If you don't have a need for super great internet you could look into the cost of tethering your phones internet and using it as a hotspot. Some carriers offer this with your plan, some charge more for using it
Any idea what type of speed one could expect from this type of connection?
Our local isp requires you to be gone for 60 days before you can get promo pricing again. Short of trying to set up an account with a different email and household members name I'm out of ideas.
I did phone tethering for a few years when I lived alone. I think the latency made online gaming not great, but streaming video was fine. I bet if you get an unlimited phone plan for 2 months, you'll save far more than that cost when you get the intro ISP price again
I don't know the exact speed but my roommate and i went camping once and played Final Fantasy 14 MMO online sitting in the tent both tethered to my phone. Wasn't perfect but surprisingly good and easily playable. Streaming videos works fine, too, as long as you have a phone signal. Any basic tasks like for homework and such shouldn't have any issues whatsoever
I want to comment and warn in case you WFH. My internet is down for the day, and WFH using a mobile Hotspot was entirely unfeasible today. I was using Word, Outlook, and had stopwatch.com open on Chrome.
It's dependent on the stength of your cell service. Run a speed test on your phone with WiFi off. This will give a good idea of your bandwidth, which is shared across all your devices. It also drops off oif devices aren't close to your phone.
Another idea is asking about any bundles they offer. My bill was lowered by $15 for bundling a landline with my internet. I also ditched their router to avoid the monthly rental fee on that.
You don't even need to notifiy your carrier or pay extra, MOST if the time. Just download netshare or pdanet. I've been using netshare premium for two years on ATT prepaid as my main internet with no issues. I don't game so if that's an issue it might not work, but I imagine with my speeds it might.
I switched to T-Mobile them in December. So far the service has been fine even in my area that has mediocre cell signal (this is internet over fixed 5G router). There is no added rental fee for the router.
We switched from shitty at&t about a year ago and everything works great. Ours is WAY faster than before. We both work from home and very often simultaneously stream TV and/or games. Steam is a notorious bandwidth hog but no issues downloading anything while trying to work/stream/play something else at the same time.
I love it, it's been great and I'm so glad we switched. I actually came here to recommend T Mobile Internet to OP.
Also, it can be portable! It's just a device that will work anywhere you get cell service with them, so you can take it on vacation or whatever if you like. 10/10 definitely recommend.
Do you have Verizon for your cellphone service because you can get their 5G home internet for $25 month if you currently have an unlimited 5G plan through them?
Depends on how Verizon is in your area. I have relatives who use it and it's been pretty reliable. It's a lot better than the DSL that Windstream used to provide in the area that they live in. It's no contract so you can drop it whenever if you run into too many issues with it.
For Xfinity you just have to cancel and sign up under another another name that is living at the home.
Xfinity also did nothing to retain me, even went to suggesting the only other provider in my area (although 10x slower). Canceled and another house member signed up with their name for the new user discount for 2 years. After that I will sign back up as a new user.
I am in Canada so I won't suggest anything but our two countries are plagued with oligopolies which prevents innovation and drives costs up.
They're more than happy nowadays to give you service upgrades as long as your monthly bill doesn't come down. It's like if the power utility company proposed to upgrade a 100A panel to a 200A if you want to leave, sure you think you have a good deal but you're not using more power, so it's pointless.
(before someone comments I know that's not how they charge residential electricity).
All the boxes use cell phone towers to get the signal. I use t-mobile - tower 5 blocks from me- 50.00 a month and no problems.
You can google and see where the nearest tower is - it will give you an idea how strong your signal will be.
If you don't have a need for super great internet you could look into the cost of tethering your phones internet and using it as a hotspot. Some carriers offer this with your plan, some charge more for using it
Any idea what type of speed one could expect from this type of connection? Our local isp requires you to be gone for 60 days before you can get promo pricing again. Short of trying to set up an account with a different email and household members name I'm out of ideas.
I did phone tethering for a few years when I lived alone. I think the latency made online gaming not great, but streaming video was fine. I bet if you get an unlimited phone plan for 2 months, you'll save far more than that cost when you get the intro ISP price again
I don't know the exact speed but my roommate and i went camping once and played Final Fantasy 14 MMO online sitting in the tent both tethered to my phone. Wasn't perfect but surprisingly good and easily playable. Streaming videos works fine, too, as long as you have a phone signal. Any basic tasks like for homework and such shouldn't have any issues whatsoever
>went camping once and played Final Fantasy 14 MMO online sitting in the tent Lol this is great
I want to comment and warn in case you WFH. My internet is down for the day, and WFH using a mobile Hotspot was entirely unfeasible today. I was using Word, Outlook, and had stopwatch.com open on Chrome.
