Wifi whnen travelling

[Amarillo]

Just seen this, unlimited data only sim free from roaming charges in 48 countries for £336 per year. Vodafone give us a 30% discount so that reduces to a more affordable £235 per year.

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2020/02/vodafone-uk-extend-unlimited-data-to-mobile-broadband-plans.html

 

[Lightning]

Just seen this, unlimited data only sim free from roaming charges in 48 countries for £336 per year. Vodafone give us a 30% discount so that reduces to a more affordable £235 per year.

https://www.ispreview.co.uk/index.php/2020/02/vodafone-uk-extend-unlimited-data-to-mobile-broadband-plans.html

All the current ‘unlimited’ data Vodafone plans have a 25GB/month ‘fair use’ limit abroad. Their plans with a defined UK data limit can normally use all their abroad too.

 

[Louis II]

How much data are some of you using...?

Your kids must not be teenagers yet!
It's great that they still want to come camping with us but my son takes his laptop + plays online games with his friends in the evening. Combine that with the odd movie for the adults if the weather is bad, my daughter streaming music, photos on whats app + whatever else they do and we got through about 150gb in 2 weeks last summer.

 

[soulstyledevon]

Can’t you buy him a book to read...

 

[Louis II]

He actually reads a lot, probably because it doesn't involve moving.
Unfortunately he uses a kindle tethered to my phone!

 

[SimonVW]

I use an unlocked mifi device with an additional external flat antenna that suckers to the window. I run that on EE. My phone is on Vodafone. That way it doesn’t matter if the signal from one supplier is weak because I’ll have access on the other. It ensures I can stay connected to work pretty much anywhere.

 

[StefanTaylor61]

I might need good/ maybe guaranteed wifi in the near future when on the move? Uk and abroad... I see adverts for companies like ROAM maxview , EE sell something aswell etc etc... but could I ask if anyone knows what this is... is it not just the same as 4g on ya phone? Why spend money on these products? If no 4g then no wifi I assume? Advice please and sorry but cant see which sub forum this might live?

I am just about to go to Scandinavia for 4 months. I'll probably buy a cheap phone and sim for data when i am over there, because have been told in phone shops in UK that data roaming on a UK contract works abroad for a month but then you have to re-enter UK for it to re-set and continue working abroad!

 

[Lightning]

I am just about to go to Scandinavia for 4 months. I'll probably buy a cheap phone and sim for data when i am over there, because have been told in phone shops in UK that data roaming on a UK contract works abroad for a month but then you have to re-enter UK for it to re-set and continue working abroad!

On the contract I have with Vodafone it’s 4 months, and it seems to reset when I cross any border between countries in Europe. Worth asking them.

 

[tim downes]

I might need good/ maybe guaranteed wifi in the near future when on the move? Uk and abroad... I see adverts for companies like ROAM maxview , EE sell something aswell etc etc... but could I ask if anyone knows what this is... is it not just the same as 4g on ya phone? Why spend money on these products? If no 4g then no wifi I assume? Advice please and sorry but cant see which sub forum this might live?

I use the EE product with a very neat yellow box (70mm square 20mm deep) works really well and a lot faster and reliable than using the phones - yes it’s 4g so you’re right no signal (4g or 3G) then no service - I use it on caravan Club sites in the uk and it’s much better than site service - it seem to give service in places you can barely use the phone - highly recommended - costs about £50 for 100gb and you can top it up (top up is quite expensive though) - as far as I can see there is no such thing as a guaranteed service - if anyone knows if one please let me know

 

[Bobbybus]

I have been wondering about purchasing some mifi stuff for awhile so find this thread very interesting. A couple of things I am not clear on though: Are data sim cards different to those in your mobile phone? Nobody has mentioned Pay as you go; a contract would not suit us as there are inevitably going to be gaps between using the equipment, so not really good value. Any payg recommendations?

 

[ChocolateEclair]

I have been wondering about purchasing some mifi stuff for awhile so find this thread very interesting. A couple of things I am not clear on though: Are data sim cards different to those in your mobile phone? Nobody has mentioned Pay as you go; a contract would not suit us as there are inevitably going to be gaps between using the equipment, so not really good value. Any payg recommendations?

Data SIMs are no different to normal phone SIMs. You would just need to check that the network allows tethering - I think almost all now do.

I have never found a PAYG SIM anywhere near as good value as a contract unless you are only using a small amount of data on rare occasions.

In my main mobile I have a Vodafone contract and pay £15 a month for 30GB data and it also includes Spotify premium. I only use anywhere near the data limit on occasional work trips but even then taking off the cost of Spotify it works out at about £5 a month - that’s cheaper than the cheapest PAYG offering from Giff Gaff.

 

[WelshGas]

I have been wondering about purchasing some mifi stuff for awhile so find this thread very interesting. A couple of things I am not clear on though: Are data sim cards different to those in your mobile phone? Nobody has mentioned Pay as you go; a contract would not suit us as there are inevitably going to be gaps between using the equipment, so not really good value. Any payg recommendations?

I use a Huawei MiFi with a “3” Data Sim, PAYG from eBay or Amazon. Last one was £24 for 24gb that lasts for a year from activation. Worked throughout Scandinavia and all over Europe, NSW Australia and California USA, also Singapore.
However there are occasions where there is no mobile signal, but the campsite has free or paid wifi, but only allows 1 device /booking. Then I use a different system,

iBoost Pro D8 Directional System - Motorhome WiFi

External or Internally Suction Mounted Active WiFi Antenna Internal 12v Cigarette Socket or 240v Mains Powered WiFi Router Connect to remote hotspots eg, Campsite WiFi Simple to use web interface. No software to download, no drivers to install. Works with all iPads, Phones, Tablets and Laptops

www.motorhomewifi.com

This logs onto the site WiFi as 1 device and then allows upto 5 devices to connect to itself within a 50m range. Works well.
I don’t stream movies or use internet radio etc, just internet and email with a few campsite apps, oh and downloading the occasional book for my Kindle.

