Download At 30,000 Feet

If you think you've heard every reason to get a wi-fi — equipped laptop, here's a new one: live broadband Internet access on airplanes. This April, Lufthansa will begin to offer the wireless broadband service Connexion by Boeing on certain transatlantic flights. Other airlines are quickly moving to provide similar features. Both Scandinavian Airlines System and Japan Airlines will have in-flight broadband by the end of the year.

With Connexion, the whole plane becomes a wi-fi "hot spot," linking users to the Internet via a network of satellites — without getting in the way of the airplane's communications and navigation equipment. Users should be able to surf the Web, download attachments and upload pictures at speeds comparable to cable-broadband service. The cost will range from a flat $30, for journeys around the globe, down to $10 for flights across continents.