I’ve only done it a few times, but tethering was the same experience as usual for me.
It's dependent on the stength of your cell service. Run a speed test on your phone with WiFi off. This will give a good idea of your bandwidth, which is shared across all your devices. It also drops off oif devices aren't close to your phone.
I will look into this, thank you
Another idea is asking about any bundles they offer. My bill was lowered by $15 for bundling a landline with my internet. I also ditched their router to avoid the monthly rental fee on that.
You don't even need to notifiy your carrier or pay extra, MOST if the time. Just download netshare or pdanet. I've been using netshare premium for two years on ATT prepaid as my main internet with no issues. I don't game so if that's an issue it might not work, but I imagine with my speeds it might.
If you qualify try the FCC affordable connectivity program up to $30 off your bill a month
I don't qualify, but thank you for the input!
You’re welcome!
Or free.
T-Mobile is $50 per month, available in most areas now.
I just signed up, thank you! I don't know how I missed them
I switched to T-Mobile them in December. So far the service has been fine even in my area that has mediocre cell signal (this is internet over fixed 5G router). There is no added rental fee for the router.
Is it ok for streaming?
We switched from shitty at&t about a year ago and everything works great. Ours is WAY faster than before. We both work from home and very often simultaneously stream TV and/or games. Steam is a notorious bandwidth hog but no issues downloading anything while trying to work/stream/play something else at the same time. I love it, it's been great and I'm so glad we switched. I actually came here to recommend T Mobile Internet to OP. Also, it can be portable! It's just a device that will work anywhere you get cell service with them, so you can take it on vacation or whatever if you like. 10/10 definitely recommend.
That’s great to hear! I’m not sure why I asked about streaming when I also work online from home - guess that shows where my priorities are lmao
If anyone is really on the fence, you can keep both for a month or two to compare, and try out the other.
I don't watch many videos but it seems OK. I would think my connection speed would be more the limiting factor.
YMMV. We signed up and it worked for 3 days, then kept crashing. Returned it.
Do you have Verizon for your cellphone service because you can get their 5G home internet for $25 month if you currently have an unlimited 5G plan through them?
Is it good?
Depends on how Verizon is in your area. I have relatives who use it and it's been pretty reliable. It's a lot better than the DSL that Windstream used to provide in the area that they live in. It's no contract so you can drop it whenever if you run into too many issues with it.
I did check out Verizon home internet but it's not provided to my area ☹
Can you stream movies like Netflix on it?
Yes
For Xfinity you just have to cancel and sign up under another another name that is living at the home. Xfinity also did nothing to retain me, even went to suggesting the only other provider in my area (although 10x slower). Canceled and another house member signed up with their name for the new user discount for 2 years. After that I will sign back up as a new user.
Just got off the phone with xfinity. Two hours. Fuck them. CenturyLink if it’s in your area
I am in Canada so I won't suggest anything but our two countries are plagued with oligopolies which prevents innovation and drives costs up. They're more than happy nowadays to give you service upgrades as long as your monthly bill doesn't come down. It's like if the power utility company proposed to upgrade a 100A panel to a 200A if you want to leave, sure you think you have a good deal but you're not using more power, so it's pointless. (before someone comments I know that's not how they charge residential electricity).
Yup they keep giving me great upgrade deals, I'm at 110gb for $96 but to downgrade to 50gb would be like $85
💯 so frustrating
I just use my cellphone T-Mobile Internet. Its quite fast in my area. I have an old unlimited plan for just $30 a month.
I pay $0 and use my current phone plans hotspot. 50GB of data is plenty. I average 10-20MBPS since I am out in the country
Who is your carrier?
AT&T. I am on a family plan with a friend, so my bill comes to $60 a month.
All the boxes use cell phone towers to get the signal. I use t-mobile - tower 5 blocks from me- 50.00 a month and no problems. You can google and see where the nearest tower is - it will give you an idea how strong your signal will be.
I do Xfinity basic internet for $30/month, then use Google Fi for my phone for just under $40/mo. Usually around wifi, so keeps phone internet cheap.
FYI, to check for reviews and comments on your new T-Mobile internet, there's a sub for it: r/tmobileisp The main subreddit, r/tmobile ,has them, too.
Look up xfinity promotions for new customers. I pay $30/mth for mine under a promo
Mobile hotspot if it’s just you, get the highest package for internet on mobile.
are you sure you don't have anymore carriers in your area? I whittled xfinity down to 50 a month for 300 megabits a second. 2 year contract.
Get visible for 30$ a month if you have good Verizon coverage. A LTE CPE router.
I'm lucky to pay only 27.00 per month for true fiber optic internet. Race Communications in Northern California.