I have to read the news, the weather, the e-mail, the latest blogs, forums and e-magazines. I have to get my fix. Every day. Multiple times.
For me, the Internet is a library, an encyclopedia, a newspaper and a window to the world all in one. When I first click on, I never know where I'll end up at the end of the night when my eyes are so bleary I can barely see and have to click off.
So when we head out in our Journey, I have to stay connected, or I'll start shaking and coming apart at the seams. Marti hates when that happens. ;c)
There are a bunch of ways to connect, but for our use, which I'd consider casual, we passed on the fancy, satellite, auto locating, roof mounted dish with all the bells and whistles. I don't run a business and I don't download massive amounts of data. I also wanted to be able to connect while under way. A roof mounted dish system wouldn't work for that either. Well, it might work up to about 50 mph! I don't have to worry about trees blocking my signal, either.
After doing some research (on the Internet, of course) I contacted the 3G Store and discussed my options. I got a good recommendation from them and purchased an air card system with Sprint as my carrier. They recommended Sprint based on my locations and usual areas of travel, mostly east of the Mississippi.
3G Store
My aircard came in a nice, VCR tape sized box, which also contained a DVD with the software.
Here is the aircard that plugs into the USB port on the computer.
I went to Costco and purchased a little Acer netbook, a small, lightweight laptop computer. It is about half the size of a regular laptop. It is easier to use around the Journey and works great on the navigator's lap.
The range of the Sprint aircard has worked well for me. I was even online while driving across the open ranges of Wyoming and Montana, actually, my son Ryan was driving, I was in the passenger seat...didn't want anyone to panic. ;c)
I pay $60 a month for service. The aircard works great for my style of web surfing. Hopefully, I never find the last page of the Internet...
Thanks for visiting and please feel free to leave a comment.
Yup, we do an air card too. (AT&T) We went one step further and got a Cradlepoint router and plug the aircard into that and set on the dash -- it even comes with a 12 volt DC cord or 120Vac cord. $99 at Best Buy.
ReplyDeleteNow by using the router, we don't run the risk of knocking that aircard off from the USB port on the laptop again. Did it once and had to buy a new aircard!
Now we can run both our laptops off the router and we are both happy.
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Karen and Steve
(Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com/
I was thinking about the Cradlepoint, too. Now got my eye on the new MIFI technology. Like the idea of being able to take it out of the RV. Doing some more research, on the internet, of course!
ReplyDelete