preferences" (you will be notified that a new port for the phone has been created - click "Ok" or whatever to continue), select "Samsung CDMA Technologies" from the drop down "Show" menu (if you didn't get the notification and Samsung doesn't appear in the menu, your USB cable is not seated properly in the phone - I suggest you start over with your computer off). Place "#777" in the phone number field of the "PPP" tab, no Username or Password (leave these fields blank), on "PPP Options" uncheck "Use TCP Header Compression" and do check "Send PPP Echo Packets (for greater reliability). On the "Modem" tab select the "SprintPCS Vision" modem script from the drop down "Modem" menu (this modem script is new in OS 10.2.3 so make sure you have the latest OS updates from "Software Update"), uncheck "Wait for Dial Tone Before Dialing", and do check "Show Modem Status In Menu Bar". From the "Show" drop down menu you may choose to select "Network Port Configurations" and move the "Samsung CDMA Technologies" port configuration to the bottom of the list if you wish to give priority to your dial-up modem and ethernet connections. Click "Apply Now" and close "System Preferences".

After this initial setup, at anytime with the computer on you may connect the phone with the USB cable (the phone will display a standard connection message - press "Ok" and the display will read "USB Connected"). Select "Connect" from the modem status icon on the Apple menu bar with "Samsung CDMA Technologies" checked (instead of "Internal Modem") then launch your browser or email client on your Mac and enjoy. If you would prefer to skip the step of manually connecting, you can check "Connect Automatically When Needed" on "PPP Options" above, though if you make this selection in my experience every time you startup your computer without the phone connected you will get an error message saying that the USB device can't be found - once you click out of the dialog box everything works fine, its just an annoying reminder that your phone isn't connected. For the Samsung A500, the flip does not have to be open for the phone to be used as a wireless modem which should save significantly on battery power since the color screen is not in use (with the phone on and the flip closed, just extend the antenna and plug in the USB data cable, you'll still get a little feedback about what's going on from the external window display but it wont say "USB Connected").