Internet

[franktafl]

Dear Abby...

We are having to stay long-term in an RV "resort" here in Tampa because our house is being remodeled and then up for sale. Even though they have wireless internet here and the coverage is good, the internet speeds are BAD. Better in the morning but as the day wears on, everyone gets on and it slows down. No way to watch and IP TV stuff or even get on the internet for email and such.

What is everyone doing for Internet when they are RV'ing? I have looked at HOT SPOTS but most have a 50 gig upper limit (for the "unlimited"). Right now, my desktop is tethered to my iPad which has cellular but limited speed (4G LTE) and they kick you back to slower speeds. ( I have had to bring my desktop because of quicken and NEAT and stuff are on it).

So, what are you doing, which service is better, do you have IP TV like Amazon Prime, Alexa that kind of internet connected devices?

Signed,

Frustrated internet user in Tampa

PS: Unrelated- electricity is 15 cents per Kilowatt here.. is that alot? Twice what the regional electric company charges.

[dsol]

I can relate. Internet speeds are slow at most parks.

My solution is I upgraded my cellular plan with AT&T and it has more hot spot data and more overall data at unlimited speeds. More expensive but cheaper than most other options. I think adding onto a plan is better than doing something new.

You can also consider a prepaid plan with another carrier that you want to try but you need a hotspot or phone that works on that carrier.

Some RV parks offer premium wifi at faster speeds. That will likely be less costly that other routes if they have it.

Lastly, something like HughesNet will work but requires a satellite dish and they tend to be pricey.

As an alternative you can leave the park and find a place that has fast and free WiFi and download movies there then stream on that device or use something like Apple share and an Apple TV box to watch on a bigger tv. You would need to set up a WiFi network so a cheap router would be needed too but internet is not necessary to use Apple share.

Good luck.

[Occupant5143]

This site will help answer most questions regarding accessing the Internet while on the road. They have tons of up-to-date info on current data plans and other useful info. https://www.rvmobileinternet.com/

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Occupant5143

This site will help answer most questions regarding accessing the Internet while on the road. They have tons of up-to-date info on current data plans and other useful info. https://www.rvmobileinternet.com/

Thanks for that. Are you a member of this site?

Did it help you decide which way to go on mobile internet?

What did you decide to go with for your internet usage? What is your days usage in a month?

[Occupant5143]

Originally Posted by franktafl

Thanks for that.
1.Are you a member of this site?
2. Did it help you decide which way to go on mobile internet?
3. What did you decide to go with for your internet usage?
4. What is your days usage in a month?

1. Nope but that doesn't keep me from watching the videos and reading the articles.
2. I've decided that I need to wait a while before settling on a mobile plan. Current choices are just too limiting. That might change once 5G becomes more established (maybe).
3. Right now I either go with the park WiFi or use my phone as a hotspot as my data needs are very modest i.e. no video streaming. I do have a WiFi Ranger on the roof of my rig but that really doesn't provide more bandwidth just a stronger signal.
4. My current data plan is Verizon's 5 GB shared data plan. I've built up a significant amount of carryover data that I will be using over the next trip.

Sorry if I gave the impression that I'm a big-time data user. I just visit that site often to stay up to date on the current technology.

[azdryheat]

Wife and I have hotspot unlimited plans on our smartphones through Verizon. We don't have any wifi at home or on the road other than on our phones. Haven't had any problems in the two years we've been doing this.

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by azdryheat

Wife and I have hotspot unlimited plans on our smartphones through Verizon. We don't have any wifi at home or on the road other than on our phones. Haven't had any problems in the two years we've been doing this.

I’m currently using my iPhone and iPad for hotspots for my desktop and my wife’s iPad. They throttle data speeds back to a point where it becomes frustrating. A hotspot is probably what I am after but they seem to be limited in the amount of data they offer. I did a search of the devices connected to,this network I’m on here at the park. I found a bunch of IP tv stuff (and yeah, they weren’t locked down). Am wondering what they are watching since the data speeds here are so slow due to the number of users on at one time. Even my Alexa doesn’t work here because of bandwidth issues.

