mobile internet requirements

[Jeremy Lemanski]

i'll admit i'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, maybe as sharp as a hammer, when it comes to computers and computer related products. That said, i finally have a laptop to use and i need to figure out what i need in order to get mobile internet. An idea of what to look for, such as services or any add ons for the laptop, would be great. thanks in advance for any help.

 

[L.B. LaForce]

Hello Jeremy, I was kind of confused at first too regarding all the options, but I think I got it all down.

There is two options. Phone tethering, which is slow, but works for radar updates. Second is an aircard, usually USB, or express card.

Depends on what kind of stuff your gonna be doing while chasing
1. Are you gonna be streaming video to a website? If so, you will definitely need the aircard, as you will be using more bandwidth. For streaming, I would also HIGHLY recommend some sort of external antenna.
2. If you are just gonna need the internet for radar updates, phone tethering will work just fine.

As far as service goes, the main two candidates are Sprint and Verizon. Sprint has the best hands down, but the only downside is that you have to sign a 2 year contract with your aircard, and the $60/month can add up. Verizon on the other hand has good service, but not as good as sprint (very small difference). I ended going with Verizon, because you can just buy an aircard on ebay or somewhere for ~$70, then activate it, and use it month to month, so since i wont be using it in the winter, I can shut it off, and not have to pay the $60/month

You'll need cash too of course

Ill let you look into that, and if you have more questions, I or someone else would be glad to respond.

 

[Rob Sermon]

Hey, Jeremy!

Contact Gordon Spencer at http://www.maximumsignal.net. Phone is (716)818-5896

It is probably better to contact him by telephone. Tell him what equipment you have, and he will get you what you need at the best price.

 

[Kris Hair]

Alltel will sell you the aircard for $200 and no contract... Just pay month to month.

I ran mine for the first time today.

I have nothing but good things to say about it.

 

[J Kinkaid]

Alltel will sell you the aircard for $200 and no contract... Just pay month to month.

I ran mine for the first time today.

I have nothing but good things to say about it.

You can get that same Aircard for $60 on ebay and other places so look there first. If your going to buy an amp go with the Rockies amp from Maxsignal .

 

[Chris Gullikson]

I have been tethering with Alltel for a couple years now and have the same speeds as aircards. The downside of tethering is that you cant be talking on the phone and on the internet at the same time.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Alltel will sell you the aircard for $200 and no contract... Just pay month to month.

I ran mine for the first time today.

I have nothing but good things to say about it.

I hate to bring back a topic that is somewhat old, but I'm looking to find an alternative method for mobile internet next year so that I can get away from paying $60/month for a 2 year contract for mobile internet that I only use maybe 3 months of the year.

How do you get the month to month plan for mobile internet through Alltel? My cell phone is through Alltel, and looking at their site the only mobile internet option I can see is $59.99/month. I'm not seeing a "pay as you", so to speak, for mobile internet plan.

This whole tethering to a cell phone thing is new to me and I'm just confused by the inconsistencies, it seems like everyone has different answers. I've read that Alltell has a $25/mo unlimited data plan, I have not seen this on their site. I've read several people who said you don't need a data plan, just plug your cell phone into the laptop and download the drivers and you're good to go. But then there are others who say no, that's not so that you have to have a plan. So it's like, which is it?

I know that I should probably just contact a customer service rep at Alltel and find out, but I'm hesitant cause of past experiences I've had talking with the reps about mobile internet plan.. it's always a nightmare. Generally they have no clue what you're talking about, or they don't have the answers and just make up some BS answer. I have a data card through Verizon right now, I ended up purchasing it through Verizon's website cause the local customer service reps had no clue what I was talking about and was giving me BS answers. So that's kind of why I'm trying to figure this out without having to contact them cause I've never had any successful dealings with these cellular services when it comes to asking questions about mobile data plans.

I'm really just trying to find another method so I'm not paying $60/month for mobile internet that I don't use 8 or 9 months of the year.

 

[Scott Hammel]

II know that I should probably just contact a customer service rep at Alltel and find out, but I'm hesitant cause of past experiences I've had talking with the reps about mobile internet plan.. it's always a nightmare. Generally they have no clue what you're talking about, or they don't have the answers and just make up some BS answer. I have a data card through Verizon right now, I ended up purchasing it through Verizon's website cause the local customer service reps had no clue what I was talking about and was giving me BS answers. So that's kind of why I'm trying to figure this out without having to contact them cause I've never had any successful dealings with these cellular services when it comes to asking questions about mobile data plans.

Talking to customer service rep won't help. They always know nothing. I was in the same boat as you last year trying to figure out a mobile internet plan and it's frustrating as hell. Finally when I went in and bought my Blackberry Storm, I got a rep that knew all the facts. Verizon requires you to have a data plan because I have a Blackberry (AT&T does a similar thing for iPhone) and she told me adding on the tether option is something I can put on my plan or take off whenever I want on a month to month basis. When it's on it's an extra $15/month. So far that's all they've charged me and I've been very happy. I feel your frustration though. Seems like most of the reps I talked to knew less about their network than I did. I was telling them things they didn't know! Hahaha...Anyway, my suggestion is finding a plan on a carrier that allows you to add the tethering on and off as you please. Verizon gets high marks from me in this regard.

