The holidays are here and you’re probably out and about more than ever. While there are certainly free Wi-Fi connection spots available at certain airports, cafes and hotels, it’s hard to beat the convenience of your own portable Internet connection.

Armed with a cellular data plan and aircard, you can hop online wherever there’s a cellular connection. It’s less expensive than ever. You may even decide to ax your home broadband subscription!

Cellular broadband is more limited than all-you-can-eat home broadband plans. You’ll pay for the amount of data you transfer. Cellular plans top out at 5 gigabytes of data transfer per month. Opt for this if it will be your primary connection.

A lesser plan might be OK if it’s not primary. But be careful--overages can be costly.

With a 5GB plan, you can send about 1.7 million text-only e-mail messages. Or, download 1,600 songs. Or, view about 17,000 Web pages. Your provider should give you tools to monitor your data usage. There’s usually an option to display your remaining data left for the current billing period.

If you’re not a heavy Internet user, this could certainly work. Heavy downloaders will overwhelm a cellular connection. For instance, streaming Netflix movies probably won’t work.