Clearwire Launches Rover, a Pay-As-You-Go 4G Mobile Broadband Service

Clearwire has a new pay-as-you-go 4G mobile broadband service that they say is for "digitally addicted youth who refuse to settle for long-term contracts, overpriced internet service, or speeds slower than what they've become accustomed to at home." The price of the service is $5/day, $20/week, or $50/month for unlimited usage.

The device, the Rover Puck, is a portable Wi-Fi hotspot that lets you share broadband access with up to eight devices. It is small enough to slip into your purse or backpack to use as an on-the-go broadband access point for laptops, netbooks, iPad, iPod touch, smartphones, or your PSP.

The Rover Puck has mobile download speeds of three to six mbps, with bursts over 10 mbps, and runs on Clearwire's 4G network. The Rover Puck is available now for $149.99 in all of Clearwire's 49 4G markets across the U.S., at rover.com, CLEAR stores, and Best Buy stores.

Don't need (or want) to share broadband access? The Rover Stick is for you. The Rover Stick is a personal 4G USB modem that connects a notebook, laptop or desktop to the Rover 4G Service. The Rover Stick is compatible with MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops using Mac OS X, as well as netbooks and notebooks running Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7. The Rover Stick is available now for $99.99.

Clearwire gives new users two free days of service to make sure Rover's 4G coverage fits your mobile lifestyle (in other words…to make sure it works where you need it). Rover has a 14-day return policy for any device purchases made on rover.com or in CLEAR stores.

The Rover service is priced at $5/day, $20/week, or $50/month for unlimited 4G internet usage. Rover Re-Up PIN codes and/or physical Rover Re-Up cards can be purchased in $20 or $50 denominations.

Coverage maps of service availability can be found at www.rover.com/coverage.