Finally, mobile Internet in the UK for new Macs
In my previous posts, I was complaining about how I lost the ability to use my Vodafone 3G data card when I bought a MacBook Pro. Apple has abandoned the PCMCIA slot in the new MacBook Pros in favor of the newer ExpressCard slot and Vodafone couldn't care less. This is a problem that affects more than just Mac users as, from what I hear, Dell is doing the same thing with its new laptops. Yesterday, I posted that I found a new service by T-Mobile that allows you to use your mobile phone as a modem with an attractive data plan. I ordered the plan along with a T-Mobile Vario II (a rebranded HTC TyTN/Hermes). This morning, I had a knock on the door at around 8.30am and my new phone and connection were handed to me by a friendly Royal Mail driver.
Getting the phone up and running with OS X isn't trivial, however, so here are instructions on how to setup the T-Mobile Vario II on a MacBook Pro running OS X. The following instructions show you how to use the phone as a modem under OS X and how to synchronize your Address Book and iCal entries with your phone.
Using the Vario II as a modem in OS X
To use your phone as a modem with OS X, read Justin Blanton's blog post to get some background information but don't actually carry out the instructors or download the IPAQ modem script that is linked to from there. Instead, head down to Ross Barkman's web site and download the Script for Windows Mobile phones (12kb). Unzip this somewhere and copy the Windows Mobile GSM 460k file to the /Library/Mobile folder. Ross Barkman has a GPRS Info Page where you can get the GPRS login information for your network (for T-Mobile you can enter anything for the username and password, I used user and pass.)
Address Book and iCal synchronization: The Missing Sync
To synchronize your Address Book and iCal with the T-Mobile Vario II, you need to spend a bit more of your hard-earned cash. Surf down to Mark/Space and buy their The Missing Sync for Windows Mobile, v2.5.1. It'll set you back $39.95 (roughly £21). I was a little hesitant at first because the T-Mobile Vario II is not on the list of supported devices for The Missing Sync, but the HTC TyTN is and the Vario II is basically a re-branded version of that smartphone. In practice, it works splendidly.
Install The Missing Sync and run the application. Click the Preferences button and check the Show more detail in log button. This will help you troubleshoot the connection if anything goes wrong. Next, click the Show Log button in the toolbar to display the Missing Sync Log window.
Important: The Missing Sync should be running before you pair your phone and your Mac so that it can advertise the ActiveSync option. Adding this later can be problematic (I had to perform a hard reset to get it working again after experimenting with turning the ActiveSync option off.)
Pairing the Vario II and your Mac
On the phone, use the Comm Manager hardware button (or open Comm Manager from the Start → Programs) to bring up the Comm Manager. Click the Settings soft button, select Bluetooth Settings, and check both the Turn on Bluetooth and Make this device discoverable to other devices options.
Back on your Mac, click on the Bluetooth icon in your menu bar, select Set up BlueTooth device, and follow the instructions. On the last page, enter "user" and "pass" for the Internet connection and choose the Windows Mobile GSM 460k modem from the list. Make sure you select the options to place the connection icon in the menu bar and place the connection in your Network connections.
I also had to uncheck Send PPP echo packets under System Preferences → Network (Show: Bluetooth) → PPP Options but left Use TCP header compression on.
That's all there is to it. Now you can right click on the modem icon in your menu bar and choose connect. Your Mac should connect to the Internet using your phone. (Make sure you have Airport and/or ethernet off while testing this.)
To sync your calendars and addresses, return to Comm Manager on your phone and click the sync button (the one at the very bottom). Select Menu → Connect via Bluetooth. Now, return to The Missing Sync and click the Synchronize button. On the first sync, I set the Settings for each of the items so that the Mac Overwrites Device setting was checked but I unchecked it for subsequent syncs (but that's probably just me being paranoid!)
So at the moment, I'm really happy since I can connect to the Internet again with my Mac while on the move. I've only tested the Internet connection at home and the speeds I'm getting are great. The sync is also working like a charm.
I'll report back on my experiences in a few weeks, after I've had the chance to use my connection on the road. Now I'm off to transfer my number over from Vodafone and, once that's done (in about five business days, apparently), I'll be cancelling my mobile phone contract with Vodafone and cancelling the 3G data card with them once its contract runs out.
Goodbye, Vodafone! Hello, mobile Internet! 
The Finally, mobile Internet in the UK for new Macs article by Aral Balkan, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 2.0 UK: England License.
kent
“and Vodafone could care less.”
Really, how much less could they care? I was under the impression that they couldn’t care less - that they were caring as little as possible…
Sorry, pet peeve, people getting that particular phrase wrong :>
October 11th, 2006 at 5:48 pmaral
Nice catch, Kent, and no worries. I’m a stickler for that sort of thing myself. (Fixed!)
October 11th, 2006 at 9:05 pmAlexTRC
I found this helpful article and it has been GREAT. However, I;m not the best at MAC’s and have one question; I can’t find the library/mobile folder. Do I have to create it? Or am I being stupid? Thanks
October 27th, 2006 at 3:59 pmAlex
aral
Hi AlexTRC: You can find the Library folder in Finder if you click on your hard drive icon.
October 29th, 2006 at 9:31 pmdave
thanks aral. this guide has been a great help!
November 10th, 2006 at 11:29 pmaral
Glad to hear it, Dave!
