I am starting to look into this. I just got a new SprintPCS phone...a sanyo with the picture phone/internet options.
The internet connection and photo options are $15/mo...and these minutes do not count towards your voice minutes. Anyway, I've read that you can get a cable for the phone that will connect to your laptop...and act as your 'mobile internet connection'. I've heard speeds are much faster than a dial up connection...but, slower than high speed broad band...but, if you use it a lot, $15mo unlimited service isn't bad...
I'm not sure what kind of software you have to have on a Windows laptop, but, if you are running Linux on it...it supposedly picks up the connection almost automatically!!
Here's a link to setting it up on a Linux box:
http://www.natecarlson.com/linux/sanyo-4900.php
And here's a quote from one of the USENET searches I found on this:
"Just about any Sanyo 3G phone can be
installed on a 'nix box using a USB cable and the ACM USB Modem kernel
module (Linux, BSD, Solaris, AIX, and a few others), so you can treat it as
a modem. You just dial #777 w/ no username or password and your on the
Sprint wireless network. Works like a charm."
I think you have to buy software for Win...but, I'm sure a search would turn up info on this. I'm going to try this when I get a laptop...
HTH,
cayenne.................................