Streaming solutions vs satellite

[jasin1]

Just spoke to a Verizon rep that sounded like he was high.... he explained that it was for my own good that my grandfathered plan was changed over to the new unlimited plan...said the older phones eventually would be obsolete and he “understood” my frustration.
After explaining everything for 7 min and how I wanted to be able to use my phone for rv streaming,he said “ you have Fios in your home “ what is the issue”?
I said YES but as I explained I want to stream in my rv or boat! ..he then went on to tell me about new unlimited plans and said I should stop by the store and look at jet packs ..he even yawned at one point and I know I can get a little long winded at times but I really think he was working from home and I woke him up or he was in the middle of his own “party”
I’m going for the weboost to start...I think

[sourdough]

The last time I inquired about a JetPack (I mentioned in a previous post) was in July of last year. It wouldn't help anyway if the work they way it was explained to me - throttle back. Add to that (and this is trying to remember back to last year ) you have to add a line to your plan then the unlimited data package. I want to say it was around $100mo to do both and then it will cut you back. Wasn't worth it IMO.....yet.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by sourdough

The last time I inquired about a JetPack (I mentioned in a previous post) was in July of last year. It wouldn't help anyway if the work they way it was explained to me - throttle back. Add to that (and this is trying to remember back to last year ) you have to add a line to your plan then the unlimited data package. I want to say it was around $100mo to do both and then it will cut you back. Wasn't worth it IMO.....yet.

I’m not gonna spend that much for the little I will use it.. I don’t mind blowing money but I can think of better ways to spend it.. I will just find a little town with a used bookstore and load up on old history books and keep a couple dvds on hand

[JRTJH]

Our "Jet Pack" costs $60 a month for 15 GB of "high speed data" after that, it's throttled back to "around 600KB (advertised) but in reality is probably closer to 100KB "throttleback speed". No way to stream a movie at that rate. Total monthly charges, when you add the "fees and license charges" is around $70 a month.

There is a "tiny print exclusion" in the Jet Pack terms of service that you need to consider: It reads something like: At times of service saturation, phone service will be maintained by reducing internet services to meet demands on the system"... What that means in "real language" is that they will throttle the Jet Packs on any cell tower or cell system first and then start reducing phone internet access later in the priority.... So, expect a Jet Pack to be slowed every time a tower gets busy.....

DW teaches online courses at the university level and has to either "stay home or spend the money" for the Jet Pack so she can have "high speed secure access"... If it weren't for her needs, we'd just "buy a daily newspaper to read for evening entertainment" The "ADVANTAGE" to buying newspapers is they can be used to start a campfire afterwards..... Not so much with the Jet Pack LOL

Realistically, trying to stream a 5GB movie with a 15GB monthly limit means 3 bags of popcorn monthly.... That would NEVER work for us, we eat that much popcorn in a week..... Orville's Kettle Corn perferred.....

[Javi]

I'm getting the DW the $60.00 AT&T Data only plan and the Wingard modem thingy for the 360+ antenna... We probably won't use it to stream but it's less expensive than paying for more data on our family plan...

I have no clue what in the world she does to burn up 8 gig a week when we're camping but she surely do burn it up..

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by Javi

I'm getting the DW the $60.00 AT&T Data only plan and the Wingard modem thingy for the 360+ antenna... We probably won't use it to stream but it's less expensive than paying for more data on our family plan...

I have no clue what in the world she does to burn up 8 gig a week when we're camping but she surely do burn it up..

As long as she’s happy.. that’s all anyone of us is trying to achieve

[jasin1]

My wife likes a nice restaurant for an occasional breakfast or dinner.. she is a great cook and I have eaten like a king for 30 years... so I indulge

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by Javi

I'm getting the DW the $60.00 AT&T Data only plan and the Wingard modem thingy for the 360+ antenna... We probably won't use it to stream but it's less expensive than paying for more data on our family plan...

I have no clue what in the world she does to burn up 8 gig a week when we're camping but she surely do burn it up..

If you can give a review of that after you get it.. the modem. I would appreciate.. it looks like I can get a SIM card from Verizon for free and link to my plan

[Hblick48]

There really isn't a good RV Internet solution right now. Elon Musk's Starlink Network may be the solution. It's in beta in some locations.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by jasin1

If you can give a review of that after you get it.. the modem. I would appreciate.. it looks like I can get a SIM card from Verizon for free and link to my plan

Sorry I’m sure you have better things to do then review products lol. But if you can at least let me know if it works or not I do appreciate

[Northofu1]

2 x 1 TB External hard drives that I down load movies and seasons worth of shows I like from Torrent sites.
No commercials, no buffering or data issues. The cost of two hard drives and my high speed unlimited data internet.

