PdaNet

Summary

Today’s test review is going to be short and sweet. The app that’s been getting a lot of use on my phone provides only one function and the user interface is, shall we say, rather Spartan. But let me start at the beginning.

There are probably still some working professionals who don’t have the same issue as I do, but when I’m in the go I want to be able to access the internet via my smartphone. “Tethering”, they call it. And sometimes this proves to be quite a challenge. I’ve been using a Mac for years for work. When I’m away on business – something that happens frequently – I take a USB stick with UMTS with me, but it’s been letting me down a lot lately; I’ve encountered a few problems using the stick that cause a lot of hassle.

So when I recently heard about a program that’s meant to simplify the tethering process, my interest was piqued. And it works for both PCs and Macs.
Exactly how it works and whether it’s worth it… find out in this test review!
 

Section rating:

PDAnet is suitable for both PCs and Macs. The only requirement is that a program needs to be installed on a computer from which you will want to access the internet via your phone. Oh, and you have to install PDAnet on your phone as well, of course.

You can then connect to the internet in two ways:

• via USB
• via Bluetooth DUN

I prefer to connect via USB online. What you have to do is connect your phone with the computer via USB cable. By clicking on a small icon located on the computer screen you can then establish internet connection. Your phone will select a connection – WLAN or UMTS – depending on what options are available.
I haven’t yet managed to connect via Bluetooth, and I promise that I made several attempts. I had hoped that I could set up a kind of router and thus grant several people internet access via my phone. But… I must be too much of a noob, ‘cause I failed miserably.

Bottom line:
I predicted that this test review might be a brief one. The app really only provides this one function, but it does it very well. And in all honesty: it’s the app I use the most often. I’ve tested other, similar apps, but they were all a bad joke in comparison to this one. PDAnet is truly the only app with which I’m familiar with that does such an excellent job. And this app has saved me a couple of times, after my USB stick had given up on me. It doesn’t rely on proxy server, the connection is made via TCP/IP.

The app deserves every one of its stars in this category.

Section rating:

I can’t say that I’m particularly partial to the user interface, which is quite dark. But then again—who needs a trendy interface, some might ask. Well, there’s nothing wrong with an app that functions the way it should and is nice to look at, I say. The company's main focus certainly isn’t design: the PDAnet website is pretty ugly and not set up in a very logical way.

That being said, I bet anyone could establish internet connection via phone in a relatively brief period of time: it’s really that simple. And that’s the main thing really. So let’s award it four stars.
 

Section rating:

PDAnet is very dependable. The connection is set up quickly and I’ve never experienced any trouble using this app.

Section rating:

PDAnet is a trial version which is free of cost. After the trial version is over you can still go online, but secure websites are no longer shown.