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Can't say from experience since I am in the research phase. But I like the outdoors so I want to be able to boondock. So my current plan is a Wifi Device from

Can't say from experience since I am in the research phase. But I like the outdoors so I want to be able to boondock. So my current plan is a Wifi Device from Verizon, plus Satellite Internet, plus lots of Solar and Batteries. This is not cheap, and I am pretty sure it will not resale very well. The satellite dish alone is like $7,000 (http://www.rvdatasat.com http://www.rvdatasat.com). But I know I'll be working remote for some time, and why not just go hit the National Parks for a bit. Of course, still need to pick and choose. Not sure I could rely on a view to a geo-sat from Yosemite Valley for example, but up high at Tuolumne Meadows should be fine.

SwellJoe 10y ago
I considered satellite when I first started, but the cost is very high, the latency is very high (I have experience with satellite internet as I've helped design caching systems for cruise ships and other satellite linked networks; while the up/down speeds aren't terrible, interactive stuff is painful), and the places where you can't get 3G/4G data in the continental US has shrunk quite a bit over the past decade or two. I spend a lot of time in deserts, which have surprisingly good coverage, even quite far from civilization. Being flat, and all, makes it reach quite far from towers. Mountains are problematic, but even then, you can often find a place to park that's in a pocket of coverage...or you can hike or bike to a high point where you can get coverage. And, as you note, mountains are potentially problematic for satellite coverage, as well.
- sakopov 10y ago
  Do you just tether internet from your phone? I've been looking at service like Karma [1] which seems to receive good reviews from RVers i follow on YouTube and they charge an incredible $150/50Gb. The prices are just outrageous. [1] https://yourkarma.com/pricing https://yourkarma.com/pricing
  - SwellJoe 10y ago
    I had Karma, but they did a double bait and switch (they offered unlimited with a bandwidth restriction, but then changed it after a bunch of people signed up, and then changed it yet again the month after, due to complaints...in both cases, the deals got worse and the pricing got more expensive for my use case), which made me hate them. But, I use Sprint and T-Mobile. Karma is on the Sprint network, so the same network, but with slightly better prices. I have a 40GB plan from Sprint ($127/month, including the hotspot and the line fee), and 16GB spread across two devices on T-Mobile. And, yes, my phone can tether, but I have two hotspots, as well. I use T-Mobile for the Binge On feature, which is zero-rated Netflix, Pandora, Spotify, Amazon Video, YouTube, etc. So, when I'm streaming, I use the T-Mobile data, and for anything else I use Sprint. And, yes, prices are outrageous. It wasn't always this way. Clear used to offer unlimited data for $40/month, and I had an unlimited data plan on my T-Mobile phone, as well. I kept the actually unlimited plan for many years, even after T-Mobile no longer offered an actually unlimited plan. But, then they started blocking hotspot usage (even on a rooted phone; not sure how they were detecting it was being used that way), so I had to switch to another plan, which was more expensive and much more limited. Anyway, it works out to about $250/month; if I weren't sharing it with my girlfriend (who does a lot of streaming), it'd probably be plenty. I never used to use more than about 30GB/month when it was just me. I watch a lot less TV when it's just me.

SwellJoe 10y ago

I considered satellite when I first started, but the cost is very high, the latency is very high (I have experience with satellite internet as I've helped design caching systems for cruise ships and other satellite linked networks; while the up/down speeds aren't terrible, interactive stuff is painful), and the places where you can't get 3G/4G data in the continental US has shrunk quite a bit over the past decade or two. I spend a lot of time in deserts, which have surprisingly good coverage, even quite far from civilization. Being flat, and all, makes it reach quite far from towers. Mountains are problematic, but even then, you can often find a place to park that's in a pocket of coverage...or you can hike or bike to a high point where you can get coverage. And, as you note, mountains are potentially problematic for satellite coverage, as well.

sakopov 10y ago
Do you just tether internet from your phone? I've been looking at service like Karma [1] which seems to receive good reviews from RVers i follow on YouTube and they charge an incredible $150/50Gb. The prices are just outrageous. [1] https://yourkarma.com/pricing https://yourkarma.com/pricing
- SwellJoe 10y ago
  I had Karma, but they did a double bait and switch (they offered unlimited with a bandwidth restriction, but then changed it after a bunch of people signed up, and then changed it yet again the month after, due to complaints...in both cases, the deals got worse and the pricing got more expensive for my use case), which made me hate them. But, I use Sprint and T-Mobile. Karma is on the Sprint network, so the same network, but with slightly better prices. I have a 40GB plan from Sprint ($127/month, including the hotspot and the line fee), and 16GB spread across two devices on T-Mobile. And, yes, my phone can tether, but I have two hotspots, as well. I use T-Mobile for the Binge On feature, which is zero-rated Netflix, Pandora, Spotify, Amazon Video, YouTube, etc. So, when I'm streaming, I use the T-Mobile data, and for anything else I use Sprint. And, yes, prices are outrageous. It wasn't always this way. Clear used to offer unlimited data for $40/month, and I had an unlimited data plan on my T-Mobile phone, as well. I kept the actually unlimited plan for many years, even after T-Mobile no longer offered an actually unlimited plan. But, then they started blocking hotspot usage (even on a rooted phone; not sure how they were detecting it was being used that way), so I had to switch to another plan, which was more expensive and much more limited. Anyway, it works out to about $250/month; if I weren't sharing it with my girlfriend (who does a lot of streaming), it'd probably be plenty. I never used to use more than about 30GB/month when it was just me. I watch a lot less TV when it's just me.