CELL PHONE INTERNET ACCESS

[DanaMc]

CELL PHONE INTERNET ACCESS

This is designed to explain the basic approach to using your cell phone with your computer to connect to the internet. It is not intended to be an in depth coverage of the topic. Rather it is intended to help folks get acquainted with what is necessary and a suggested resource or two. The first step in this process would be to check with your cell phone carrier. Make sure there is no reason you can’t use your phone like a modem. Some carriers can provide this for an additional fee.

It is the most cost effective way to keep up with your email and favorite web pages from nearly anywhere. In most cases you do not need a separate or different phone plan. You will use your plan minutes and can manage it to take advantage of the unlimited nights and weekends just as you might for conversations. Regular cell phone roaming charges may apply depending on where you are and whether your carrier has an agreement with the local service provider. This is no different than any other situation.

The key components needed are your cell phone, a special USB cord designed specifically for your cell phone. It will connect your cell phone directly to your computer via a USB port on the computer. Finally you will want software to manage the connection and compress the data being sent. There are many sources for this equipment. You can check with your local cell phone retailer. Radio Shack is a good source on this topic as well. But they will only be familiar with the phones they sell. I have been using SnapDialer. I have been very happy with the combination of Verizon and SnapDialer to connect to the internet.

Once your software is installed and configured for your internet service provider, you will only need to click on the Icon to launch your internet session. What service provider you use is not part of this topic. However there are many low cost or free email services such as Google’s Gmail, Microsoft’s Hotmail, or Yahoo.

Below is some additional reading on this topic:

HOW-TO: Use your CDMA cell phone as a USB modem

Cell Phone Internet Connections

Cellular Fills Gap Between Hotspots

Looking for a boost in your signal? There are third party systems that can enhance your cellular signal and/or facilitate the use of a cell phone in your RV or your home. One example of this is Wilson Cellular Antennas & Amplifiers. Properly installed, these systems can enhance your range of coverage.

[ridingonfumes]

I almost never use netflix on the road, I use an app called droidtv it allows me to download shows directly to my Android tablet or phone, both of witch I can hook directly into my tv if I want a larger screen.
I have a 32gb sd card in my tablet it allows me to store about 100 hours of tv on my device that I can watch anywhere even with no signal.
It's like $8 for 3 months service, and the shows are entire seasons including stuff that aired only the day before.
.
Jetflix also allows download to sd card but it's not as usrr friendly as droidtv's set up
.
I do all my downloading when near wifi and save my 4G cellular data for the rest of the internet

[de4lee]

Thanks for the heads up. I hit all the cel service places today to get a quote. I really surprised the guy at AT&T when he was doughtful if he could help me. Uyill I just asked if he had a 20g service he said well yeah? I said ok how much?.. It shocked him but he quickly hunted up the form to tell me and I can get out with 2 phones, Hotspot device and 20g for about $280. I will still have to severly limit my NETFIX but I think I can make it work.

[Dave_From_AK]

de4lee wrote:
First of all I'm so new to this I haven't even picked up my rig let... I wanted to know about satellite internet. Will it give me faster load times and more access? We run a busness so we daily upload video's and 150 pic's of the hike each day. I know I can use my phone for a hot-spot but we also want to stream movies. We are going to be full timers so dependability is important.

Satellite Internet access for RVs has fallen off in popularity as cellular access has improved.

Satellite service has the advantage of working wherever you have a clear shot at the satellite from your rig. However, there is a high up-front cost ($5,000-$6,000) and it is slower than cellular access in GOOD cellular areas (but not in overcrowded 3G areas). In recent years, Verizon 3G data access has expanded rapidly, and their entire network is scheduled to be 4G in the next year or so. Unless you plan to spend time in areas with no cellular data access, you are better off with a cellular provider.

(Don't confuse RV satellite Internet service with fixed satellite Internet services, such as Wild Blue.)

RV satellite service download speeds are 700-1000 Kbps, so steaming movies is probably not feasible. Upload speeds are 50-200 Kbps. In Verizon 4G areas, download speeds of at least 5 Mbps are typical, but in the case of both satellite and cellular data access the carriers place limits on the amount of data you can download before either incurring extra charges or having your service throttled to very slow speeds.

A good source for info about satellite service is the Datastorm Users Forum

For cellular data service, check out the InternetByCellPhone Yahoo forum

Hope that helps.

[de4lee]

First of all I'm so new to this I haven't even picked up my rig let... I wanted to know about satellite internet. Will it give me faster load times and more access? We run a busness so we daily upload video's and 150 pic's of the hike each day. I know I can use my phone for a hot-spot but we also want to stream movies. We are going to be full timers so dependability is important.

[Dave_From_AK]

photonut4 wrote:
I am researching new internet options. I am done with the mifis, as I had nothing but trouble with them. Which would give me a more reliable internet connection: tethering a cell phone or a 3G air card in a cradle point router? I currently just use a trac phone, so I would have to sign up with a carrier, if I go the cell phone route. I would go with Millicom if I go the air card route. Thanks for any info. Liz

In general, there is no difference in signal quality between tethering a phone and using a USB modem in a router. If one will take an external antenna and the other does not, then you would see a difference in a marginal signal area.

