3G modem cards are sold by carriers on two- and three-year subscriptions, the same as internal devices, said Trent Punnett, vice president of marketing and product management at Sierra Wireless, which sells modem cards as well as embedded devices. The only advantage to a modem card is the ability to move it between machines, Punnett said.

Gartner analyst Ken Dulaney said that notebooks with built-in 3G will sell, despite the concerns cited in last summer's report. But the biggest wireless-related question for IT shops continues to be how to assess 3G against Wi-Fi and newer technologies such as WiMax, Dulaney and other analysts said.

"For the next few years, there's going to be no dominant wireless technology, and some organizations will have to have it all," with groups of end users favoring different protocols, Gold said. "There will be a lot of confusion."

The lesson for IT managers is that they need to remain flexible, he added. "Most IT guys want to throw up their hands and say, 'Don't bother me with this wireless stuff,' but they can't," Gold said.

Craig Mathias, an analyst at Farpoint Group in Ashland, Mass., said there is an enormous need for technology that can help users converge the various wireless protocols. "We're still in an unconverged environment, and it's like the Wild West," he said.