We have all been there! In the coffee shop, in the library or on the train, a wide selection of personal hotspots pop up as soon as WiFi is switched on. With a personal hotspot, the laptop is connected to the Internet via the smartphone's mobile connection for seamless surfing. ...That's the idea, at least.
Although this Internet connection has become the standard for mobile working, it does not come without weaknesses. Problems often occur when connecting to the hotspot. Once the connection is established, it often breaks because you grabbed a coffee and moved too far away from the laptop, for example. In these cases, a network diagnosis or reactivating the hotspot several times is usually the only solution. That's frustrating! The numbers confirm this: Almost 400 thousand results via Google search speak a clear language.
Low Number of Laptops With Integrated Mobile Connectivity
It's 2022: Why do we even bother with this cumbersome form of mobile connection via personal hotspots? The answer is simple: There is a lack of supply. There are hardly any laptops on the market that integrate mobile technology - either via a SIM card slot or thanks to an integrated eSIM.
A quick look into Digitec or Brack reveals a limited number of laptops that can be connected directly to the Internet via mobile devices. Digitec has a dozen notebooks with mobile connectivity in its product catalog of over 2,000 laptops in total. At Brack, there are 50 notebooks out of just under 1,000 laptops in the entire catalog. The big absentee is Apple with its MacBook, which is especially popular in Switzerland. Neither the MacBook Pro's nor the Air's, which are praised as the most mobile workstations, have an integrated cellular connection, i.e. a SIM card slot or an eSIM.
This is surprising, because consumers use laptops just as mobile as tablets. The pandemic has turned stationary employees into an army of mobile workers. They not only work from their home offices, but from anywhere. Many decide to retreat, travel to the mountains and work there. Of course, if you're based there, you can also use a router and SIM card to connect and get started.
Supply of “Truly Mobile” Laptops Will Increase
We assume that the range of mobile laptops will increase significantly thanks to the advantages of the eSIM and that future laptop generations will be equipped with the eSIM to a greater extent. Apple will also follow suit with its latest MacBooks and equip them with the eSIM. The currently omnipresent personal hotspot will lose out and fade into the background, because we are sure: In the near future, all devices will be able to connect to the Internet independently.
