Internet on the Road - Wi-Fi

Most full-timers or part-timers on the road enjoy being hooked up to the internet. Some are content in loading up their laptops and walking to the office or clubhouse in order to connect to the RV park’s Wi-Fi. Actually, you usually see quite a few sitting around browsing the internet whenever free Wi-Fi is offered at RV parks. Some parks even provide on-site access. You can just sit in your own RV and connect to their internet router. Some times this is free and other times the park will really gouge you for that service. Have you ever connected to Tengo? We have. Well, I can’t say we actually connected. We paid for it and should have been able to connect but the service was so bad, we couldn’t even get on. You can’t complain to the park because they are just the in-between. We tried and it didn’t work for us. For some, this is still the way to go and still what they do. We do have the external antenna and equipment for reaching a little farther for this service but it certainly doesn’t work often enough.

However, for many more it seems, folks want their our own internet and want it available 24/7. That’s what we want too. We don’t want to lug our computers anywhere to get access. We don’t want to be subject to poor signal from a park’s system. The good thing is we can have it when we want and where we want most of the time. Many of us have already made the biggest decision by choosing our service provider and equipment. There are those, of course, who opted right in the beginning to install satellite internet antennas and connect via that satellite. That was never an option for me. I wanted that little aircard that I could take with me wherever I went. I can take it to a picnic table, a shopping mall, a roadside rest area and even an airport. It’s portable and can travel wherever I go. I can’t take the Wilson antenna along or the amplifier but usually the aircard is enough to get me online. Of course, I could just browse the internet on my iPhone but the screen is quite a bit smaller and not as simple as using a laptop. Isn’t technology wonderful? (Okay, Linda, I could get an iPad like you but you have to convince me first I need one. Doesn’t the little netbook we have serve the same purpose?)

Mifi - router and aircard in one

Technology continues to improve. It has improved so much that many more folks have purchased smartphones of one brand or other. They are also out there surfing the net with their phones, their laptops and competing for the same bandwidth. In the meantime more cell towers have gone up, newer devices available and the competition between the cell phone providers and the manufacturers of equipment increased. Competition usually brings lower prices.

I don’t know about you but when we first signed up for an aircard in 2007, we had to sign a two year contract. At that time the monthly fee was $59 per month (plus all the taxes and fees) for unlimited data service. The two years have long passed but we’ve continued paying each month and continued being able to connect. Even though we had the unlimited data plan we still only used about 2.5GB a month. However, last fall we were notified by our provider that our usage was being limited to 5GB since they were doing away with the unlimited data plan on their contracts. We had actually been expecting this since we had heard others complain about being notified of the same change.

Not only has technology changed pricing but it has also provided other options as well. There have been some big changes too. One change is in the equipment. First we started with a PC card. Every laptop had a PC slot. Didn’t they? Eventually, the computers stopped putting PC slots in and started adding slots for Express cards. The aircards were changed to fit. Shortly after the aircards were made with USB connectors. Technology certainly has moved on. When the aircards were first available it was only available for one laptop. Eventually, routers came out strictly for the aircards, then the aircards also became a router in the form of a Mifi. Today some computers have built in aircards. I’m sure I missed a lot but that’s what I’m familiar with so what’s next?

Another change is the ability to have this same mobile broadband internet service on a pay-as-you-go plan without a contract of any kind. This is a huge advantage for RVers who just plan on being on the road for a few months each year. You just pay for it that month if you plan on using it that month. Under the contract plan, you have to pay each and every month whether you use the service or not. Actually, this advantage is not just for part-time RVers, it can also benefit full-time RVers.

Another big change is in how this service is priced. The other day I picked up a few brochures on the various monthly pay-as-you-go internet services. Guess what? If I’m reading it right, it just might be better to cancel our present plan altogether and start using one of the month-to-month plans. For that same 5GB data limit, you can now hook up with Verizon, AT&T or Virgin for $50 per month instead of the $59 we are currently paying. Right now there is also a promotional plan offered at $35 for 3GB of monthly data by one of the providers. Any overage is billed at $10 per additional gigabyte. Depending on your provider, any overage in the past was very, very costly. So, what am I missing here? Wouldn’t it be better to cancel our current plan and pick up a new one that does not require any type of contract?

Virgin Mobile uses the Sprint cells towers. Weren’t they the leaders in this pay-as-you-go internet service until Verizon and AT&T along with others got into the game? Virgin Mobile came out with the $40 monthly fee for unlimited data but according to their website that fee is now $50. For a while they were the only ones offering this service. Now others want a piece of the action too. Virgin Mobile is the only one still offering unlimited data usage as far as I know. The downside might be the coverage area but that again depends entirely where one might travel. We have Canadian friends who use Virgin Mobile and they have been extremely satisfied as they have traveled the US.

Verizon offers a 10 GB plan for $80 a month and their faster 4G network. We all know 4G isn’t every place yet though. AT&T also also offers a similar 4G service. There are other providers of mobile broadband. However, these are the only ones I checked on.

Verizon’s coverage map for prepaid data service

If your cell phone bill looks like my cell phone bill, then you also have atrocious taxes and fees added to it. So, is this $50 per month fee a flat all-inclusive fee or is it in addition to additional charges? If it’s an all-inclusive price, then it’s even a better deal yet. One thing for sure, we’re going to look into it a little more and might just make the change. First, we need to find out if there are other restrictions on the pay-as-you-go plan that are not on the contract plan. So many changes and so much to learn!