 

[Ferring-about]

We bought a TP-LINK M7350 4G LTE Mobile Wi-Fi Router from John Lewis, got it last year for £59. Then got a "3" sim with 200mb a month for free, use it for the van to get data and when we go on holiday we add a data bundle to share with phones and laptops.

 

[Troglodyte]

My wife and I bought a Netgear Nighthawk MIMR1100 and Netgear MIMO 6000450 Antenna. Also a 24Gb 3 mobile 24 month SIM.
This allows us to connect up to 8 devices which can include 2 iPhones, 2 iPads and 2 laptops when we need to. We are still working and so this set up allows us to go away from home, but still work. The Antenna can be rotated to find the best signal and then fixed in position with suction pads or ties. One of us is often working while we travel, by sitting on the bench seat with table, you have your own small office.
In the evening we might use the iPad to watch BBC iPlayer, YouTube, music or such like. Also having good internet access allows us to research places to stay, visit and eat out, while we are on the move.
We also use a rechargeable Bluetooth speaker for good sound, and of course this avoids using the California’s system which will run the starter battery down with extended use.
We purchased this system in April 2019 and still have 60% of data left which cost £43. The only downside is at the end of the 24 months you have to take out a contract to reload the SIM Card, but I will just buy a new SIM card again and reconfigure the system. This is more cost effective for us.
We wouldn’t be without our MI-FI, it works very well and I have no recollection of not being able to get a signal with the Antenna in our trips around the UK.
As the unit is portable, sometimes we take it with us into hotels or guest houses, particularly if the accommodation doesn’t provide free Wi-Fi, so very flexible.
Highly recommended.

 

[WelshGas]

My wife and I bought a Netgear Nighthawk MIMR1100 and Netgear MIMO 6000450 Antenna. Also a 24Gb 3 mobile 24 month SIM.
This allows us to connect up to 8 devices which can include 2 iPhones, 2 iPads and 2 laptops when we need to. We are still working and so this set up allows us to go away from home, but still work. The Antenna can be rotated to find the best signal and then fixed in position with suction pads or ties. One of us is often working while we travel, by sitting on the bench seat with table, you have your own small office.
In the evening we might use the iPad to watch BBC iPlayer, YouTube, music or such like. Also having good internet access allows us to research places to stay, visit and eat out, while we are on the move.
We also use a rechargeable Bluetooth speaker for good sound, and of course this avoids using the California’s system which will run the starter battery down with extended use.
We purchased this system in April 2019 and still have 60% of data left which cost £43. The only downside is at the end of the 24 months you have to take out a contract to reload the SIM Card, but I will just buy a new SIM card again and reconfigure the system. This is more cost effective for us.
We wouldn’t be without our MI-FI, it works very well and I have no recollection of not being able to get a signal with the Antenna in our trips around the UK.
As the unit is portable, sometimes we take it with us into hotels or guest houses, particularly if the accommodation doesn’t provide free Wi-Fi, so very flexible.
Highly recommended.

Not sure how much re-configuring you would have to do with a new Sim card. With my Huawei mifi I just insert the new sim and off we go.

 

[Troglodyte]

Not sure how much re-configuring you would have to do with a new Sim card. With my Huawei mifi I just insert the new sim and off we go.

I thought you might need to re-se the passwords or something simple like that, but if it is that easy, then I will be very happy.

 

[WelshGas]

I thought you might need to re-se the passwords or something simple like that, but if it is that easy, then I will be very happy.

With mine, at least, it is the unit thats registered and not the Sim per se. As long as you stay with the same network.

 

[MattBW]

yes but who/why are people buying wifi gizmos? Must have reasons and benefits surely?

Key benefit for me is not flattening your phone and potentially impacting its performance with multiple devices attached. It has its own battery, usually last about 4 or 5 hours on battery, indefinitely plugged in. Also can be used as a kind of router for network sharing etc.

I think as phones have allowed tethering, they've become less relevant for me but are still popular for ease of use.

 

[John K]

I recently bought a Netgear Aircard 790 - and although I'm with EE for family phones/ipad the Vodafone deal from mobiles.co.uk (60Gb data for £9.50/month) was too good to ignore! As an added bonus the vodafone 4G works with VW Car-net, which is not the case with EE, which I can only get to work (and intermittently at best) on a 3G connection.

 

[787driver]

Sometimes it’s nice not to have any WiFi / data !

 

[gbobthomas]

I recently bought a Netgear Aircard 790 - and although I'm with EE for family phones/ipad the Vodafone deal from mobiles.co.uk (60Gb data for £9.50/month) was too good to ignore! As an added bonus the vodafone 4G works with VW Car-net, which is not the case with EE, which I can only get to work (and intermittently at best) on a 3G connection.

I’ve had exactly the same with my EE SIM card. Seems to be a common complaint from reading some EE forums. If part of the intent is to connect to Car Net I’d definitely recommend going with someone other than EE. The yellow EE mini WiFi gizmo is good as others have said, just not with an EE sim if you want to connect to Car Net

 

[gbobthomas]

So, contracts and SIM cards aside, what have people found to be the best WiFi gizmos? Or are they all much of a muchness?