[Thom]

Frank,
I use an unlocked Netgear Nighthawk cellular modem with a service plan (at&t) from a company called OTR Mobile (otrmobile.com). Works great for me because I take it in my sticks and bricks when at home. OTR also offers a plan on TMobile. I have been with them for about 20 months and never been throttled.
If you have a cell modem, there is another company that also offers no throttling unlimited data.... Neverthrottled.com

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Thom

Frank,
I use an unlocked Netgear Nighthawk cellular modem with a service plan (at&t) from a company called OTR Mobile (otrmobile.com). Works great for me because I take it in my sticks and bricks when at home. OTR also offers a plan on TMobile. I have been with them for about 20 months and never been throttled.
If you have a cell modem, there is another company that also offers no throttling unlimited data.... Neverthrottled.com

Thanks Thom... I'm definitely going to look those up.

OTR seems to be having issues. Their website doesn't show any plans or equipment. They seem to be having issues with their carrier.

[Thom]

Originally Posted by franktafl

Thanks Thom... I'm definitely going to look those up.

OTR seems to be having issues. Their website doesn't show any plans or equipment. They seem to be having issues with their carrier.

Seems to work for me..
https://www.otrmobile.com/

They did have big issues March to June and AT&T shut off their access, but I stuck with them and they seem to have the issues cleared up. The TMobile plan helped take pressure off of the AT&T plan.
I just looked up Never Throttled and can't believed they jacked their price that high since last time I checked them out.

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Thom

Seems to work for me..
https://www.otrmobile.com/

They did have big issues March to June and AT&T shut off their access, but I stuck with them and they seem to have the issues cleared up. The TMobile plan helped take pressure off of the AT&T plan.
I just looked up Never Throttled and can't believed they jacked their price that high since last time I checked them out.

fyi

Thanks for considering us as one of your options Lu.
I will provide you all the information you want to check today but let me give you a heads up.
right now we are currently out of lines and we're requesting more lines to our partner carrier. We don't have any specific date yet as to when it will become available but rest assured that we will keep you posted and email you once it's already back on our website.

[Thom]

Frank, was that reply from OTR or Never Throttled?

[Thom]

Here is another provider, looks like they use Verizon towers.

Blazing Hog

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Thom

Frank, was that reply from OTR or Never Throttled?

OTR. They sound pretty reasonable as far as pricing goes. T-Mobile is their supplier.

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Thom

Here is another provider, looks like they use Verizon towers.

Blazing Hog

Blazing hog is being shut down by t-mobile. They are trying to settle their differences but.....

[Thom]

Originally Posted by franktafl

Blazing hog is being shut down by t-mobile. They are trying to settle their differences but.....

I read an article yesterday where Tmobile pulled the plug on 60,000+ data users, both their own customers and third party providers for using too much data.

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Thom

I read an article yesterday where Tmobile pulled the plug on 60,000+ data users, both their own customers and third party providers for using too much data.

Since they joined with Sprint, they are probably trying to free up bandwidth in favor of those that are willing to really pay for it.

I can tell that when the day goes on, it gets busier and my data speeds slow down drastically

[Snowman53]

I will toss my hat in for the Verizon hot spot on my iPhone X for WiFi service. Works really good. I use Apple TV with it for our 7 year old's bedtime shows. At home my trailer is about 300 feet from our house so the WiFi in the house will not reach it for our "at home" camping excursions. The hot spot does it. I have found it works well in most campgrounds too, as long as there is decent cell service.

Quick follow up on the electric price question. Average retail rates in FL are about 13.2 cents per kWh. So 15 cents may include a small mark up for the campground, but is not unreasonable in my view. My perspective is from over 40 years in the electric power business, most recently as CFO of a wholesale power provider to 18 municipal utilities in MN. Retired in April.

I hope the rest of your required stay is pleasurable.

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Snowman53

I will toss my hat in for the Verizon hot spot on my iPhone X for WiFi service. Works really good. I use Apple TV with it for our 7 year old's bedtime shows. At home my trailer is about 300 feet from our house so the WiFi in the house will not reach it for our "at home" camping excursions. The hot spot does it. I have found it works well in most campgrounds too, as long as there is decent cell service.

Quick follow up on the electric price question. Average retail rates in FL are about 13.2 cents per kWh. So 15 cents may include a small mark up for the campground, but is not unreasonable in my view. My perspective is from over 40 years in the electric power business, most recently as CFO of a wholesale power provider to 18 municipal utilities in MN. Retired in April.

I hope the rest of your required stay is pleasurable.

Thanks for the info Snowman! When our towers get busy they dial back on the internet speeds when I Use my iPhone or iPad for internet as a hotspot.