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In-Flight WiFi Takes Off

Posted Jun 19, 08 2:32 PM CDT in Opinion,  Technology 

(Newser) – Now you can manically check your inbox from 40,000 feet, reports Walter Mossberg in the Wall Street Journal. Certain American Airlines routes between New York and Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Miami will offer in-flight WiFi starting in July, and Virgin America will have it later in the year. The service will cost $12.95 for longer flights, and $9.95 for shorter ones.

Mossberg tried the service, called Gogo, on a test flight and says it works reasonably fast for almost all normal Web tasks. A possible exception is video streaming, as the system prioritizes low-bandwidth activities over high-bandwidth ones. Gogo will block phone calls, including Internet-based calling, however, and it won’t work on international flights.

Source Wall Street Journal

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In this 2007 file photo, American Airlines aircraft are shown operating at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Grapevine, Texas.   (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, file)
In this photo provided by Palm Inc. shows Palm founder Jeff Hawkins using Palm's new Foleo in this undated photo.   (AP Photo/Palm)
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