Escapees March/April 2016

“RV satellite Internet has started to get more interesting again, and there are some new mobile satellite plans that are specifically aimed at RVers.”

Initial equipment costs and on- going usage fees are rather steep, so if you are planning to be in cellular range most of the time, satellite does not make much sense. But if you’re planning a good amount of time off the coverage map, it may be an option worth investigating. Other Alternatives With some creativity and compro- mise, you may ¿ nd other ways to stay online. Options include: • Seek out RV parks that cater to seasonal and long-term stays. If they offer cable TV at the sites, then sometimes you can call the cable company and hook up fast-cable Internet in your RV. • Borrow bandwidth from friends as you driveway surf. • Rent a desk in a co-working space and utilize high-speed bandwidth galore! • For noncommercial communication, HAM radio operators can connect via Internet relays. Concluding Thoughts Getting connected on the go may be a challenge, but it does not have to be an insurmountable one. Technology is constantly evolving, and may be out of date even by the time you read this article. That’s why we host RVMobileInternet.com where we keep on top of the latest gadgets, plans and offerings. Come, join us to stay updated on the latest information.

some basic Web sur ¿ ng, but it’s rare to ¿ nd campground WiFi capable of sup- porting video streaming and large ¿ le downloads. One or two people stream- ing movies over many WiFi networks can grind the entire Internet to a halt for everyone. In response, more and more parks are placing restrictions on these high-bandwidth activities, often leaving WiFi with no advantage over cellular. The other major limitation of WiFi is range. Many WiFi hotspots degrade to unusably slow connections within a few hundred feet of the base station or access point. But with a roof-mounted WiFi an- tenna and a repeater system, you can often manage to connect to an access point substantially further away than your unaided laptop could. There are a lot of options for WiFi range-extending equipment with various prices and features. The most effective mount can go on your roof, ladder or a pole outside your RV to get a clear line of site, but there are also inexpensive products that can sit indoors in a window that might suf ¿ - ciently boost your range. There are also mobile routers that support both WiFi and cellular inputs, allowing you to manage all your Internet connections from one place. This lets you share whatever upstream connection you choose with all your gadgets at once. Tip: Before investing in WiFi range- extending gear, take your device closer to the access point and do some surfing and speed tests. If the experience improves, then in that particular location an extender might help bring that speed to your RV. But if the Internet is still slow, no amount of boosting gear will be able to improve it.

Satellite Internet

Satellite Internet

Before cellular Internet and prevalent WiFi hotspots became the norm, sat- ellite Internet was the ultimate option for getting online. More affordable and increasingly widespread cellular 4G has eaten into the advantages of satellite, and fewer customers are willing to put up with the costs and headaches. The satellite Internet industry evolved to offer service plans that require ¿ xed residential installation, without support for mobility. RV satellite Internet has started to get more interesting again, and there are some new mobile satellite plans that are speci ¿ cally aimed at RVers.

Cherie Ve Ard and Chris Dunphy of Technomadia.com have been living and working full-time on the road since 2006, and Internet connectivity has been essential to them every step of the way. To help other RVers with the challenges of staying connected, they co-authored The Mobile Internet Handbook , and in 2014 they launched RVMobileInternet.com to provide unbiased information, reviews, resources and tutorials to help us all stay better connected on the road.

Join Mobile Internet Aficionados and SAVE! MIA is the premium membership component of RVMobileInternet.com , and goes even further. Escapees and Xscapers can save $10 by using discount code XSPSAVE10.

14 . ESCAPEES | March/April 2016 | www.escapees.com