Cost of staying connected.......

ATT
2 HTC One Smartphones, each with their own built-in hot spot with
40 g = $157 with Vets Discount.

Use either HTC one as a hotspot, for tablet, 2 laptops, and a bluray internet DVD Player and stream Amazon movies.

Disconnected Directv 2.6 years ago, don't miss it. When they provide selective programming purchases, may return. oops, not going to happen.

ATT promotional data rates end 10-31-2014.

2oldman wrote:

Dakota98 wrote:
Remember when TV was free, cell phones didn't exist & a mobile hot spot was you & your date parked late at night in a remote location.

And a working wage was $4 an hour.

Gas Wars in the Southwest 15-17 cents a gallon.
Working wage was $1 an hour
water carried in canvas bags on the car bumper
Ding Dong Daddies of Dumas
Unhappy meal 49 cents
And
Tom Mix wept!

tonyandkaren wrote:
We're on the cheap end:
Over the air TV-free
Old flip phone with 450 minutes - $40.00
Mobile hot spot with 5G - $50.00
Total with taxes and fees - $100.00 a month

We don't talk on the phone very much so our out-of-date phone is fine.
Every so often we go over our data allowance. Each extra G is $10.00.

Both AT&T and Verizon have a special that ends at the end of the month - double the data for the current cost. If you buy now it continues indefinitely. Be aware though that you probably use a lot of data at your house and these plans might not be a good fit.

We can almost always get connected as we're traveling however when traveling in very remote areas like Alaska cell service is iffy, usually you won't get it except in the cities.

I'm thinking of dumping my smart phone for a flip phone. Seems like I am charging the battery on my smart phone all the time. It isn't like I use it very much.

WyoTraveler wrote:

tonyandkaren wrote:
We're on the cheap end:
Over the air TV-free
Old flip phone with 450 minutes - $40.00
Mobile hot spot with 5G - $50.00
Total with taxes and fees - $100.00 a month

We don't talk on the phone very much so our out-of-date phone is fine.
Every so often we go over our data allowance. Each extra G is $10.00.

Both AT&T and Verizon have a special that ends at the end of the month - double the data for the current cost. If you buy now it continues indefinitely. Be aware though that you probably use a lot of data at your house and these plans might not be a good fit.

We can almost always get connected as we're traveling however when traveling in very remote areas like Alaska cell service is iffy, usually you won't get it except in the cities.

I'm thinking of dumping my smart phone for a flip phone. Seems like I am charging the battery on my smart phone all the time. It isn't like I use it very much.

I had this problem and found that apps were running in the background....you have to close them.....which takes some time....

Good luck trying to find a flip phone any more! The just plain phones are almost a thing of the past. We did fine one several years ago, and have kept it as long as possible. We do not text, or use data at all on that phone, as both cost extra. We found that the phone keeps trying to use data, and some of the buttons are set to go to internet mode if you accidently press one. I contacted our carrier, AT&T and had those features completely turned off and blocked for that phone. Now, it talks, and takes an occasional picture, and that is all.

Bob Vaughn wrote:
We just returned from a trip around the country and up to Alaska....For too many of those days we were devoid of any contact with the digital world. While at home it cost around 300 bucks a month for cable, internet, and cell phone service........I am thinking I can reduce that cost by going with satellite tv and a different cell service plus a mobile hot spot. I think these options would work great at home but am not sure about how they would work out while traveling. I just need to reduce our costs.......Some real life experiences would be appreciated.....

In Canada we add phone only service to Verizon for $15/month. Cell towers are limited on the Alaskan Highway. We only had internet service when we could get WiFi which was often limited and marginal on the Alaskan Highway. AT&T service in Canada is $$$ so that phone was turned off. No issues with Verizon phone and MiFi in the US including Alaska. Generally Verizon has better service than AT&T for us.

We take our home DirecTV receiver with us in the rig.

AT&T smart phone on our sons account: $40
Verizon smart phone and MiFi: $147
DirecTV: $75

So about $225/mth for one smart phone, MiFi and DirecTV. Plus the one time cost of rig setup for DirecTV.

My home phone line costs $3 in taxes a month. $130 for the VOIP hardware up front. I ported a number I don't want to give up any time soon, even though we rarely use it.

$8 for Netflix, another $8 for Hulu Plus, and $50-70 for cable internet should be plenty for most people that do not need to watch live events.

Be realistic about your internet usage. My family watches a lot of Netflix at home and use about 250GB per month. Getting that much through a cell carrier is not affordable.

TV: OTA - free

Phone: Plain flip phone, service with Virgin Mobile, 0.25/min, $1
We both basically hate phones. Most necessary calls are made via web

Internet: Free unlimited wifi available 95% of the time (fulltime travelers)

Audio: Satellite radio, lifetime subscription

Total monthly costs: $1 or less.

Republic Wireless unlimited talk/text/data = $40
OTA antenna = free tv
Netflix = $8.53
Home DSL = $35
Home phone = $35
Free WIFI = more and more places everyday

WyoTraveler wrote:
I'm thinking of dumping my smart phone for a flip phone. Seems like I am charging the battery on my smart phone all the time. .

Good luck with that. My Droid Razr ate battery, my HTC is real easy on battery.