Internet issues

[PGT]

We are somewhat newbies to the RV life. Here's what we are needing to know.
We need good internet access while we travel so we can work out of the RV.
Some RV parks we've been to either have slow or no internet/Wi-Fi.
We can hook up through our cell phone hot-spot, but sometimes we have weak signal.

What do we need?? a cell phone signal booster? Wi-Fi booster? Combination?

 

[Gizmo]

Check out Nomad Internet at Nomad Internet: The Largest & Best Rural Unlimited Internet

 

[lemondrop9344]

I found the information provided by the Mobile Internet Resource Center to be very helpful in explaining what is available for those of us living the RV life. Most of their information is geared to the less than 'techie' population.
There are a variety of options available. I would encourage you to assess, as best you can, where you will travel, how long you will be there, what are your internet expectations, how/if you can incorporate data only cellular options into your existing cellular service & how much your are willing to spend.
As you have already discovered, WiFi at the friendly RV parks is at best 'iffy'. Having some of the same questions when I went full time in December, 2019; I eventually settled on a Peplink MAX Transit CAT -18 cellular modem/router in May of this year. Yep, I did a lot of research & tried some products where the capabilities of the products were overstated by reviewers of the products. I will accept responsibility for these mistakes as I did not fully understand their technical specifications and how they would or would not improve my connectivity.
I have been very happy with the unit I selected so far. I have yet to see how it works in more rural locations.
Good luck.

 

[VTPete]

Boosters do not generally solve problems, as park offered wi-fi systems are notoriously awful. You are just boosting an oversubscribed and very slow connection. Best to invest in cellular technology and a good antenna for the roof to optimize your chances at reliable service. I started with a single hotspot, then added a cheapo router, then a second mifi/hotspot device from another carrier so i could switch when the going got tough-these steps helped but were a major time suck. I finally invested in a quality router with top notch software and the proper antenna's and now I can work reliably most of the time. If you want to do it right, I'd suggest budgeting $1000-1500 and acquiring at least 2 cell plans from different carriers. You can spend a lot of time reading and listening to the resources referenced above, other areas in this forum, (just search "internet") and other places online to get up to speed on your choices, and keep coming back here to ask the community your questions. Good luck!