Hi altogether,
I know the problem I´m posting here is a bit of a local one because it´s a matter that concerns users in Germany.
However it might be the case that the same problem could arise in other parts of the world too.
That´s why I´d like to discuss it here anyway in order to obtain some good suggestions.
I hope you don´t mind.
I seem to be running into problems in the forseeable future as far as my internet connection is concerned.
Due to certain circumstances my only internet connection is via a UMTS/HSDPA stick. For this purpose I bought a Medion S4012 (HUAWEI E1550 HSDPA USB stick) back in 2010. I purchased it in a local Aldi store here in Germany.
lsusb yields:
Bus 001 Device 015: ID 12d1:1001 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. E161/E169/E620/E800 HSDPA Modem
Basically I´m an AldiTalk customer and AldiTalk makes use of the O2 mobile phone net as far as I know.
The stick works perfectly well with my Lubuntu system and I´m pretty happy with it.
However:
Lately I received an e-mail from AldiTalk:
Dear ALDI TALK customer,
the 3G mobile network will be gradually converted to 4G / LTE by the end of 2021.
At https://www.alditalk.de/4G you can check whether the device you are currently using supports 4G / LTE and whether you can continue to surf the Internet in the future.
You will also find further helpful information on switching to 4G / LTE there.Your ALDI TALK team
This is not good news methinks. I´m in a bit of a pickle here.
I did a bit of research and found out that those Aldi UMTS sticks cannot handle 4G/LTE. So in due course my present stick won´t be usable any more.
What I want to achieve is finding an alternative for it, like another stick that can handle 4G (e.g. the Huawei E3372-LTE/4G):
In the description it says:
- it´s unlocked for all networks
- choose any SIM card of your choice
- connectivity type: 2G,3G,4G,EDGE,GPRS,GSM,HSPA+,HSUPA,LTE,UMTS
- customer comment: works with Linux out-of-the-box
For me it´s important to be able to use - like at present - AldiTalk (i.e. O2), just with 4G in the future. Plus: I want to be able to use my present SIM card if at all possible.
Perhaps there are other/better options as well. What do you think
Any suggestions are welcome.
Thanks a lot in advance.
Many greetings.
Rosika