Mobile Internet for the RV Lifestyle

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Words by Jason Betzing

Which mobile internet solution is best for RVers? Like so many questions regarding the RV lifestyle, the answer will depend on your situation. It helps to know how much you’ll use your internet, and what you'll be using it for. Generally, it will be for "work", "entertainment," or both. If you only want mobile internet for email and social media, your needs will be different from someone working remotely or video streaming. In the interest of simplicity, let's look at three options.

Free Wi-Fi, The Least Expensive, But Beware

Many public places such as coffee shops, restaurants, and libraries have free Wi-Fi. While this wouldn’t be a solution to use in the RV, you can check email while enjoying a brew or a coffee.

Most RV parks also offer free Wi-Fi but prohibit streaming. We’ve found it rarely adequate for our needs. Inconsistent RV park Wi-Fi is what led us to our current solution. While RV park Wi-Fi isn't reliable for working online or streaming movies, if you're just checking email or keeping up with family from your latest cool spot, this could work.

There isn't any added equipment necessary besides a Wi-Fi enabled device such as a phone, tablet or laptop. However, if you are trying to use weak RV Park Wi-Fi, you may add a Wi-Fi signal booster or extender. Note that an “extender” will not improve the Wi-Fi quality, just the signal, while a “booster” strengthens the signal and may or may not improve the speed.

Data security is important, but even more so for public Wi-Fi. These are some general guidelines.

  • Don’t access banking or sensitive personal information using public internet services.
  • Disable “join open networks automatically” or “connect automatically” in your device’s System Preferences or Control Panel, so you don’t accidentally sign in to a fraudulent Wi-Fi network.
  • Secure websites will have a padlock icon in the address bar or “HTTPS” in the web address, indicating they are encrypted.
  • Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for sites you visit with sensitive information as an added security measure. When you sign in, you’ll get a text to your phone with a passcode for an extra layer of security.
  • Confirm the Wi-Fi Network name with employees. Hackers may use “spoofing”; they sit in a Coffee Shop and name their fake Wi-Fi network “Coffee Shop Free Wi-Fi”. You sign in and they have access to your information.
  • Don’t use free open Wi-Fi networks that don’t require a password to log in.

Cellular, The Most Common, Simplest Solution

Cellular is the most common way most RVers access the internet. Most network carriers have good coverage across Canada and the U.S. with a few exceptions.

In simplest form cellular internet is accessing the internet using your cellphone. You can also use most cellphones as a Wi-Fi hotspot to provide internet access to other devices. Another solution is buying a mobile cellular hotspot like MiFi and Jetpack. Ours is about the size of a deck of cards and is "data only" meaning it cannot be used as a phone. The next option is buying a roof-mounted cellular system. These may come with their own data plans or connect with your current plan. The equipment you add to your system is lightweight and relatively inexpensive with very little setup required, although a rooftop system will be more expensive and require installation.

Nationwide carriers in the U.S. include Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile. As a Canadian traveling frequently to the U.S., it might make sense to get a U.S.-based plan since some of them include Canada and Mexico at no additional cost (read the terms and conditions carefully). You may want to avoid a long term plan, opting for pay-as-you-go or month-to-month plan so you aren't locked in and paying for a U.S. plan while back in Canada. No long term contract also means you'll have access to any new plans and devices through different carriers. If you do want a U.S. based plan, the challenge for Canadians might be the lack of a zip code. Going into a carrier's store will be the easiest way to get set up, as they can solve this quickly.

Beware the term “Unlimited”. Understand it usually means unlimited data, talk, and text, not speed. Most plans throttle speeds after you reach your data limit. Once throttled, your speed goes from lightning-fast to a frustratingly slow crawl.

If you want to improve your cellular signal in weak areas, you can use an external antenna or cell signal booster (not to be confused with a Wi-Fi signal booster, although some units have both). These will improve your signal but it may not improve your data speed if you've reached your cap. It will also not help if you are in a carrier's dead zone.

5G is an exciting new cellular technology and is already in most major metropolitan areas. However, it is still in its infancy, so there are things to be worked out. There are different bandwidths of 5G but currently no device on the market is compatible with all of them. 5G will be great when it's fully developed, but doesn't seem like a feasible mobile internet solution for RVers until the technology is more mature.

