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  1. #1
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    WIFI at camp sites

    Do most rv sites provide wif ? If not how have those that require wifi work around it ?

  2. Member bassn5150's Avatar
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    #2
    Some do, but definitely not most will have WiFi at the site. Although most parks have a certain area where you can jump on their WiFi. Such as the registration office, campground store, etc. Some use phones as a hot spot and there is several different brands of WiFi extenders available for RVs. Winegard being one in particular.

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    #3
    Quote Originally Posted by bassn5150 View Post
    Some do, but definitely not most will have WiFi at the site. Although most parks have a certain area where you can jump on their WiFi. Such as the registration office, campground store, etc. Some use phones as a hot spot and there is several different brands of WiFi extenders available for RVs. Winegard being one in particular.
    Hummmm so sounds like my best bet would be to see if I can find one that has reliable WIFI. Then though I need to worry about speeds.

    My reason for asking is I'm considering doing some fall truck camping. I work from home which means I can work anywhere I can get good WIFI. Thought about just packing up the laptop and boat and heading to a camp site. I could work my normal day then fish the afternoon. Or at least get a head start on the weekend by getting there Friday afternoon

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    #4
    We've found a few rv parks that have Wi-Fi but not all sites are created equal.

    Why don't you just setup your phone as a mobile hotspot and connect your laptop through it? That way you can be "working" while you're on the boat.
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  5. Electrical/Wiring/Trolling Motors Moderator CatFan's Avatar
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    #5
    Very few have even reasonable wifi. Most people who camp a lot get a hotspot with unlimited data from a cell provider or tether their phone.
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    #6
    Our campground has wifi but it is somewhat unreliable. Many seasonal campers use their mobile phone hotspot for their laptops and iPads.
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    #7
    My work provides me with a wifi "puck" that is separate from my phone. I connect at 4G which is acceptable to support my son's gaming habit. You can get your phone enabled as a broadcast wifi from your phone service provider. It's not as handy though. I would not want to leave my phone in the trailer when I go fishing. If you work for yourself, you might be able to treat the wifi expense as a tax credit/deduction
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  8. Member
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    #8
    Quote Originally Posted by BoatBuggy View Post
    We've found a few rv parks that have Wi-Fi but not all sites are created equal.

    Why don't you just setup your phone as a mobile hotspot and connect your laptop through it? That way you can be "working" while you're on the boat.
    Well I have had to use my phone as a hot spot a couple times when the power / wifi went out. But I made sure to use it for typical office type stuff such as sending emails or downloading documents etc.

    There are many times though I need to stream video for work. Could be conference calls or even video. I just am not sure how that would work going over a cell service. I guess maybe I need to sign in via my phone and see what happens.

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    #9
    Quote Originally Posted by whatroads View Post
    My work provides me with a wifi "puck" that is separate from my phone. I connect at 4G which is acceptable to support my son's gaming habit. You can get your phone enabled as a broadcast wifi from your phone service provider. It's not as handy though. I would not want to leave my phone in the trailer when I go fishing. If you work for yourself, you might be able to treat the wifi expense as a tax credit/deduction
    The wifi puck sounds interesting. What service are you using ?

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    #10
    You will eat up a bunch of data really quick streaming any kind of video. We camp quite a bit and good luck finding any WIFI at our Corp of Engineers or State Parks. I do use my phone as a hot spot but I'm not steaming a bunch of data either.

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    #11
    Some RV parks have good wifi others not so good.One parked I worked at limits you to 300mb a day.I also worked at a park that you have to pay.
    We like to use our Verizon unlimited hotspot.

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    #12
    Quote Originally Posted by riverc View Post
    Some RV parks have good wifi others not so good.One parked I worked at limits you to 300mb a day.I also worked at a park that you have to pay.
    We like to use our Verizon unlimited hotspot.
    How does the Verizon HS do streaming video. I would be okay getting a hot spot if I didn't have to have a yearly contract.

