Some Bixis will provide free Wi-Fi
A few Bixi bikes will provide free wi-fi as part of a Telus PR activity. Not sure how useful a mobile wi-fi beacon is, if it moves away just as you’re connecting.
A few Bixi bikes will provide free wi-fi as part of a Telus PR activity. Not sure how useful a mobile wi-fi beacon is, if it moves away just as you’re connecting.
Chris 16:55 on 2012/07/08 Permalink
Useful for the one riding the bike anyway.
Bert 18:57 on 2012/07/08 Permalink
Chris, should the rider not be riding, as opposed to wi-fi-ing?
Chris 20:09 on 2012/07/08 Permalink
Bert, one’s phone can be using the wi-fi without human intervention. It can update my email, etc. Certainly, one should bike with both hands on the handlebars.
Stefan 05:20 on 2012/07/09 Permalink
navigating google maps (giving voice directions) to the target (or rather the next free bixi slot). did they install a handheld for the smartphone? i don’t know if it works so well speaking out of your pocket …
Josh 15:32 on 2012/07/09 Permalink
I’ve never used Bixi, so maybe I’m missing the boat on this, but could you not stop in a park for five minutes to look something up, using the wifi that your bike is providing?
Kate 15:37 on 2012/07/09 Permalink
What you’ll see on the La Presse item is something about an “escouade Wi-Xi” with a photo showing similarly accoutred people on a set of bikes. My impression was therefore that these bikes will be circulating around, ridden by people paid to do so as part of the PR exercise – not rented out to regular riders like other Bixi bikes. For now, anyway.
Josh 16:03 on 2012/07/09 Permalink
Ah, I see. Well, in future I can see how it would be handy to check stuff just by taking a short break while en route somewhere.
Kate 16:05 on 2012/07/09 Permalink
Actually, I spoke to the guy who was developing the mobile modem gadget for this project, a couple of months ago. His people knew they needed to work out a way to put these gadgets aboard Bixis yet make them difficult to steal.
Bert 18:22 on 2012/07/10 Permalink
From pictures, it seem that the Wifi stuff is actually hosted in a backpack. One of the linked articles says that the hotspots will be at certain location on certain days. This leads me to now think that the hotspots are meant to be relocated on a periodic basis (e.g. daily, weekly, special events) and not meant as a rolling wifi hotspot.