File this under "too good to be true, therefore it probably won't last." PdaNet is an application that allows you to use your phone's data connection on your laptop. It connects iPhone, Palm, Android, Blackberry, or Windows Mobile phones to Macs or PCs (in my case, it's an Android phone connected to a Mac). This means you essentially have internet everywhere; if you're on a decent 3G connection it's surprisingly fast. I ran a speed test and got 2.5 megabits/second (Time Warner cable internet in NYC typically peaks out at 5 megabits). Considering many carriers are soon going to charge you for tethering, the $30 one-time fee for PdaNet is more than worth it if you find yourself working on the road a lot (or in coffee shops and airports, where free Wi-Fi is still rare). While the connection is sometimes finicky, PdaNet has more than paid for itself; I'm writing this from an internet-free house in Queens, yet I've been able to FTP large video files to clients.
Link: PdaNet
