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Topic: WIFI

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Kittylicks

23/6/2022 at 10:33pm
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Hi all,
Please can you answer a problem I have got ,
I bought Netgear M1 mobile Router and Smarty sim card £16 a month for my smart TV in my campervan, ,
Then calling my phone provider EE , I have signed up for unlimited Data on my phone, yearly contract of £28 a month he has said to go to settings, personal hotspots and connect from there and it works fine.
So please can you tell me why people buy a router/ sim card that is so expensive and not go down the phone hotspot route ! Is there a difference in the signal !
Much appreciated

Fiona W

via mobile 24/6/2022 at 10:18am
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Welcome to UKCS. Have a look in the Equipment forum- there’s an ongoing thread called 4G/5G which may be useful.

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dk168

24/6/2022 at 11:13am
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My latest experience while camping in Thetford Forest has been mentioned the thread mentioned by Fiona W.

4G/5G Booster

For my own personal perspective in that I need to have good internet access while I am on the road - just one smart phone and one network provider = single point of failure if the network coverage is poor or my phone fails for whatever reason(s).

Hence my decision to equip my van with MiFi in the form of the latest 5G technology with a permanent external antenna and data SIM for a second network provider (Three) to my smart phone (EE).

Since it is not easy to change the data SIM in the MiFi router as it is tucked away in a recess in the van, I shall take my old 3yo 4G smart phone, had it unlocked so that I can put in PAYG data SIMs for O2 and Vodafone, and use it as a WiFi hotspot if required.

This way, I have all 4 networks covered.

I had gone down the route of having a WiFi dongle in the past when I was camping in a tent and used site WiFi in areas with poor mobile signal. However, a newer dongle purchased last year performed poorly when being shut inside my van. Hence the decision to bite the bullet and spent the money on the latest technology.

Personal choice and all that.

DK

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SoggySteve

via mobile 30/6/2022 at 8:28am
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Quote: Originally posted by Kittylicks on 23/6/2022
So please can you tell me why people buy a router/ sim card that is so expensive and not go down the phone hotspot route ! Is there a difference in the signal !
Much appreciated

A friend of mine at the pub had an old with WiFi dongle that he had for years that he used at home for his internet. He also had a hotspot capable phone with more data than the WiFi box contract offers for less money. Man, it took me a couple of years to explain how wrongly he was looking at this stuff. There was no signal strength benefit to the dongle that I could see.

Personally I hotspot with my phone in the van when I need to go on the internet but I don’t watch Tv camping (or at home) so my demands are probably less than someone who does.

The only real difference is where you would actually install a proper 4/5g signal booster with its own sim which would be fitted to a roof. These are expensive but can seriously increase the connection between you and the cell towers. The only benefit to the little dongles thati can see is that they often are powered by a USB cable which allows you to hang it out off a window or pop it on a roof (some friends have waterproofed theirs for their canal boats) in the hope it increases the signal strength. That and you can set up a static hotspot for a group of people if that’s your aim.

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