wifi (1 Viewer)

june123

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We take our laptop with us when travelling abroad and in the UK. So far we rely on McDonalds or free wifi on sites or in cafes. I know there are aerials we could buy to give us access to the interrnet from our van but I've got a bit confused. Is there an aerial we could connect to that wouldn't need any other gadget on our laptop?

Any advice very gratefully received.
 

Carol

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When we are travelling in the UK, we use a 3 mifi, it is very unusual not to be able to get online. When you travel abroad you can purchase local sim cards if the mifi is unlocked.
 
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june123

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Thanbk you Carol. I've googled 3mifi and am still confused. (Not very computer literate with this new technology.) Is this for a mobile phone or can I plug it into a laptop? Also is there a monthly fee to pay? Do you just buy it and plug it in? Any special model/type you recommend? You can tell I'm not too bright can't you?

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Carol

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Hi June, it is like a dongle but you can put it anywhere in the van, so a lot easier to pick up a signal, we bought ours and top it up, when we are travelling and don't use it when we are home. Costs about £13 a month when we are using it. One of the more technically minded men maybe able to explain it better.
 
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the 3 mifi acts likea wifi Router and you can connect up to 3 devices at the same time. best get it unlocked and buy a data sim on line you can get a sim for about £12 that will last 90 days or 3GB which is more than enough for standard browsing and emails. when 90 days or 3GB used chuck the sim and buy another. doing that is a fraction of the cost of pay as you go sim or a one off from 3.
 
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june123

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Thanks Carol and Phil. I think I understand now. A monthly fee suits us fine. We just didn't want to be committed to a 12 or 24 month contract.

Phil - showing my ignorance (again) what does unlocking mean and what would I be unlocking?

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if you buy the mifi from 3 it will be locked to thier network. if you are going to stay in UK thats probably the best coverage and cost deal. so you may not need to unlock the mifi unit. unlocking it allows you to use other suppliers data sim cards ( vodafone, T mobile etc ). also a sim card from a european supplier when across the channel.

i will post a couple of links shortly to help.:thumb:
 

atlantisbird

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Mifi info

Hi,
We bought an Unlocked wireless Huawei modem from Ebay for £72.0, then we bought a separate sim card which allows internet access for £12.15 and gives us 90 days usage for laptop data then we just bought another when that run out. The modem can run up to 5 laptops together and we have shared it with others who have been in the same site and quite a distance from our van and signal.
We have been able to go online anywhere in the UK so far and although it is slightly slower
than our BT at home (we have never been fortunate enough to get a free Fon signal anywhere).
Hope this helps.
Atlantisbird
Ann & Harry
 
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this is the mifi and this one is already unlocked to any network

Link Removed

then a sim card this one is £11.19 for 3 months or 90 days... wont get cheaper.

Link Removed

another here this one is for 6 months and probably enough for basic browsing and emails:thumb:
Link Removed

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june123

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Thanks so much to all who have replied. You've been so helpful.

Phil - these sim cards. Do they fit into a laptop? I only know the little sims that go into a mobile phone. Do I need a special aerial with these? (I'm beginning to feel very stupid!)
 

Carol

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June, the sim goes into the dongle, which looks like a small mobile phone, the links Phil has given should show you a picture of one, don't be afraid to go into your local 3 shop and have a look then maybe get a unlocked one from ebay.

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Dec 6, 2011
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Hi, the sim goes into the white huawei unit pull the back off and out the battery and put it in like you do on most phones..:thumb:
 

Kevc

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Hi

Recently purchased this 3G modem (mifi) from amazon:

[ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/ZTE-MF60-Mobile-Hotspot--Unlocked/dp/B005KLOLM2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362082189&sr=8-1"]ZTE MF60 MiFi Mobile Wifi Hotspot- Unlocked Sim Free: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories[/ame]

£64.99 in stock and allows up to 8 devices to connect, already unlocked

Then get yourself the relevant 3G SIM card from which ever provider and your off, and if you go abroad buy local SIM and swop it :Smile:

Lots of choice out there

Good luck

Kev
 
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june123

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Thanks so much for all your help.

