Sprint Launches Dual-Mode 3G and 4G USB Dongle

This morning Sprint announced a new mobile broadband solution that supports both its 3G EV-DO network and 4G WiMAX networks. The U300 is the first USB dongle of its type, and it costs $149 with a two-year contract at local Sprint stores in Baltimore and surrounding areas. What makes this device attractive is that, typically, you wouldn’t want to purchase a WiMax  broadband card unless you lived in a coverage area like Baltimore where Clearwire (formerly XOHM) exists.

This new solution, designed by Franklin Wireless, provides makes 4G more attractive to travelers; you can use a 3G connection back at home in Washington, D.C., and every time you travel to Baltimore, you’ll be able to surf at faster speeds without having to buy additional hardware. A single $79.99 data plan will cover surfing on either network, too. That’s a $20 premium over a single 3G broadband connection.

During our initial tests of the XOHM WiMAX network in Baltimore, built by Sprint, we averaged 3.05Mbps during a 25MB FTP download test and 2.4Mbps upload throughput. That’s smack dab in the middle of Sprint’s claims that this card will offer 2-4Mbps downlink speeds, but it’s still a good improvement over the typical 600 – 1.4Mbps you could expect from a 3G broadband connection.