Mobile Wifi

Has anyone used a mobile wifi such as Sky roam hotspot.

It seems pretty cool, pay or rent. I would buy it for 99 dollars and then each day I use it would be 8 dollars and just set my phone to use this device as my wifi and then I don't have to waste time and buy a Sim card at every stop.

There are others out there but this seemed the most economical and they say it runs at 3 g speed.

Does anyone have any experience with this or any product like this?

We rented one of these mobile MiFi hotspot in Taiwan & South Korea for a week each, worked great - from the local carrier with airline/alliance discount - and, they are LTE/HSPA+/4G LTE/5G speed with unlimited data for 3 to 5 devices for less than $4 USD daily, waived daily rental fees in many cases - with only a security deposit - easy pickup @ the airport & dropoff (they also deliver it free to the hotel with advance reservation, which is highly recommended - walkup are subject to a surcharge & time waiting at the service counter, not all 24/7) Our Novotel & mobile broadband speed was 100/75 plus, comparable & faster than most Fios/turbo cable ISP speed @home ... no throttling whatsoever. http://www.skroaming.com/modem/modem_rental.asp

You need to look at the bands/coverage on the device and match it to the countries that you've visited and/or plan to travel to in the months & years ahead - and, definitely need to bring along a portable/external USB power source (for recharging & boosting your tethered devices ... as the MiFi is typically good for 4 or 6 to 8 hours usage only) If & when you are on an escorted tour, traveling in motor coaches or trains, etc. - a reliable power source should NOT be counted upon, including those in-flight power ports onboard the newer aircrafts.

For Asia, the faster/est 4G/LTE bands & coverage are on 2100/2300/2600 Mhz in addition to the traditional quadbands - not offered by the device you are looking at. For the Americas, the popular cruise destination are only covered with much, much slower 3G speed (which can be as low as 256k speed, if I am not mistaken) http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2399984,00.asp

Challenge for this device - many popular cruise ports or destinations have no partner coverage, i.e. Bahamas & many smaller Carribbean islands ... which typically have DigiCel as home carrier. We have an upcoming cruise to Bermuda & the device (nor our "Fi" network) would be useless. As always, you can & should check and reconfirm with them on coverage & any restrictions/limitations first.

We switched to Google's MNVO plan recently, known as Project Fi - on DW's Nexus 6, it simply say "Fi Network" & also used WiFi signals over VPN - for voice & data, unlimited home calling for $20 a month - 20 cents a minute calling in 120 countries with no surcharges; and $10 per GB of 4G/LTE data used - combining the network of Sprint & T-Mobile, auto-switching - do some research online. Tethering is fine as you paid only for what you used each month, and, credited as a charge-back on any unused data "purchase" or paid for. I prefer using the "smaller" 5.2 screen Nexus 5X running pure Android MM 6.0.1 - which is also compatible with "Fi" and has access to much more LTE bands & 3G/4G frequencies worldwide (upgraded after selling my Nexus 5 on Swappa)

If you own iPhones and/or iPads with 4G/LTE - it's easy to get a data plan with roaming, and use the hotspot feature for tethering with other mobile devices; and it has far more LTE bands & frequencies that the above MiFi device under consideration - usable in many Asia countries (and, retain a higher resale value in well maintained condition) - yes, we also travel with unlocked iPhone 5S and iPad Air mini with T-Mo's data plan.

We rented one of these mobile MiFi hotspot in Taiwan & South Korea for a week each, worked great - from the local carrier with airline/alliance discount - and, they are LTE/HSPA+/4G LTE/5G speed with unlimited data for 3 to 5 devices for less than $4 USD daily, waived daily rental fees in many cases - with only a security deposit - easy pickup @ the airport & dropoff (they also deliver it free to the hotel with advance reservation, which is highly recommended - walkup are subject to a surcharge & time waiting at the service counter, not all 24/7) Our Novotel & mobile broadband speed was 100/75 plus, comparable & faster than most Fios/turbo cable ISP speed @home ... no throttling whatsoever. http://www.skroaming.com/modem/modem_rental.asp

 

You need to look at the bands/coverage on the device and match it to the countries that you've visited and/or plan to travel to in the months & years ahead - and, definitely need to bring along a portable/external USB power source (for recharging & boosting your tethered devices ... as the MiFi is typically good for 4 or 6 to 8 hours usage only) If & when you are on an escorted tour, traveling in motor coaches or trains, etc. - a reliable power source should NOT be counted upon, including those in-flight power ports onboard the newer aircrafts.