 

[Robert Edmonds]

This spring I tethered my phone with alltel for ~$30 dollars per month on top of my phone plan. I was able to cancel it 2-3months later no problems. If you don't have phone service with alltel, I'd ask what your next best option is...

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Anyway, my suggestion is finding a plan on a carrier that allows you to add the tethering on and off as you please. Verizon gets high marks from me in this regard.

But the problem is, none of the cellular service's websites I've looked at has a "tethering" option that you can buy. I keep seeing these options people mention like the $25/mo unlimited, tethering option, etc.. but when you look at the cellular service's website, none of these options are available to purchase. And lord knows if I contact a sales rep and ask about the tethering option they will have no clue what it is I'm speaking of.

 

[Bart_Comstock]

For the love of god do not go with AT&T unless you want to end up driving your car off a cliff. Their coverage is awful and not nearly as well spread out as their maps show and their air cards are junk. They have the worst customer service I have ever dealt with and they seem to pick the worst time to take their network down for scheduled maintenance and their speeds are all but horridly slow unless you are in a very large metro area. All in all the biggest mistake I ever made was going with them and I will be switching to sprint in the coming weeks.

But the problem is, none of the cellular service's websites I've looked at has a "tethering" option that you can buy. I keep seeing these options people mention like the $25/mo unlimited, tethering option, etc.. but when you look at the cellular service's website, none of these options are available to purchase. And lord knows if I contact a sales rep and ask about the tethering option they will have no clue what it is I'm speaking of.

Joey, I know with AT&T their PDA data plan includes unlimited data with the option to tether your phone to your pc but they don't actually have an independent plan just for tethering.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

This spring I tethered my phone with alltel for ~$30 dollars per month on top of my phone plan. I was able to cancel it 2-3months later no problems. If you don't have phone service with alltel, I'd ask what your next best option is...

I have my cell phone through Alltel, if I can just figure out exactly what they offer then I could go through with it.. but so far the options people have mentioned (tethering, $25/mo unlimited) aren't listed on the site as plans to buy.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

For the love of god do not go with AT&T unless you want to end up driving your car off a cliff. Their coverage is awful and not nearly as well spread out as their maps show and their air cards are junk. They have the worst customer service I have ever dealt with and they seem to pick the worst time to take their network down for scheduled maintenance and their speeds are all but horridly slow unless you are in a very large metro area. All in all the biggest mistake I ever made was going with them and I will be switching to sprint in the coming weeks.

LOL. AT&T was who I had first, but switched to Verizon.. but I'm just tired of paying $60/mo for something I only use March - June. So just looking at cheaper options.

 

[Joey Ketcham]

I think I found the $25/unlimited data plan that's been talked about, it's a "connect pack"

http://www.alltel.com/wps/portal/AlltelPublic/!ut/p/c1/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3hnP2-DoCBDAwN_HxcnAyNLZ0PLIE9DIN9MPxykA0mFu3eokYFRgFOwWZi7i5GBgQFE3gAHcDTQ9_PIz03Vj9SPMsdpj7uJfmROanpicqV-QXZ2mnO6oiIAUfiTyw!!/dl2/d1/L0lJSklna21BL0lKakFBTXlBQkVSQ0pBISEvWUZOQTFOSTUwLTVGd0EhIS83X0NOSzBSUjEwME9MREIwMjlDMTlSSTExMEc0L0tfX19fMg!!/?WCM_PORTLET=PC_7_CNK0RR100OLDB029C19RI110G4_WCM&WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/Personal/home/p/axcessservices/dconnectbundles

looks like you order it through the apps section of your phone, and looks like you can unsubscribe the same way. I'm guessing this is how people use this on a month-to-month basis? But there is one for $9.99/mo that says unlimited data.. wouldn't that work just as well?

 

[Scott Hammel]

I think I found the $25/unlimited data plan that's been talked about, it's a "connect pack"

http://www.alltel.com/wps/portal/AlltelPublic/!ut/p/c1/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3hnP2-DoCBDAwN_HxcnAyNLZ0PLIE9DIN9MPxykA0mFu3eokYFRgFOwWZi7i5GBgQFE3gAHcDTQ9_PIz03Vj9SPMsdpj7uJfmROanpicqV-QXZ2mnO6oiIAUfiTyw!!/dl2/d1/L0lJSklna21BL0lKakFBTXlBQkVSQ0pBISEvWUZOQTFOSTUwLTVGd0EhIS83X0NOSzBSUjEwME9MREIwMjlDMTlSSTExMEc0L0tfX19fMg!!/?WCM_PORTLET=PC_7_CNK0RR100OLDB029C19RI110G4_WCM&WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/Personal/home/p/axcessservices/dconnectbundles

looks like you order it through the apps section of your phone, and looks like you can unsubscribe the same way. I'm guessing this is how people use this on a month-to-month basis? But there is one for $9.99/mo that says unlimited data.. wouldn't that work just as well?

Yeah that looks like it could work! Every carrier has their own lingo for what tethering is. Verizon calls it Nationwide Connect or some crap. Also remember that when they say "unlimited" it usually means 5 gigabytes. I've never gone over that a month while pulling GR3 data, spotternetwork, radar lab, and streaming live.