  13. Electrical/Wiring/Trolling Motors Moderator CatFan's Avatar
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    #13
    Quote Originally Posted by Axkiker View Post
    How does the Verizon HS do streaming video. I would be okay getting a hot spot if I didn't have to have a yearly contract.
    It can be really good. Some of the cell companies are going to tiered unlimited data. Instead of limiting the amount of data, they throttle the speed you can use for things like streaming. If you already have a contract, the cost for the hotspot isn't bad to add on. The problem is that one campground may have good VZW service and no AT&T, while the next one may be just the opposite. Some couples who travel heavily address this by having their phones with different companies to minimize situations where they have no or weak service and using a 4G booster with an outside antenna in areas where both are weak.
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  14. Member berudd's Avatar
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    #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Axkiker View Post
    The wifi puck sounds interesting. What service are you using ?
    I saw your comments about being concerned about you phone not supporting your bandwidth needs and this solution will rely on the same cellular data network. Assuming your phone is 4G, and 4G is available where you camp, this will be no better.
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    #15
    Quote Originally Posted by CatFan View Post
    It can be really good. Some of the cell companies are going to tiered unlimited data. Instead of limiting the amount of data, they throttle the speed you can use for things like streaming. If you already have a contract, the cost for the hotspot isn't bad to add on. The problem is that one campground may have good VZW service and no AT&T, while the next one may be just the opposite. Some couples who travel heavily address this by having their phones with different companies to minimize situations where they have no or weak service and using a 4G booster with an outside antenna in areas where both are weak.
    Okay so sounds like being I'm already with ATT maybe I could either just up my data plan to unlimited or purchase a hotspot.

    Lets say I was able to get a full ATT signal. Would this be ok for streaming video ? I cant say ive ever tried and just assumed it wouldn't be fast enough. There would be times I would need to stream video for work. There are times I would want to stream TV in the evenings.

    I'm not someone who would be bouncing around different camp grounds. I have a lake I would visit and could search until I found a camp site with a good signal. Or at least good enough for me to then use a boost antenna.

  16. Electrical/Wiring/Trolling Motors Moderator CatFan's Avatar
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    #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Axkiker View Post
    Okay so sounds like being I'm already with ATT maybe I could either just up my data plan to unlimited or purchase a hotspot.

    Lets say I was able to get a full ATT signal. Would this be ok for streaming video ? I cant say ive ever tried and just assumed it wouldn't be fast enough. There would be times I would need to stream video for work. There are times I would want to stream TV in the evenings.

    I'm not someone who would be bouncing around different camp grounds. I have a lake I would visit and could search until I found a camp site with a good signal. Or at least good enough for me to then use a boost antenna.
    I stream 720 video to my iPad from my phone. It depends some on the plan you have. Stop in at an AT&T store and ask them about the speeds and cost. 750K is about good enough for 720 video
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    #17
    Quote Originally Posted by CatFan View Post
    I stream 720 video to my iPad from my phone. It depends some on the plan you have. Stop in at an AT&T store and ask them about the speeds and cost. 750K is about good enough for 720 video
    Good idea. Ill run in there one day and talk to them before I go all crazy and buy anything.

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    #18
    Quote Originally Posted by Axkiker View Post
    The wifi puck sounds interesting. What service are you using ?
    interested in "the puck" as well

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    #19
    Our campground has a bunch of WIFI receivers hooked up to the local Cable tv company system. It is hit and miss. Sometimes I cannot get a signal 50' from the antenna. Sometimes the signals are fine. More campers = slow internet. I have been known to sit under the antenna to get a decent signal.

  20. Member Bob B's Avatar
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    #20
    We went with a Verizon unlimited plan and it works really well most places we go. Just make sure you are able to get a 4G data connection.

    With the Verizon ulimited plan, the data to the device itself is truly unlimited data and does not get the speed throttled back.

    The data thru the mobile hotspot in my Iphone is limited to 15Gb / month before they slow it down. Even after they slow it down ... which has happened to me a couple times .... I am still able to do basic computer functions just fine. Streaming will even work, but is sketchy. You can add more devices to the contract for $20/device and each of those devices has the same unlimited data allotments ...... so if you wanted to have an Ipad added, that would give you a total of 30Gb / monthof hotspot data before slowdown. If I watch too many Youtube videos to my computer via hotspt and go over 15Gb, I can just turn on the wife's phone as a mobile hotspot.

    I got a lightning connector to HDMI adaptor that I use now to do all my video streaming. Verizon sees this as data direct to the phone and it never gets slowed down. I have used 300Gb of data to my phone in a month if we are camped and it is raining a lot. I used to use my hotspot to a Roku for for streaming but you can go thru the 15G hotspot data pretty quick that way.

    The combination of a digital over the air antenna plus the streaming capabilities allowed us to cut our cable and I don't miss it at all. Have even found free ways to watch some of the cable news channels by streaming them live. Even though I am paying more for the unlimited data I have saved a lot of money becasue of being able to cut the cable and internet at home....try it .... you'll like it.
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