4G Modems

[Bob Hartig]

Who has made the switch to a 4G modem? If you've got one, which one, and how well is it performing for you? Do you notice a significant improvement over 3G?

I've got a Verizon USB 760 that has served me well for a couple seasons, and I'm reluctant to buy a new modem until I know the time to do so has really arrived.

 

[Dan Robinson]

I signed on with Verizon last year for their 4G service. I have the LG VL600 usb modem. The wireless hotspot was the same price, in retrospect I wish I'd have done that.

Where you have 4G service, it is very, very fast. My highest speedtest on it was 18 megs down, 16 up. That is faster than any home internet I've had. Unfortunately I only have 4G in and close to the city though, everywhere else is 3G. I have run into times (particuarly in downtown St. Louis) where my 4G speeds drop to 5 megs down / 1 up. Generally the speeds are slower downtown. The higher speeds are in the outskirts of the metro area. Probably a factor of number of users connected to a tower.

Of course the main problem is the 5GB cap. Even with occasional chasing-only use, I get close to that cap every month, some months I have to upgrade to 10GB. You can hit 5GB in a few days if you watch a lot of Youtube videos. You can upgrade to 10GB, but it's $80/month.

The only problem I have with my modem is that it doesn't auto-switch from 4G to 3G. If it is in auto mode, it will default to 3G and not connect to 4G. I have to go into the 'secret menu' and set it to LTE-only mode when I'm in 4G service area.

 

[Gordon Spencer]

Stay where you are for now . 4G is not ready for prime time yet. It is not available outside major cities and it will not be for at least a year . Besides that they are having handoff issues with it especially when going 4G to 3G . Not good for chasing yet.

Who has made the switch to a 4G modem? If you've got one, which one, and how well is it performing for you? Do you notice a significant improvement over 3G?

I've got a Verizon USB 760 that has served me well for a couple seasons, and I'm reluctant to buy a new modem until I know the time to do so has really arrived.

 

[Dave Trotter]

I just got my 4G modem yesterday from Verizon. As far as performance, I didn't see too much difference between the 4G and 3G with my streaming (which I tested out today). In fact, when I was on 4G driving east of St. Louis, it dropped a few times, while the 3G never dropped in rural areas. I think the biggest advantage of getting a 4G now depends on where you live and if you are prepaid or not. The biggest issue that I had last year was the lack of 3G coverage by Verizon as a prepaid customer. There are a lot of roaming spaces here in southern Illinois which you cannot get as a 3G prepaid. This lack of coverage made me almost lose a tornado (which I didn't, thank god). But because all of the contract modems with Verizon are now 4G, they kind of got you by the balls there. Again, as far as "4G" in general, the jury still out. But in my case, being prepaid in the past, I had no other option.

 

[Gordon Spencer]

Guys the best option is still Millenicom.

www.millenicom.com

Advanced plan is on Verizon
you get 20gb instead of 5 gb
no taxes
no contract

 

[Dan Robinson]

I agree, Millenicom is the better deal if you just need the internet. In my case, I have a Verizon voice+data plan and get a significant discount on both through my employer.

 

[Marv Radtke]

I had the unlimited plan last year for chasing and had absolutely no connection problems anywhere I chased last year. It was awesome. Fact is, I just contacted Millenicom to see how much it was going to cost me to reactivate my account. Only $19.99 to reactivate it plus the price of the plan. I'll be activating it at the beginning of April!

The Advanced plan is on Verizon, the unlimited plan is on Sprint. My phone is on Verizon. I had dead zones with my phone but still had internet thru Millenicom!

Guys the best option is still Millenicom.

www.millenicom.com

Advanced plan is on Verizon
you get 20gb instead of 5 gb
no taxes
no contract

 

[Bob Hartig]

Yeah, Millenicom's Advanced Plan really is the way to go, and if I didn't already own my own Novatel 760, I'd buy one from them and take that route, hands-down. Verizon's 5 gig cap compares poorly for the same price plus tax. If I can afford it, I may just shell out the exta $10 for the BYOD plan.

 

[Adam Lucio]

I also use Millenicom, and debated heavily about upgrading to 4G - but the deal with it came to the device not being able to auto-switch between 4 and 3G was the deal breaker for me. I have enough going on without having to monitor which zone I am currently in. I've seen what 4G can do though and its amazingly fast, especially for those in the field uploads to video brokers. I may still upgrade for that reason alone if I can find the right price, but would probably still use 3G the entire time while in the field, as its good enough for streaming and whatever else.

Despite how amazing it is, a bajillion chasers clumped in the same area bombarding the towers will still slow it down.

 

[Bob Hartig]

Thanks, all, for your input. I appreciate it! The choice seems clear, and it's nice to know I don't need to purchase a new USB modem for this upcoming season.

 

[cedwards]

I have 4g on my phone and a 4g Verizon Mifi device. I love them. I have had up to 40M upload and 29M download speeds. It rarely has a problem transitioning from 3g to 4g and visa-versa. 4G coverage is expanding rapidly and I get it in many more places than even the coverage map shows on Verizon's web page.

 

[STexan]

I have ATT and their newest 4G-LTE hotspot device, the difference between 3G and 4G is barely noticeable .. HOWEVER if you get into an 4G-LTE area, the difference is like night and day in the transfer rate.

 

[Matt Tottle]

No offense, but that's pretty moot considering that AT&T doesn't even have 3G in the vast majority of chasing territory. They are mostly EDGE (2G). 3G is only available in major metro areas, and 4G only in a few of those same metros. The huge holes in their voice service almost make it dangerous. AT&T is pretty much useless for all aspects of chasing, unless you only chase in metro areas.

 

[Brandon Jenkins]

No offense, but that's pretty moot considering that AT&T doesn't even have 3G in the vast majority of chasing territory. They are mostly EDGE (2G). 3G is only available in major metro areas, and 4G only in a few of those same metros. The huge holes in their voice service almost make it dangerous. AT&T is pretty much useless for all aspects of chasing, unless you only chase in metro areas.

While I am no advocate of chasing with AT&T I must interject to some extent. I have a company paid AT&T account and use ONLY AT&T data to tether during the off months (Sep-Mar) for chasing. I have a Verizon Mifi that I use during spring and summer. There have been MANY times where having my amplified phone hotspot with AT&T has saved my ass while my mifi (and previously usb727 modem) completely dropped out on 1xrtt service throughout Oklahoma. AT&T may not have a huge 3G coverage map, but to say it is worthless for chasing could be a little dramatic. Worthless for streaming? Yes. But is edge plenty capable of providing enough data for basic radar updates (and spotty internet browsing)? Yes.

I would have to argue that any data in the field is far from worthless, it certainly shouldn't be anyone's first choice for data however.

 

[Matt Tottle]

Its spotty availability (in both voice and data) is plenty to call it worthless IMO. I really don't care what their map says, my sister in law has AT&T, and there were plenty of areas right in KS where she had no service, but should've according to the map. I also remember an episode of Storm Chasers where Reed missed an opportunity or something because their iphones had no service (this was when iphones were only on AT&T). I remember it because that episode was "Brought to you by AT&T, giving you more bars in more places" and I remember thinking how incredibly ironic it was.

Sorry, I just wouldn't trust it with my life. There haven't been many places where my Sprint phone/data doesn't work. It may be roaming, but at least it works.