November 11th, 2006 at 1:22 pmSam
Hi Aral. I’m in the process of buying a Vario II to replace my Blackberry. Will this work with a normal powerbook or does it need to be “Intel” powered. Also the Vario II uses HSDPA so is this the connection you get when connecting through the mac (sorry if that is a stupid question -im not up on mobile communications). I found a product called Lauch 2 net by a company that allows you to connect mobile devices to macs but when asking about the Vario II they said it lacked the required bluetooth protocols to ever work - I guess they were wrong from what you have published. Thanks again for a guide and if you do know the answers to any of these questions and could let me know it would be much appreciated. Sam
November 28th, 2006 at 10:43 amNick
Hi Aral,
I’m really glad a found your site I have a few questions I am looking at getting the vairo ll in a couple of weeks when my vodafone contract runs out. How do you find the t-mobile 3g service is it reliable? also did u just get the normal web n walk or web n walk plus because the lady I spoke to said I would need the web n walk plus to be able to use with my 12in powerbook as a modem is there anything that your not happy with this service
December 8th, 2006 at 4:48 pmDaveC
A simple question - but can’t seem to find the answer anywhere online
December 19th, 2006 at 6:23 pmCan the Vario II check my Mac Mail account automatically and retrieve messages?
Would like to buy one, but T-Mobile didn’t know the answer.
Thanks
aral
Hi Dave,
I’m really not sure as I don’t use Mac Mail (I’m assuming you mean .Mac). The way I use it, I actually have to ask it to fetch my mail. I’m not sure if it supports push if you have Exchange, etc.
December 19th, 2006 at 6:57 pmDaveC
Thanks Aral, I’d love to get one this week if it’s compatible - but obviously no point if it’s not!
December 20th, 2006 at 12:15 ami’ll see if one of the so-called Geniuses at the Mac shop can shed any light, and if they do, i’ll report back
cheers
Dave
aral
Cool! Looking forward to hearing what you find out.
December 20th, 2006 at 1:43 pmSam
Anyone new trying it, don’t be put off! Mega easy and I’m no genuis. I’m running a non intel powerbook and got it working within 5 mins. Like Aral said download the ‘Windows Mobile GSM’ link on the site given, then in that folder is the 460 GSM file you need. Once this is dragged into the library, modem scripts folder you are nearly ready to roll. I’m running tiger and you don’t need to worry about that extra bluetooth setup dmg file the Ross Barkman site refers to. Open bluetooth in system prefences (found on dock) and then add new device, select other, it will find the vario II (pair it) and has an option “use device to connect to the internet” click this, put in the user and pass as aral described as anything, and add the *99# in number, click connect and you are away. The modem starts to connect and before you know it you are online. Aral and everyone that help create this availability I take my hats off to you, brilliant way to connect the mac up when T-mobile promised me no chance of connection. Good luck anyone trying it. Sam P.S ARAL/OTHERS HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED THAT WEB PAGES CAN APPEAR SLIGHTLY DIFFERENTLY THROUGH THIS CONNECTION? MY TESTS ON MOST WEBSITES SHOWS THE GRAPHICS LOWER RES AND NOT AS CLEAR, LIKE THE FULL GRAPHICS ARE NOT PREFECTLY LOADED? ANY IDEAS?
January 12th, 2007 at 4:13 pmjkp
The question remains: is this running at HSDPA speeds or just plain old 3G? I tested my connection (I got an N73…) over and over and could only ever get what seems to be 3G speeds.
From the look of the scripts you are using I would guess this is the case as well….can you do a speedtest and post your results?
January 18th, 2007 at 1:39 amjkp
And I can answer my own question: this phone is not HSDPA compatible. Basically it will only do 3G speeds and doesnt look likely that this will change.
Shame, I’m sending mine back and waiting a couple more months…
January 18th, 2007 at 11:34 ammichael
Dear Aral,
I have 3g in Cambodia, I connect a MacBook Pro with a O2 Trion and my upstream is timing out on http, ftp and smtp. Downstream is ok, no disconnect. Any idea why this happens and what to do about it? A similar setup with the gereric o2 modem driver on a pc does not time out. Thanks for your page, it brought me on the right track.
Does anybody have a modem script for the XDA Trion, Hermes TyTN or similar models?
Michael
January 19th, 2007 at 3:25 pmEd
This gets so close, but then immediately disconnects after authenticating. Any ideas? I also tried the suggestions over at http://www.babilim.co.uk/blog/2006/02/htc-universal-as-bluetooth_114016250687500909.html
# In System Preferences > Network > Bluetooth, in the PPP tab click on PPP Options and make sure that Use TCP header compression is unchecked.
February 27th, 2007 at 7:40 pm# Go to the Bluetooth Modem tab and make sure that Use TCP header compression is unchecked. Disable both Enable error correction and compression in modem and Wait for dial tone before dialing and apply your changes.
Nerm
Hey Aral,
It was your blog that helped me decide to opt for T-mobile/Vario II back in Feb and now this post has helped turn my PowerBook G4 into a road warrior, so many, many thanks.
I was wondering if using USB instead of Bluetooth to connect the phone/modem to the Mac would speed things up a little? If so how would one go about doing it?
Thanks and big respect,
Nerm
November 11th, 2007 at 8:25 pm