That said, I reliably get faster throughput tethering my Droid Bionic than I do with my USB modem and Cradlepoint router. I suspect that the radio technology simply improved in the four or five years from when the USB modem was made and when the Bionic was made. I travel in almost exclusively 3G areas. I am a Verizon subscriber.

I see a lot of unfavorable reviews of MiFi-type devices. I wonder if that has to do with the devices themselves or with the limitations of 4G service as it currently exists.

[Fezziwig]

That was Verizon direct.

The big charges were from data overuse, but I was careful to monitor my usage, and I'm sure that I was right. At first I suspected Windows XP (or a mailbot or something) was doing behind-the-scenes data transfers, but when we looked at Verizons comm journal and the detail records therein it became apparent that was not the case. And then it started happening on linux. A couple times I used dataservice almost up to the limit and then quit using Vz altogether so that I'd stay below the price threshold, but it didn't work! There was a flurry of weird data transfers just before end-of-billing-cycle and I'd end up owing hundreds again.

Something crooked was going on and I didn't know whether it was Verizon or someone within Vz cheating both them and me.

The only solution was to quit.

I'd like to get a pre-paid datacard that would quit working if I exceeded my pre-pay, but there's no such thing that I know of. I think the cellphone companies are happy to overcharge their customers.

[photonut4]

Fezziwig wrote:
A couple years ago I had great success with a Verizon USB datacard in a Cradlepoint CTR500 router. Worked all over California. It was supposed to be about $60/month, but I kept getting bills for hundreds of dollars (which I always fought and usually got reduced). Finally, I quit just because the billing was such a nuisance. Both Windows XP and linux handle the USB datacard directly, too.

I was hoping that the cellphone data billing would come down, but it looks just the opposite.

Why the outrageous bills? Was that directly through Verizon or Millicom? TIA.

[Fezziwig]

A couple years ago I had great success with a Verizon USB datacard in a Cradlepoint CTR500 router. Worked all over California. It was supposed to be about $60/month, but I kept getting bills for hundreds of dollars (which I always fought and usually got reduced). Finally, I quit just because the billing was such a nuisance. Both Windows XP and linux handle the USB datacard directly, too.

I was hoping that the cellphone data billing would come down, but it looks just the opposite.

[photonut4]

I am researching new internet options. I am done with the mifis, as I had nothing but trouble with them. Which would give me a more reliable internet connection: tethering a cell phone or a 3G air card in a cradle point router? I currently just use a trac phone, so I would have to sign up with a carrier, if I go the cell phone route. I would go with Millicom if I go the air card route. Thanks for any info. Liz

[Dave_H_M]

Deleted

[xctraveler]

WOW? World of Warcraft? This kind of game takes significant bandwidth, I believe. Most campgrounds have limited backhaul (connection to internet). They frown on movie downloads and serious gaming as it leaves little room for other users on the network. You need to check with the campgrounds you are going to to see what they offer in terms of connectivity.

We use MiFi with 5 Gb, but don't do movies or gaming. We use 3 to 4 Gb each month when we are on the road long term. As always YMMV (I see you are new, YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary)

[jaykimnoregrets]

Hey guys 🙂

This may be a silly question (I am kinda illiterate un this area) Hubby asked me to post a question about internet on the road.

He is a BIG gamer and loves to play WOW with our oldest son online, He is wondering if the free wifi that some parks offer would be enough for him to play his games online? obviously he isn't real worried about a secure wifi for just gaming. We were thinking about just getting the 1G data plan to do bills etc online and just use that secure wifi for that kind of thing.
any help/info is greatly appreciated, thank you
🙂

JayKimNoregrets
60 days away from buying our Class A DP.

[Wayne_Dohnal]

It has recently become feasible to use Page Plus cellular, on the Verizon network, for temporary data use. They have a new plan called The Fifty Five. For $55 a month it provides unlimited voice and texts, and a gigabyte of data. I switched over to this plan for a month on the road and will switch back to the lower cost plan when the month is up. You of course have to be careful that the phone you use can be tethered to a laptop. I'm lucky that my old LG clunker can. The data on my phone is 1x, not lightning fast but very usable.

[magicbus]

elkhornsun wrote:
After AT&T handed over more than 300 million emails of US citizens to the military I am not about to use them for anything.

:? Not even Google heard of this one. Could you possibly share a link so others may learn?

Dave

[elkhornsun]

DanaMc wrote:
Chrishick,

For everyone's benefit, please add a post with the details of the Bluetooth option. I know there are many folks who have more recent equipment than others including myself. So I'm very interested in anything along these lines.

Thanks for your contribution.

Bluetooth is for wireless devices like a mouse or keyboard. WiFi with 802.11n is doing to provide much better data throughput and can be shared with multiple computers at the same time.

We use a Cradlepoint router that has both 802.11n wireless and standard Ethernet cable ports and will work with any USB modem so we are not locked into any one company but can go with whichever company provides the best deal. At this time it is buying the Verizon service through Millenicom which is cheaper than Verizon direct and has with the Verizon towers the best nationwide coverage.

After AT&T handed over more than 300 million emails of US citizens to the military I am not about to use them for anything.