Thanks for those links, especially dc-files.com. I am a mac user, so the windows hack to force WCDMA ONLY setting can't work for me, but downloading the latest generic version of the Mobile Partner dashboard app for MAC (the "unbranded universal version"), then using it to set the setting to whatever I want and then re-installing the version of the software from the stick, caused my system to lock the setting to "WCDMA ONLY" instead of to the default "WCDMA PREFERRED".
MORE INFO FOR EVERYONE
I have done lots of further experiments, and had the CELL-C technician out to Lyttleton Manor today, to run some tests.
Let me share here with everyone what I've found and learned sofar:
*** The Black stick is essentially a piece of crap *** if you are not in a perfect signal area, and possibly even if you are. This is my own personal opinion only. No matter where I've tried from, but if I do bandwidth intense things like downloading 1GB using a download manager, the black stick seems to sooner or later reset itself. (This is my second one - i've swapped one out before for this problem). It seems the worse the signal, the more likely/often this is.
GO FOR THE WHITE STICK PEOPLE !!!
In lyttleton right now I seem to get a sustained download speed of 500-700KB/s with it, so why would you need the black stick?
The black stick seems to be a lot less stable than the white.
The second recommendation is, that you hack the setting from WCDMA PREFERRED to WCDMA ONLY. This massively boosts connection stability. (I've tested this behaviour in both Lyttleton and Pierre van Ryneveld)
MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE CELL-C TECHNICIAN
He said to me that my specific location in Pierre van Ryneveld (close to hertzog & kirkness ave), is too far from the major data tower in that area which is at the Pierre van Ryneveld center (close to the spar).
There is however a tower about 100meters from me, but that tower has not been activated for data yet, and although fully installed, they will only activate it for data maybe end of FEB 2011, after their usual tests and procedures.
In lyttleton manor the signal strength was around -86db, and he says to get a stable highspeed connection the connection must be -80db or better. (less negative number is better).
I demonstrated the disconnect problem for him on the black stick, and he said he will report the tower in question.
The funny thing is that I now seem to get a stable connection here in Lyttleton with the white stick, with the forced WCDMA ONLY setting.
I also remain sceptical that my main problem is signal in Pierre van Ryneveld. I will go and proof my theory by going to run an extensive test from the coffee shop there by the spar. If the black stick still disconnects from there, but the white stick runs stable, then I think I have proven that there is some INHERENT PROBLEM with the black stick. If neither stick can download 300MB without disconnect from there, it shows a different kind of tower problem.
Basically the technician explained that there are two things that can go wrong with your tower. The one problem is related to your distance and angle from it - and the terrain - in other words - signal.
The second problem is the CAPACITY ON THE TOWER. Essentially its own uplink capacity to the rest of the network. If a tower finds itself getting too much data demand, it will just start to disconnect people from it.
Anyways, hope this helps some people. I will keep posting with what I learn.
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