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We are looking to get better internet while we travel, any ideas, suggestions would be welcome.
Currently looking into Satellite, however getting pointed to use the wifi hotspot created by our smart phones…..not as expensive as some methods I am currently finding. Your thoughts, and suggestions welcome.
Hi Kalait, you can also get hot spots that plug into your computer via USB. There are so many different companies that do this. You could shop around for a good deal. At one point I looked into using one called clear. It had no contract and I paid about $50 a month with unlimited data (I use a lot of data as I upload and download a lot as well as enjoy watching videos on the internet). If you are like most people though you could probably find an even better deal but with a cap on the amount of data you can use.
Just google “usb hotspots” to start out with and I think you’ll be set. you can compare those offers to your phone’s plan. Remember to check the coverages of each plan just like you might with the phone companies. Some only work in certain areas, or can be spotty on the outskirts of town.
Also, if you are planning to stay in RV parks often or every once in a while, you can usually snag ones that offer free WiFi.
Best of luck with it 😀
Hi Kalait,
You can also use an option called tethering with your smartphone. I use my Motorola android to supply my Internet. I just plug my cable in and I get service while on the road from a app.
Happy New Year!
PRg
I have a Clear 4G dongle
and they no longer offer unlimited data that I know of. If you know where they do I’ll be very interested in knowing it. I got mine through NetZero and it costs me about $50 a month for 9GB.
Enabling Hotspot on the phone is the easiest. I am on the road a lot and use the Phone’s hotspot all the Time. Believe Verizon is the best in the industry at the moment!It is a corporate account which means its unlimited data, and am not sure how personal accounts for hotspots work.
Goodluck!I did some research on different ways to make sure I had the best internet I could since I own an internet business. I would use just my Verizon Jetpack by itself or use the hotspot from my phone if I could but my Airstream blocks the signal a bit so I need to use an exterior antenna.
I use a router that accepts my Verizon Jetpack’s sim card. The router also has a place to connect two exterior antenna’s, one for a parks wifi and the other boosts the cell reception. It also will also automatically switch between the Verizon signal or a parks wifi depending what is stronger. I purchased my setup last year so I imagine there are newer systems out there.
Here is what I use:
1 x Pepwave Router MAX BR1 with Verizon 3G/4G (MAX-BR1-LTE-V-T)
= $499.00
1 x Micro SIM Adapter (MC-SIM-ADAPT)= $7.99
1 x 9.5″ Omni antenna (SC-288W) = $57.99
1 x N/Female to RP-SMA/Male Adapter (RP-3452)= $9.95
1 x 20 Foot LMR400 Cable (952320)= $41.99
1 x Omni Spring Mount Antenna – SMA (311133)= $50.99
1 x 3-Way Omni Mount (901104) = $6.99I purchased everthing from 3gStore but I think there are many places where you can buy a similar setup.
Happy Travels,
~PaulSprint bought out Clear service and no longer offer unlimited data, part of the deal was to keep current customers. I have kept my payments current and still pay 50 bucks a month, but if my dongle dies, I don’t think that I’ll bea ble to register another device.They point you to current Sprint plans any time i ask questions.
We use AT&T mobile phones, and bought a cell phone booster (after a bit of research) through Amazon. Wilson Electronics – 460101 DT 4G – Cell Phone Signal Booster for Small Home or Office
. the cost was a one-time cost of about $250 We were able to suction cup the 5″ antennae to a window.
Then I went to the AT&T store to get a personal Wi-Fi hotspot…separate from our cell phone personal hotspots….some refer to it as a Mi-Fi device. It was only 99 cents for the device which was just added to our phone plan, and it shares our cellphone data. It’s a square just a little thicker and wider than a cell phone. I place it near a window and aim it until I get 4 bars showing. We have a 30GB data plan that is shared among our devices. We have 4G and LTE service. My laptop is a Lenovo Yoga Pro2
and the wireless connection within the RV (a 35 foot Class A) is excellent.
Our desktop is a 5 year old Sony and it needs a tethered connection with either our phones or with Mi-Fi via USB. Over the 9 months we have been RVing, we have stayed connected! I work remotely doing internet research, transcription, for University Lectures and projects for businesses needing to know information about new technologies, products and competitors in their industry. We have been in Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Utah in the last 9 months; in National and State Parks, Interstate Highway reststops, WalMart parking lots, Golden Corral parking lots. Using iPhones, iPads, laptops and a desktop PC. We are always connected.
Hope that helps someone out there.
I’ve left the Tacoma area and now my Clear dongle doesn’t get anything. Picked up a unit from T-Mobile and it’s supposed to be 4G but much of the time I don’t think so. it’s about $70 for 9GB.
If you are on a contract or prepaid phone service with Verizon, you should be good to go on hotspot “tethering”, withing the limits of your plans’ data cap.
The reason is that Verizon is required by the FCC to let it’s users use data via tethering at no extra cost because of a deal made when FCC let Verizon buy up a huge chunk of radio spectrum at auction some number of years ago as part of a deal. I don’t have the specifics, but this holds true today. Other providers such as US Cellular, Sprint, AT&T, etc may block or charge extra when tethering is detected.
I can vouch for Verizon’s network actually being quite good. I’d use an browser based ad-blocker to block pesky ads when operating on a mobile hotspot due to data caps, and streaming movies and music is pretty much out of the question, even though the networks these days in many areas are quite fast enough for that now.
Here’s something to consider: If you depend on the internet to work, such as I do, consider getting a dedicated hotspot router like the Cradlepoint line of routers
that let you add a 3G/4G SIM card from various networks like Verizon into it. Once done, your router can share access to your devices, putting your printer, tablet pcs, laptops and other device on a single network. This way, you can have a wireless printer located on the other side of the RV in a more convenient place, for example.
You can also use the router to block access to websites such as any place where updates are being done, so as to force you to only do updates from places where bandwidth is cheaper or free. (Think Windows updates, android OS updates).
I find that plugin in a USB modem into my laptop repeatedly starts to wear out the USB port and they are not always reliable, bad service signal, etc. With a 4g hardware router like those made by Cradlepoint, you can locate it up high in the RV, even adding an external antenna so as to ensure good signal quality to the cell towers while enabling multiple devices to seamlessly and wirelessly connect to your hotspot. Just be sure to have a strong password on the device!
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