Jon F question - internet access on the road, what do u use?

calf · Mar 28, 2015

Jon F,

Hope you have time for a few questions.

A friend is a truck driver and he wants to get internet when he is away from home. He covers the Dakota's, NE, KS, MO, IA, and there abouts.

#1 - What do you use? iPad, Android tablet, Laptop? My friend is thinking of some sort of tablet. He is NOT real computer literate.

#2 - Do you just use free wifi, or do you have a data card?

#3 - How is access from in the truck, or do you go into restaurants etc? Do you have a special antenna for when in the truck?

Thanks for any pointers/help.

Rick in Iowa · Mar 28, 2015

when I was on road before heart attack I hadsimple lap top.just use for email and internet.i had wireless through Iwireless.had little thing that pluged into side.it worked good every where.

jon f mn · Mar 29, 2015

Depending on what he wants to do he can just use a smart phone now. Mine will do everything I did on my
laptop, but it's smaller. I replaced my laptop with a tablet which works the same as a phone, but is
bigger. Using wifi is expensive and a pain.

jon f mn · Mar 29, 2015

He will likely need a smart phone anyway as many companies require one. Dart doesn't require a smart phone, but the cheapest and quickest way for me to get paid is with my phone. And wifi is not free at most truckstops, and you can use it in the lot but frequently the signal is poor. My suggestion is to buy a good phone and try that, if he doesn't like the small screen he can get a tablet which he can then hook to his phone via wifi.

Ferd · Mar 29, 2015

If you want something bigger than an IPhone you can get a wifi hot spot to use with an IPad or laptop. They are smaller
than a phone - fit in a shirt pocket easy - just turn it on and you have your own private internet anywhere. You get then from
AT&T, Verizon or any other carrier. I think the monthly cost is $40 or $50. That's all I use for internet beside my phone.
When you use someone else's wifi you never know who else is watching.

jon f mn · Mar 29, 2015

Just an fyi, most all phones are wifi hot spots now, so no need in most cases to get the extra hot spot. And I strongly suggest either vetizon or sprint for the carrier. They are the only reliable ones for nation wide service.

Ferd · Mar 29, 2015

Which is why I said if you need something bigger than an iPhone. I have both but there are times I want something bigger than my iPhone and then I use the Wi-Fi hotspot. Instead of having an Internet carrier at home I just use my Wi-Fi hotspot.

jon f mn · Mar 29, 2015

My point was that if you have an i-phone or a windows based smart phone you already have a wifi hot spot and don't need to buy another one. You can use your phone to hook up you laptop or tablet/i-pad.

calf · Mar 30, 2015

Thanks for the info guys. My friend does not currently have a smartphone and I don't think he wants the monthly bill for one. His current cellphone is a pay-as-you-go plan I believe.

As stated above, having a monthly bill is something he is trying to avoid. Is using free wifi at truck stops, reststops, McDonalds, etc a viable alternative? Remember, he has nothing now, not even internet at his house. Will he be able to get wifi sitting in his truck in a lot at a truckstop? Free, free with fuel?

Thanks again.

Jon F question - internet access on the road, what do u use?

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