Satellite, The Most Expensive, Complicated Solution

We tried satellite internet about 4 years ago at our home. It was reliable but slow, and more expensive. Speeds have increased along with the cost. To stream movies in HD, it will cost upwards of $150 per month. The data is slowed (de-prioritized) after 150 GB. It also takes extra time to set up and taken down. Expertise is required to set up and also to troubleshoot if there are problems. The initial expense for mobile equipment will be approximately $5,000-10,000, substantially more than a cellular set up. There are basically two providers, Hughe’s Net and Viasat. It might be a good solution for boondockers who stay way off the beaten path for long periods but need internet access.

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satellite dish-2.jpg

Jason Betzing

Although the hardware won’t cost nearly as much as these deep space antennae at the Very Large Array near Socorro, NM, plan to spend approximately $5,000-10,000 to get set up for satellite internet, substantially more than a cellular set up.

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satellite dish-5.jpg

Jason Betzing

Although the hardware won’t cost nearly as much as these deep space antennae at the Very Large Array near Socorro, NM, plan to spend approximately $5,000-10,000 to get set up for satellite internet, substantially more than a cellular set up.

Backup Plan

If you need to be connected wherever you are, you’ll want to have several options. The most common way to achieve this is to have cellphones with different carriers and a hotspot plan, so if for instance there’s no Sprint signal, you could use your AT&T cellphone hotspot. Another option might be carrying a VPN to use with free Wi-Fi to make it secure, which is an in depth topic beyond the scope of this article.

What We Use

We wanted the ability to stream movies, online gaming, website maintenance and uploading large files. Our Jetpack Model 7730L allows us to stream movies and online gaming with a Verizon cellular signal. We were very lucky to get Verizon’s MiFi True Unlimited plan (no throttling) before it ended in May of 2019. We also each have a Verizon smartphone with hotspot capabilities using the discontinued Verizon Go Unlimited plan. Since all of our devices are Verizon, if we don't have a Verizon signal, we're out of luck. This works for us since we don't need to be connected all day, every day. Our back up plan is not to worry about it. We'll still have local TV or Blu-rays. We haven't needed an external antenna or booster for our purposes, however. we could easily add them.

If for some reason we could no longer have truly unlimited data and speed, then streaming services would no longer be advantageous and we would install a rooftop dish for television. We would cancel our MiFi plan and just use our phones as hotspots for internet access as well as a mobile VPN to make free internet safe.

Actionable Steps

  • Try to anticipate your actual data usage to determine your need

Streaming movies in HD uses about 3 GB of data per hour

Streaming music uses on average 100 MB per hour

  • Determine how reliable you need your internet to be
  • Narrow down which options will potentially work for you
  • See what the solutions and backups will cost and ensure you’ll get value from the expense
  • Consider if there is a contract, locking you in for a certain amount of time

Research potential destinations and compare the coverage map for Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint and AT&T

Terms

Cellular Network – A network of towers covering areas or “cells” used to call, text or access the internet wirelessly.

Cellular Data – One way our devices access the internet is through the same cellular network used to make phone calls. This uses data measured in Kilobytes (KB), Megabytes (MB) and Gigabytes (GB or Gigs).

3G, 4G and LTE – 3G means Third Generation and is the slowest, while 4G means Fourth Generation, being up to 10x faster. LTE causes confusion. It stands for Long Term Evolution. It’s much faster than 3G but does not meet the standards to be true 4G. The clever marketers call it 4G LTE, so they can still advertise it as 4G.

Wi-Fi – Another way our devices access the internet is a wireless internet access point provided by businesses, RV Parks or through your router or hotspot.

Hotspot – using a phone or other cellular device to create a private Wi-Fi access point for other devices. For example, I use my phone’s Wi-Fi hotspot and sign in with my laptop to access the internet.

Data Cap – After you’ve used this amount of data your speeds will be drastically slowed down (throttled) until the next billing cycle.

Throttling – Cellular providers can slow down the speed at which you can transfer data once you've used the plan’s allowance.

Deprioritization – In times of heavy network congestion, carriers may slow down connection speeds.

T-mobile has just announced nationwide 5G by the end of 2019. Also, it's looking like a T-mobile and Sprint merger is likely. As customers demand higher speeds and extended coverage, mobile internet becomes even more feasible. Carriers constantly compete with new plans, technology, and equipment to meet our needs. No one solution will be right for everyone and no single solution will work everywhere. While not all-inclusive, I hope this article gives you a basic understanding of some mobile internet options available; from one RV er to another.