Best Wifi
- Thread starter Lawrence
- Start date
Murraycroexp
Veteran Expediter
Lowe's. Almost always a great signal. And from almost anywhere in the lot in front of the store.
letzrockexpress
Veteran Expediter
Ditto on the Lowe's wifi. Strongest signal I've ever experienced..It reminds me of that BOSE ad with the guy in the chair...
I have been using Sprint Wi-FI for years. Started out using the phone and now have a Sprint Overdrive and am still looking for something better.
I started out with unlimited usage and had that till a few years ago with my Overdrive went bad right before my renewal. When I got the replacement Overdrive I lost my unlimited and went to the 13 gig which I struggle with staying under.
Sprint has also started dropping towers which has narrowed where I can use the hot stop. This past week was very frustrating as Helena, MT does not have towers for Sprint.
When we are in areas that Sprint works I am very happy with the service. I am wondering about Verizon and how that is working for everyone?
I started out with unlimited usage and had that till a few years ago with my Overdrive went bad right before my renewal. When I got the replacement Overdrive I lost my unlimited and went to the 13 gig which I struggle with staying under.
Sprint has also started dropping towers which has narrowed where I can use the hot stop. This past week was very frustrating as Helena, MT does not have towers for Sprint.
When we are in areas that Sprint works I am very happy with the service. I am wondering about Verizon and how that is working for everyone?
Don't confuse WiFi with cellphone data, they are very different. WiFi and cellphone data are simplty two different ways of accessing the Internet. If your Sprint (or Verizon or any other phone) is connected to a WiFi hotspot, you are not using any of your plan's data. In Helena, MT, for example, if you go to a Lowes, Home Depot, McDonalds, Starbucks, Panera Bread, or some other place with free WiFi, even though they have no Sprint data towers there, you can still get on the Internet and it won't affect your monthly data at all. If your laptop has built-in WiFi or you have a WiFi adapter for it, you can use that to connect to WiFi hotspots. You can connect to the same WiFi hotspot with your phone, and it won't use any cell phone data.
There are people with smartphones who have no carrier at all for that phone. They can't use it to make calls (other than 911 calls), but they can use it at home, work or other places to access the Internet. Smartphones are, after all, nothing more than hand-held computers that have an app that allows you to make calls.
When I'm at home, my phone (and laptop) uses the WiFi at the house. All the background data transfers (weather app data, contacts synchronizations, app updates, location updates, etc.) take place via WiFi, and thus no data from my carrier gets used. When you connect your phone to a WiFi signal, the phone's data (3G, 4G, whatever) turns off.
As for how Verizon's data works, from the maps at the link below, you can see that it's rare indeed when I don't have a 4G signal. You can compare the maps of the 4 major carriers. When you do, you'll wonder why you don't have Verizon.
4G coverage maps
There are people with smartphones who have no carrier at all for that phone. They can't use it to make calls (other than 911 calls), but they can use it at home, work or other places to access the Internet. Smartphones are, after all, nothing more than hand-held computers that have an app that allows you to make calls.
When I'm at home, my phone (and laptop) uses the WiFi at the house. All the background data transfers (weather app data, contacts synchronizations, app updates, location updates, etc.) take place via WiFi, and thus no data from my carrier gets used. When you connect your phone to a WiFi signal, the phone's data (3G, 4G, whatever) turns off.
As for how Verizon's data works, from the maps at the link below, you can see that it's rare indeed when I don't have a 4G signal. You can compare the maps of the 4 major carriers. When you do, you'll wonder why you don't have Verizon.
4G coverage maps
I do not confuse the difference...
Wandering around looking for Wi-Fi is not something we are inclined to do in the truck.
We have a Sprint phone and an AT& T phone that have their own plans and then I have the Hotspot. I use the Sprint hotspot for my computer. Sprint coverage is shrinking and since we spend a lot of time out west and in the center of the United States this is causing a problem for me so I am on the hunt for something that will fit my needs better.
Wandering around looking for Wi-Fi is not something we are inclined to do in the truck.
