Connecting to the Internet
with Cell Phones and Aircards
By Jaimie Hall
Many RVers are choosing to connect to the
Internet using their cell phones or through an Aircard, which receives a
cell phone signal. If you have a digital signal, you can receive data from
the Internet.
Verizon sells a Mobile
Office kit, which is basically a connection from your cell phone to your
computer along with appropriate software. Your cell phone acts as a modem.
Now,
you can purchase cell phones that can access the Web directly and receive
e-mail. The PDA devices have tiny keyboards where you can type more easily
than the standard keypad.
With the
Aircard, you put a card into your PC card slot on your computer and then
connect. You can also use an Aircard on a handheld PC and pocket PC devices.
If you are in an area with broadband access, it works at very high speed in
that case. An alternative to the Aircard is USB Modem which also picks up a
high speed signal on devices with a Type A USB interface. Additionally the
modem acts as a storage device.
You
will pay extra for a plan that allows access to the Internet.
For
RVers who travel in remote areas, there will be pockets where you get no
signal. If you stay along the Interstates and metropolitan areas you are
more likely to find a good signal. Each cell phone company, though seems to
have areas where their service does not work.
What's
the solution? No one method of connecting to the Internet works all the
time. We were in Big Bend for several months and had no cell phone service.
We first got an landline, which got clogged as soon as the kids were home
from school. We finally ended up with a satellite Internet dish. That works
great - except when it doesn't. In New England, we sometimes could not find
an RV site with clear access to the southern sky due to all the trees. In
that case, we had to use the RV park's WiFi - if they had it, or find a
coffee shop with WiFi access.
Other
RVers we know have recently given up their satellite Internet dishes in
favor of an Aircard!
What solution
works best for you all depends on your travel patterns. The cost of the
satellite Internet equipment is much more than an Aircard or USB Modem.
Plans seem to run around $60/month for each at a minimum. Which method will
work best in the places you travel? That is the question.
