I use a samsung sch-i730 with EVDO and it was downloading at rates of 50 Kilobytes a second as an usb modem attached to my desktop downloading 10 meg pdf file from a web server. Also used it with wifi in ad hoc mode as wireless gateway for multiple laptops and they were all surfing pretty well. Verizon's EVDO is lit up everywhere I have voice in the Philadelphia Metro area. Which is a big improvement over three months ago where my 45 min train ride was in and out of evdo coverage. It is worth the extra money if you can use it all the time. This eliminates the use of getting an aircard for $60 a month (down from $80) to the pocket pc phone which is $50 a month for the same service on a phone. Getting slower speeds using the bluetooth connection (w/ homebrew addon software) but then you can be untethered and browse from your laptop. We use t-mobile for our blackberries and their coverage is so bad just for voice that a high speed data plan would be useless since you cannot use it most of the time.