 

For Asia, the faster/est 4G/LTE bands & coverage are on 2100/2300/2600 Mhz in addition to the traditional quadbands - not offered by the device you are looking at. For the Americas, the popular cruise destination are only covered with much, much slower 3G speed (which can be as low as 256k speed, if I am not mistaken) http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2399984,00.asp

 

Challenge for this device - many popular cruise ports or destinations have no partner coverage, i.e. Bahamas & many smaller Carribbean islands ... which typically have DigiCel as home carrier. We have an upcoming cruise to Bermuda & the device (nor our "Fi" network) would be useless. As always, you can & should check and reconfirm with them on coverage & any restrictions/limitations first.

 

We switched to Google's MNVO plan recently, known as Project Fi - on DW's Nexus 6, it simply say "Fi Network" & also used WiFi signals over VPN - for voice & data, unlimited home calling for $20 a month - 20 cents a minute calling in 120 countries with no surcharges; and $10 per GB of 4G/LTE data used - combining the network of Sprint & T-Mobile, auto-switching - do some research online. Tethering is fine as you paid only for what you used each month, and, credited as a charge-back on any unused data "purchase" or paid for. I prefer using the "smaller" 5.2 screen Nexus 5X running pure Android MM 6.0.1 - which is also compatible with "Fi" and has access to much more LTE bands & 3G/4G frequencies worldwide (upgraded after selling my Nexus 5 on Swappa)

 

If you own iPhones and/or iPads with 4G/LTE - it's easy to get a data plan with roaming, and use the hotspot feature for tethering with other mobile devices; and it has far more LTE bands & frequencies that the above MiFi device under consideration - usable in many Asia countries (and, retain a higher resale value in well maintained condition) - yes, we also travel with unlocked iPhone 5S and iPad Air mini with T-Mo's data plan.

thanks for all that information. We Plan on visiting Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Singapore.

Mainly need our unlocked iPhone 6 for data. Other then Vietnam I can get free data with my plan through sprint but it is 2g, and I really think that is going to be so superslow it will drive me bonkers.

Other then Buying a Sim in each port (which I did in Europe Last year) which was kind of a pain because some came with no instructions on how to add data on and some did not work and it took time out of our day to find places to get them.

I was hoping this would be a lot easier

... visiting Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand and Singapore.

 

Mainly need our unlocked iPhone 6 for data. Other then Vietnam I can get free data with my plan through sprint but it is 2g, and I really think that is going to be so superslow it will drive me bonkers ... I was hoping this would be a lot easier

I see, unlocked iP6 would be easy for the local vendors but, still slow you down - swapping nano Sim's & configuring, etc. when you are only in the port for the day or overnighting.

Which gateway city are you flying in to start your cruise - embarkation port ?? as there are some prepaid Sim card plans that have "reasonable" roaming data coverage in other Asia countries - with the exception of Vietnam, which is most expensive for voice & data, and a PITA - Mobifone is what we used when we visited HCMC, most of the instructions NOT in English, however & street vendor not helpful (be prepared :D )

For example, I have an inexpensive China Mobile HK plan with 2 active numbers on the sim card, it roams on AT&T and T-Mobile - maintenance cost is $15 USD for a year, and, unused balance are forwarded when I renew online by adding more funds every 180 days (6 month) so there's always funds in the account for us to use when we travel, it's mostly for voice & WiFi calling. CHMK has a 4G/3G Data & Voice Roaming sim card plan - starter kit including allowance for usage is under $14 USD - it has coverage in Taiwan, Japan, South Korea with a daily cap on charges; and, slightly higher fee for Thailand. This might or might not work for you - just FYI -

http://www.hk.chinamobile.com/en/corporate_information/Prepaid_SIM/outbound_travelers_oversea/4G3Gprepaid-services-superroam.html

Depending on your flight/travel plans & layover airports, it's possible to find a 7-11 or convenience store airside/landside to pickup a prepaid Sim card for activation - depending on your needs for "usable" 4G/LTE data in all the ports of call.

