WiFi Connection

Bob,

We've used our cell phones as our primary data connection for 5+ years.  No way to get cable, FIOS or DSL where we live.  3G (shown as 4G on modern phones for marketing reasons) and 4G LTE are both fast enough for business use, I use mine occasionally to connect to my office network via VPN and access my work computer via remote desktop.  Downside is things like remote desktop and video use way too much data to do on a daily basis.

1G is actually the old original analog system from the 80's, which was shut off in the US a few years ago to free up channels for the digital system.  Typically the slowest you'll find today is 2.5G, which usually shows on your phone with an E for Edge.  I almost never see that anymore even in remote mountain areas (when I can find a cell connection).  I usually got about 150 kbps on Edge at my house or about 3 times dialup.  3G (4G) usually gets you 1.5 Mbps, or equivalent to DSL and cable about 10 years ago.  4G LTE gets you about 10 times that on a good day but in the real world I rarely see that top speed.

I agree with the comments above about Wifi.  Since we have a data plan that is big enough for our everyday use we rarely bother with local Wifi connections.

All great comments. Techntrek mentioned remote desktop which is what I use to connect to my office computer. My experience off road and traveling on the east coast is that Verizon has a far greater coverage than AT&T. Recently purchased a Nexus 7 with cell compatability. Unfortunately Verizon does not support the Nexus, so had to use AT&T. Was very surprised at the spotty coverage of AT&T in the larger metropolitan area. Really can't deal with poor coverage. So for me Verizon is more better(as they say in some parts of the country.) I do pay a higher monthly rate, but our overall experience when traveling has been superb. Now back to my concerns. I only get 2 G of data per month with Verizon's hotspot service for an additional $20/month. AS Techntrek pointed out, remote desktop uses a lot of bandwidth so possibly this is not going to work. Will have to stay with WIFI equipped campgrounds. Yes, they are slow at times, and sometimes cannot even connect because of high traffic in the campground. So, very early in the morning works for me. Did look into a Sat phone, but too expensive for my needs. Safe Travels.

All great advice. I see a lot of us need to be connected while on the road. Fwunder sent a link that looks very interesting. I have downloaded the book to my Nexus and will read it today. As I mentioned I use Remote Desktop to connect to my office and then use the programs on it to do my work. Techntrek mentioned that Remote Desktop uses a lot of data on a daily basis. Will have to see if the 2 Gigs of data that Verizon offers is enough on a monthly basis. We go out for a week or two at a time and need to connect daily for about an hour. I am wondering if there isn't cellphone coverage if one of the boosters will work? Lots to find out about. If it wasn't so important to do my work on a daily basis, I wouldn't be overly concerned. But I do customer billing daily and tends to keep my bank happy when money is available. I do bring a printer with me so that is one of the concerns in being able to work in the Pod rather than setup an office at the local Starbucks or Mcdonalds. Much to learn. Thanks for all your input. Safe Travels.
T

Using a cellphone signal booster can help.  Usually stationary systems use a Yagi or panel antenna to pick up the weak cell tower signal.  Both types of antenna are highly directional, very high-gain, which is useful for very weak signals, but not something you can use on the road.  I've seen smaller in-car boosters which use a medium-gain whip antenna which are good for mobile applications.  Then the "inside" antenna provides the signal to the cell phone in a 50-100 foot radius in the building (10-20 for in-car systems).