[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by jasin1

So I guess that brings me back full circle.. I’m thinking either a weboost and use my phone as a hotspot or the winegard 360+ with the extra WiFi modem and Verizon SIM card ...I may just get the weboost anyway because I’ve been places where we didn’t have a cell signal and like to be able to check in with the kids.

Getting cellular internet is not the problem, having a WeBoost is a help if going places with weak coverage. If you are looking at streaming movies the issues is the amount of data you use. DW and I have two phones and a AT&T hot spot they share 50 gigs of data a month, without streaming we can easily use it up.

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by KimNTerry

First off, we are weekenders not full timers. Second, we gave up on Satellite and Cable a few years ago now stream exclusively. Tired of paying too much for content I don't want and then having to constantly renegotiate the bill once a contract period was up.

All of our DVDs over 200 have been downloaded to an old laptop with a large HDD and an HDMI output that connects directly ton an input on the TV. That is the basic library and it connects to the TV nicely, if we want to watch a movie in bed, we disconnect from the TV and bring the laptop with us, it has enough battery to do a movie or 2 so the inverter can be shut down and we use less battery.

We have connectors to view or tablets on a TV. Plan ahead and download content from Amazon, Hulu or Netflix on a tablet and view offline.

If I can't find something to watch out of that, I should go do something else or go to sleep anyways.

At one time we tried using satellite while camping but between trees and mountains most of the places we camp typically had poor satellite reception anyways and the fiddle factor of setting it up was not relaxing for me.

Again, we're weekenders so this is a solution that works for us.

How do you record Netflix or Prime?

[Big1]

I use the taigater King Pro DishNetwork, I don't use the cable hookup inside my 5th wheel I install a separate cable directly to my antenna, it work good. I do pay-as-you-go it work great, those splitter inside the unit make it impossible to get a good signal so I just bypass those splitters inside.

Some times I can use my Unlimited plan to stream from my phone but some time is buffet like crazy.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

How do you record Netflix or Prime?

https://help.netflix.com/en/node/54816

It looks like you can only download to a mobile device.

[Northofu1]

Just saw this, thought it was interesting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vrig...GrandAdventure

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by Northofu1

Just saw this, thought it was interesting.

That looks like a promising solution!

[jasin1]

Looks like they are owned by Verizon...not sure if I would benefit from it as I already have unlimited plan ..I’m going to see how my streaming works on my upcoming trip and go from there...thanks again

[markcee]

I switched to Visible about a year ago. Dirt cheap and is now also offering 5G over Verizon's infrastructure as well. It works just fine as a streaming option provided you have at least a couple of bars of service.

As for a streaming service, we stream at home using Hulu so is what we use on the road as well. We take a laptop with us and connect it to our iPhone's hotspot. We then connect to Hulu on the laptop and connect the laptop to our Summit TV via an HDMI cable. Admittedly a bit crude, but it works. As long as I have a decent cell connection, it works great. Visible states the only throttling down they do is when there is a high volume of 'regular' (non-Visible) Verizon traffic. Should this occur they prioritize the regular subscriber traffic.

To be prepared in the event we have no cell service, I download several programs/movies from Netflix to the laptop prior to the trip. The downloads are valid for 30 days I believe. They are stored directly on the hard drive so no internet connectivity is required. I again connect the laptop to the TV with the HDMI cable and am good to go.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by markcee

I switched to Visible about a year ago. Dirt cheap and is now also offering 5G over Verizon's infrastructure as well. It works just fine as a streaming option provided you have at least a couple of bars of service.

As for a streaming service, we stream at home using Hulu so is what we use on the road as well. We take a laptop with us and connect it to our iPhone's hotspot. We then connect to Hulu on the laptop and connect the laptop to our Summit TV via an HDMI cable. Admittedly a bit crude, but it works. As long as I have a decent cell connection, it works great. Visible states the only throttling down they do is when there is a high volume of 'regular' (non-Visible) Verizon traffic. Should this occur they prioritize the regular subscriber traffic.

To be prepared in the event we have no cell service, I download several programs/movies from Netflix to the laptop prior to the trip. The downloads are valid for 30 days I believe. They are stored directly on the hard drive so no internet connectivity is required. I again connect the laptop to the TV with the HDMI cable and am good to go.

Mark, and anyone else that knows; the information from Visible does appear that your data will be totally unlimited. It also states that streaming is capped at 480p resolution. I've tried to read up on that, looked at pics/videos but can't really tell what the differences is between 720p etc. We (I) like HD but in this effort I think being able to stream TV and it still look decent vs fuzzy I'm all in. Was going to just order it today but thought I would run this past the folks first. It appears a great option to have in the toolbox. Any thoughts are appreciated.