We have a Sprint phone and an AT& T phone that have their own plans and then I have the Hotspot. I use the Sprint hotspot for my computer. Sprint coverage is shrinking and since we spend a lot of time out west and in the center of the United States this is causing a problem for me so I am on the hunt for something that will fit my needs better.
KickStarter6
Veteran Expediter
Try huges net if it is available for trucks. Expense but all you need is the western sky lol
OK. You just confused me when you were talking about it being unlimited and then 13 gigs, and mentioning the Overdrive. None of those are WiFi. They are all 3G/4G data connections to the Internet which uses your plan's data.
It's not something I'm inclined to do, either. Even in a Sprinter. I'm still grandfathered in on my Verizon's unlimited data plan, so that's what I use probably 95% of the time. Most of the time I don't even bother looking for a WiFi signal, since the 4G is so prevalent. I just connect the phone to the laptop and connect that way. Every now and then I'll park in a place where there is a good unsecured WiFi signal, like Lowes or Home Depot, and there's a Walmart in Lapeer, MI that's close to a car dealer that has a good signal. For years I haven't worried about going to a place where I can get a WiFi signal, I just tether the phone and be done with it.
WanderngFool
Active Expediter
I'm on the Verizon grandfathered deal too but I only get 3G (original Droid). Did you buy an unlocked 4G phone so you could stay on your plan?
I am also 1 of the few unlimited Verizon plans...I was told ..as long as I do not except a subsidized phone... I will stay unlimited.. so when this phone quits I will be paying full retail or craigslist..
Like turtle .I don't bother with WiFi..
Sent from my DROID RAZR using EO Forums mobile app
I had the original Droid. Then I got the Droid Bionic when it came out in September 2011, when the unlimited plans were still in effect. So as long as I don't get a new discounted phone I can keep this plan.
It's definitely cheaper to pay full price for a new phone than it is to get a couple hundred off the new phone but pay a couple thousand more per year for the data I'm using.
WanderngFool
Active Expediter
I don't even use many gigs and it's even cheaper for me. Every year I check out the latest Google Nexus only to find out it won't run on Verizon. Hopefully they're about due to kiss and make up. Maybe next year. My screen is looking pretty tiny.
I use anywhere between 15 and 25 gigs a month, so keeping that unlimited plan is important to me.
As for phones, if you're looking to miove to Verizon, I wouldn't delay it simply because they don't support the Nexus 5, since the Motorola Droid Maxx, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Samsung Galaxy S4 are better in most respects, and you wouldn't be giving up anything by not having the Nexus 5. Although, the Nexus 5 delivers at $200 cheaper, so there is that.
As for phones, if you're looking to miove to Verizon, I wouldn't delay it simply because they don't support the Nexus 5, since the Motorola Droid Maxx, Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Samsung Galaxy S4 are better in most respects, and you wouldn't be giving up anything by not having the Nexus 5. Although, the Nexus 5 delivers at $200 cheaper, so there is that.
WanderngFool
Active Expediter
I'm on Verizon now. The $200 matters to me but what attracts me with the Nexus is the open architecture and lack of bloatware.
We use a Verizon Pad and sometimes we use it as a Hotspot; however, it's limited to 5g and if you use much video it sucks that up real quick.
Well, all Android phones have open architecture, but if you mean the tinkering that carriers do with it, I know what you mean. Bloatware is easy enough to get rid of, even without rooting your phone. In that price range, the Nexus 5 is clearly the best phone you can buy, since nothing in that price range can compete with it.
paullud
Veteran Expediter
That's what I am doing too. I picked up my S3 in El Paso off of Craigslist. I just asked them to meet at the truck stop so I wasn't heading to an unknown area.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using EO Forums mobile app
WanderngFool
Active Expediter
This is what I need to be doing too. Just call Verizon with the id number off the back of the phone to make sure it's not stolen before paying the guy and I'm golden, right?
Btw, I also use a Sprint data card (ExpressCard slot) and my old card has had issues lately so I bought a card on Ebay for less than $8, called Sprint with the id # and it works great.