Best Option for Internet Access Traveling Cross Country?

owenssailor wrote:

Robin1953 wrote:

owenssailor wrote:
We just bought a StraightTalk hotspot. So far it is working great. Pricing is good. we connect 2 devices at a time. Supposed to be able to connect up to 5.

Did you get the 3G or the 4G LTE model? I have read that the 4G model is throttled. If you bought the 4G LTE odel what are you average download speeds? TIA

The documentation says CDMA 2000 with download speed of up to 3.1 Mb/sec. I haven't tested it.

I may be wrong but I believe that would be the 3G only device. Thanks.

edbehnke wrote:
verizon.

X2 regarding verizon. New programs for smart phones include mobile hotspot and if you are going to be traveling, they have the largest coverage area.

Robin1953 wrote:

owenssailor wrote:
We just bought a StraightTalk hotspot. So far it is working great. Pricing is good. we connect 2 devices at a time. Supposed to be able to connect up to 5.

Did you get the 3G or the 4G LTE model? I have read that the 4G model is throttled. If you bought the 4G LTE odel what are you average download speeds? TIA

The documentation says CDMA 2000 with download speed of up to 3.1 Mb/sec. I haven't tested it.

"It is not safe to use for web surfing much less financial transactions as it is PUBLIC. All the campgrounds I have visited and most hotels as well, do not change the password and often they even have sign posted stating the password so the office people will not be bothered or to provide it after the office has closed for the day. "

We are all entitled to our own opinion - I do not worry if I get a reliable WIFI connection in a campground

Verizon provides 4G access at the most locations across the country. The more remote the area the more likely that the only reception and data service you will get is with Verizon. Second best in terms of coverage is AT&T.

With their Mifi device you get 4G data access and you also get a router so that 10 computers and cell phones have simultaneous access and you have a mini-firewall. Using a smartphone as a Wifi access device is actually pretty dumb as there is zero protection from someone connecting in a second and gaining access to everything you have on the smartphone.

With a mifi you have a secure connection to the internet and also have secondary firewall protection from the computer's operating system and any anti malware apps you have installed.

The ONLY time I access a campground Wifi is to download and upload email. It is not safe to use for web surfing much less financial transactions as it is PUBLIC. All the campgrounds I have visited and most hotels as well, do not change the password and often they even have sign posted stating the password so the office people will not be bothered or to provide it after the office has closed for the day.

I would check into Millenicom.com. Although they have been acquired by Verizon they were still selling service to the Verizon network and Mifi devices. With Millenicom you may be able to get service without a contract and their data usage tracking has not presented the problems that many Verizon customers have been burned by and commented on at the Verizonwireless commmunity forum.

I have just come cross-country and my Verizon 4G LTE jetpack works great! Couldn't ask for better. (I previously had the Straight Talk mobile Wifi but the device just quit working).

Assuming 'best' means coverage all over, Verizon.

rr2254545 wrote:
Advise is as good as the area that a person has traveled in. We have traveled in 32 states in the last 5 years and 183 campgrounds - only not had Verizon a few times i.e. Big Bend national park and badlands national park.

Once you get west of the Mississippi you will find Verizon is the only one dependable

This has been our experience as well. So much depends on where you will be traveling. Lots of options if sticking to the east half of the country, but out west, there are lots of gaps in the coverage areas. When we headed from Indiana to Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, and Black Hills regions last year, we had two iPhones with Verizon service and an iPad with AT&T service. Can't tell you the number of times we had to connect the ipad to an iPhone via wifi hot spot as there was no service from AT&T. I'll be retiring in the spring after which we'll be spending months on the road. Already planning on Verizon service supplemented with a Wilson Sleek.

I use my smart phone as a hot spot. I have Verizon as my carrier. It has worked very well almost everywhere I have gone. You cannot rely on the wireless at campgrounds. They claim they have great wireless but then when you try and use it, it might as well not exist. Most of the time it is slow with frequent dropouts. I do my work remotely so I need to have a reliable connection and the Verizon hot spot on the phone has worked for me.

Good information. I had problems when travelling last year. I used the campground wifi to upload a photo to facebook and then couldn't connect anymore. I found out that they had a limit on bandwidth and my photo had exceeded my daily internet limit. I also tried watching an episode of Law and Order on Amazon and got chewed out for using too much bandwidth.