portable wifi question

[daisy 'n donald]

hi! we will be traveling to florida at the end of august, and we will be staying in a family member's condo while there. they don't have wifi, and i will need to log into work. can anyone recommend a portable wifi device? our mobile company doesn't have any hotpots or data plans like that to offer. so i would have to get some sort of other device to use. since we will only need it for about a month, a pay as you go or monthly subscription would suffice. we would actually need to have 2 work laptops up and running on it, and probably our kid's tablets.
thanks!

 

[fla4fun]

Well, it’s not necessarily inexpensive, but right now I use a T-Mobile hotspot. The hotspot itself runs about $100 new, but you could see if they have refurbished ones available. Then you purchase a data pass. You can buy as little as 500MB for one day up to 50GB for one month, at 4G or 5G speed, depending on your device. The 50GB is currently $50.00. If you go over, it’s unlimited 2G speed for the remainder of the month Mine is prepaid,and I refill with gift cards. The other providers offer similar things. I generally don’t go over the 50GB, but I am not working right now, so I don’t know how much data you would need. I can have multiple devices running at the same time. I use the hotspot because there is only one regular internet provider in our area and they are lousy. Plus, I can take it with me when I travel so I am not doing personal things like paying bills on hotel wifi.

I am sure most of the big providers have something similar. Try Googling “Prepaid Mobile Internet” and the city where you are staying..

 

[_19disnA]

So the condo doesn't have any sort of internet service? Do your relatives live there and not use the internet? If they have internet service but no wifi, you could just plug in directly with the right kind of cord.

 

[daisy 'n donald]

So the condo doesn't have any sort of internet service? Do your relatives live there and not use the internet? If they have internet service but no wifi, you could just plug in directly with the right kind of cord.

so, they're snowbirds, and they're not at their condo that often and they just have cable, and it's my inlaws, and they never had the need for internet. last time we were there we paid for daily access to use our phones as hot spots, but that was only for our kid's tablets. i don't think that would be sustainable for the 2 weeks we will be there and for my husband and i to do our jobs. so just looking for something more powerful that will work for us there and perhaps maybe in the car/train on the way down (for the kid's tablets)
the condo itself has like, a "club house" that supposedly has wifi, but when we were there 4 years ago, it didn't connect to much of anything. not sure if anything changed since then, but i'd rather be prepared then get there and be s.o.l.

 

[Moliphino]

I've rented a wifi hotspot the past few times I've gone to Europe. Looks like this company also rents in the US (https://travelwifi.com/portable-hotspots/rent/sapphire-2). I've used them a few times in Spain and France.

 

[sam_gordon]

so, they're snowbirds, and they're not at their condo that often and they just have cable, and it's my inlaws, and they never had the need for internet. last time we were there we paid for daily access to use our phones as hot spots, but that was only for our kid's tablets. i don't think that would be sustainable for the 2 weeks we will be there and for my husband and i to do our jobs. so just looking for something more powerful that will work for us there and perhaps maybe in the car/train on the way down (for the kid's tablets)
the condo itself has like, a "club house" that supposedly has wifi, but when we were there 4 years ago, it didn't connect to much of anything. not sure if anything changed since then, but i'd rather be prepared then get there and be s.o.l.

A portable hotspot is basically just like your phone. We have a portable hotspot from Verizon that we got from my mom. I authorize it each fall ($40), then pay a monthly fee (~$30) during soccer season and use it to live stream my kids' soccer games. I suggest reaching out to whoever your cell service is through and see what they have. You'll need to pay for the device, an activation fee, then a monthly fee.

 

[daisy 'n donald]

A portable hotspot is basically just like your phone. We have a portable hotspot from Verizon that we got from my mom. I authorize it each fall ($40), then pay a monthly fee (~$30) during soccer season and use it to live stream my kids' soccer games. I suggest reaching out to whoever your cell service is through and see what they have. You'll need to pay for the device, an activation fee, then a monthly fee.

our cell provider doesn't have any hotspot device. we have unlimited data on our phones, but, as it is, only one tablet seems to work off of it at a time so i don't think it'll work for our purposes. .i'll look into other cell providers to see what they can offer for month to month or something- we would only need it for a few weeks as it is....thank you so much for your input/advice!

 

[fla4fun]

our cell provider doesn't have any hotspot device. we have unlimited data on our phones, but, as it is, only one tablet seems to work off of it at a time so i don't think it'll work for our purposes. .i'll look into other cell providers to see what they can offer for month to month or something- we would only need it for a few weeks as it is....thank you so much for your input/advice!

How many phones do you have? Are you and your husband on similar plans? I was thinking that if you could download a lot of things to entertain the kids before you leave (so they wouldn’t require a connection all the time), you could connect through your phone and your husband through his. This assumes you have unlimited tethering in addition to unlimited data. I know many plans do limit the usage of your phone as a hotspot, so it might not be possible.

Also, you mentioned using a hotspot during the drive. I have done this a couple times as a passenger on long road trips, and whether it works really depends on where you are. If your trip takes you through large rural areas or mountains, it can get very spotty just like a cell phone would.

 

[_19disnA]

Hotspot internet usage can get pricey depending on what exactly you are doing. Watching a movie or downloading/uploading large files will eat up a LOT of the capacity. Not sure if you need to connect all day for work, but if you only have to 'check-in' at times, can you find a local place like Panera's or Starbucks that typically have free wifi? Are there any 'business center' type places in the area that offer wifi access?