2G is Edge/GPRS speed and yes - very, very slow but usable for basic email, maps & web browsing with background data & graphics turned OFF - the iPhone 6 (Sprint's version or Apple store-purchased) has WCDMA radios that should get you decent access to roaming partner networks - usability is another story.

we fly into Hong Kong staying 4 days pre cruise and leave out of Singapore 2 days post cruise

we fly into Hong Kong staying 4 days pre cruise and leave out of Singapore 2 days post cruise

Flying non-stop or 1-stop from EWR into HKG on UA or CX ?? Upon landing, there are authorized shops inside HKIA in addition to 7-11's selling assorted prepaid Sim, suitable for variety of usage - if they don't have what you need, don't worry. Get into town, check into your hotel & find the nearest CMHK or CSL/PCCW retail store - they are very good & with devices like iPhone 6's - quickly help you activate & configure your device. Plus, you will have time to load additional funds before sailing - so that you are set to use roaming mobile data in almost all of the countries mentioned, with the exception of Vietnam.

If your Sprint global plan has coverage & 2G data, you don't even need it until you are almost ready to embark (but, activate it a day early & do a full trial run, make sure everything is set to go & "fund" it adequately (or, get one of those "recharge" voucher, really the PIN codes) You will find WiFi coverage via many of the local carriers, usually a free APP download is needed for integrated use & it's fast, resulting in major reductions & usage of cellular data as you as you are within reach of the hotspots all over town, inside the MTR stations and on the trains, etc. All the "classic" telephone booths, yes - they are still working, especially in major tourist area - have WiFi services, look for the graphic symbols.

This should be of use to you - https://www.hkcsl.com/en/8-day-APAC-Data-Roaming-Prepaid-SIM-Card/

Coverage - https://www.hkcsl.com/en/Special-Rate-for-Data-Roaming/

All of the charges are in local HKD / currency - for a quick & easy (rough) conversion - use $8 HKD to $1 USD (inter-bank rate is about 7:75 to 1)

HK, Taiwan & Singarpore all have insanely fast mobile/WiFi data coverage, including those at the hotels (we hit 120 MB download speed consistently in So. Korea last Fall, wirelessly at practically 5G or equivalent exceeding Fios Quantum speed) - slow 2G/3G would be ant's pace. ;) Happy research & planning & safe cruising.

I have IP5S and on Boost Mobile (Sprint) I have the Unlimited 55$ and wondering if this will work while at sea. Only a 4 nighters from Fort Lauderdale to Cozumel and back. Any ideas? (Sailing Solo and would LOVE to just use FB IM/PM)

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I have IP5S and on Boost Mobile (Sprint) I have the Unlimited 55$ and wondering if this will work while at sea. Only a 4 nighters from Fort Lauderdale to Cozumel and back. Any ideas? (Sailing Solo and would LOVE to just use FB IM/PM) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sorry, I don't think so - call 611 directly to speak/confirm w BM and see if they have any roaming plan that will work on cruise ship (give them the specifics) - good luck.

As a general rule, MNVO operators like BM are prepaid plans and do NOT have access to roaming satellite towers at sea, outside of defined home areas. Cellular over satellite airtime are expensive, especially broadband data - although RCI has the fastest maritime connection among the competition & is "cheaper" - relatively speaking (FB's IM/messenger function should work)

Future proofing - is your I5S unlocked for GSM usage, abroad as well as good for alternative US carriers? T-Mobile has some good options, if their coverage is good in your area & places you frequently travel.

Happy cruising - and, it's okay to be offline for a few days ... really ;)

BM had told me, I get free Mexico calls once I am in port so that's nice.

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