Philly's becoming a wi-fi hot spot

Early reviewers of the Apple/AT&T iPhone have been unanimous on one point: iPhone works a lot faster and better when tapping the Internet through a wi-fi radio network than it does through AT&T's cell-phone network.

And the iPhone really zings as a multi-tasker when it is simultaneously linked to both wi-fi (for the Internet) and AT&T's network (for phone communications.)

Lucky Philadelphians. We got your wi-fi right here.

The citywide and city-sponsored wi-fi service called Wireless Philadelphia is being installed right now by commercial partner Earthlink.

No wonder Mayor Street was one of the first in line to buy an i-Phone yesterday. Wireless Philadelphia got off the ground thanks largely to his efforts, and - surprise, surprise - its Internet access already is on and blanketing Street's North Philadelphia neighborhood.

Our gadget-lovin' city chief (long a dedicated BlackBerry user) is really going to have fun with his new iPhone this weekend.

"We've now got wi-fi signal coverage in roughly 20 percent of the city," estimated Greg Goldman, chief executive officer of the nonprofit Wireless Philadelphia operation. "By the end of the year, if not sooner, it should be basically citywide."

In a separate conversation yesterday, an even-more-optimistic Earthlink spokesman Jerry Grasso said the target date for Philadelphia to be covered fully is "the end of September."

City Hall isn't a hot spot yet on the Wireless Philadelphia service map. But heavily trafficked public parts of Center City, including Love Park, the Benjamin Franklin Parkway museum district and the historic zone around Independence Hall are "live" with wi-fi coverage - and in those selected locales, it's free for all to use.

This holiday weekend, if all goes well, free service also will be turned on at Penn's Landing, so portable computer users and first-in-town iPhone adopters will be able to blog, surf the Web and e-mail photos of concerts and fireworks from the waterfront.

To date, all of Wireless Philadelphia's system tests have been done with laptops connecting on the streets, in vehicles and in homes/offices. Will the iPhone's built-in wi-fi radio communications card prove as robust?

"That's an unknown, and will be a big factor determining the ability of the device to connect with our wireless Internet service, and to hold onto it in a moving vehicle," said Wireless Philadelphia tech guy Ryan Nichols.

"We've got our own guys standing in line to buy iPhones," added Earthlink's Grasso. "Whatever device you have, we want to be sure it works as you expect with the system."

Earthlink also is building wi-fi networks in 10 other markets, including New Orleans, Houston, San Francisco and Atlanta.

While monthly service plans are relatively pricey for the iPhone ($60 and up), a Wireless Philadelphia introductory special invites customers to add its wi-fi access (running at one megabits per second both upstream and downstream) for as little as $6.99 a month for six months, if you agree to subscribe for a year. For the other six months, the charge will be $19.95 per.

FYI: Two devices on a family account - like a home PC and a portable PC or an iPhone - can simultaneously hop on to this wi-fi service.

A higher speed, 3 Mbps downstream/1 Mbps upstream package also is being offered at $9.95 to start, then $21.95 a month.

If Wireless Philadelphia doesn't work up to expectations, a customer can back out of the deal after a 30-day trial, said Goldman. A subsidized rate service ($9.95 per month, all the time) also will be offered to qualified, low-income users.

To check on the current service coverage area and for more info, visit www.wirelessphiladelphia. org or www.earth link.net/wifi or call toll free 866-632-wifi.

Or just ask Mayor Street how he's enjoying his wi-fi-connected iPhone, next time you see him. *