wireless

[okunote]

I'm taking my first trip to Japan at the end of this month. I wanted to know whether or not my laptop's wireless will work over there or whether or not I should come across any problems. Thanks!

[Jason]

If you're talking about your WiFI (802.11a/b/g/n) connection, then no, you shouldn't have any problem. WiFi is a worldwide standard, and is the same wherever you go, unlike things like cell phones.

[JonB]

As I live here I have no need to connect to any hotspots as I wait until I get home. Where to find free hot spots? For pay connections do they have the service to switch to English to sign up?

I guess that is more what okunote was after...

[markystar]

not many free wi-fi spots in japan as far as i know...

a lot of cellphone providers sell wi-fi subscriptions, and you can also subscribe to services at the big electronics shops like Bic Camera. but it's pretty expensive (they charge by packet, so you'll be paying like ￥3000-￥6000 a month.

mcdonald's seems pretty consistent with free wi-fi.
pronto (a cafe chain) also has free wi-fi.

www.freespot.com lists some free spots around japan, but i've found that what is listed there isn't always accurate.

maybe we should all compile a list of places in the forum here, i bet it would be helpful for a lot of people.

[markystar]

oh, noriyuku just showed me a page for Livedoor Wireless that was ￥525 a month.
i wonder why it's so cheap compared to the other services....

http://wireless.livedoor.com/