Phil - I think I finally understand (well almost). Think I know what I need. But if you buy a locked thingamajig how do you unlock it? This is definitely the last question!

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Dec 6, 2011
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Thanks so much for all your help.

Phil - I think I finally understand (well almost). Think I know what I need. But if you buy a locked thingamajig how do you unlock it? This is definitely the last question!

you need an unlock code which you can get on internet for around £2 or so which is what i did. then you follow a simple set of instructions that you are given to insert the code. if you buy a locked unit and want to unlock it just Pm me or post and ask at the time:thumb:
 

belboy

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you need an unlock code which you can get on internet for around £2 or so which is what i did. then you follow a simple set of instructions that you are given to insert the code. if you buy a locked unit and want to unlock it just Pm me or post and ask at the time:thumb:


Well done there Phill D....you were a great help to June without coming over all techno ... I just wish I'd had your advice when I had the same problem as June last year...I ended up buying the motorhome wifi hub for well over £100... It has been a nightmare for me from day one, I can never get it set up right as like June I'm not very PC hip.

Well done once again mate :thumb:
 

kiwicamper

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Hi

Recently purchased this 3G modem (mifi) from amazon:



£64.99 in stock and allows up to 8 devices to connect, already unlocked

Then get yourself the relevant 3G SIM card from which ever provider and your off, and if you go abroad buy local SIM and swop it :Smile:

Lots of choice out there

Good luck

Kev

Does this modem need an antenna?
We are not bothering with a TV or dish while in UK.

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Chris

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Well done there Phill D....you were a great help to June without coming over all techno ... I just wish I'd had your advice when I had the same problem as June last year...I ended up buying the motorhome wifi hub for well over £100... It has been a nightmare for me from day one, I can never get it set up right as like June I'm not very PC hip.

Well done once again mate :thumb:


What sort of problems are you having?

I have got the same gadget I think and after a bit of faffing about initially it's now easy to set up.

The unit came with a little instruction card and you need to follow those instructions to the letter.

This has been a useful thread about mifi though.
 

Kevc

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Does this modem need an antenna?
We are not bothering with a TV or dish while in UK.

Hi

It has a connection point for an external antenna, but it is optional.
It also has internal antenna like a mobile phone, and this is all I have used and not had any issues so far.
Majority of the reviews on amazon seemed to be good except going on about German instructions, but this must of also been rectified as mine are in English, though very simple to set up. One piece of advice would be get the wireless WEP key from under the battery before you need to use it, otherwise you have to power it back down to find it after :Smile:

Kev
 
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Hi June
Take the advice given on here buy a mifi device
And do what I did find a local 14 year old geek to set it up for you and away you go I have had mine 12 months now and all I do is charge it same as my phone top it up with credit when it runs out and enjoy
Without confusing you further check to make sure you can't use your Mobile phone to create a mobile hotspot or tethering you may have all you need already
By the way the geeks name is Liam aren't they all bless him

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pollensabob

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Brilliant advice Phill, this is what Makes Motorhome Fun the best site.

Many thanks

Bob:thumb:
 

gypsyrose

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Really good to read this! (Many thanks for bringing up the subject!) :winky:
(From another very confused wannabe mi-fi owner) :cry:

Sure you have all guessed by now that I have a question?! However, all posted so far has helped a lot.

What I need to know is how easy is it to set up in the 1st place? You do not have to plug anything in the usb, right?? My laptop is not partial to such things :RollEyes:

You don't just buy it, put a sim in and get online, right?!! :RollEyes:
 

cmcardle75

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Really good to read this! (Many thanks for bringing up the subject!) :winky:
(From another very confused wannabe mi-fi owner) :cry:

Sure you have all guessed by now that I have a question?! However, all posted so far has helped a lot.

What I need to know is how easy is it to set up in the 1st place? You do not have to plug anything in the usb, right?? My laptop is not partial to such things :RollEyes:

You don't just buy it, put a sim in and get online, right?!! :RollEyes:

Also, you need to decide on the SIM, which will depend on where you are travelling. Some UK providers have terrible European rates (usually priced per MB), others aren't too bad (priced per day). Local SIMs will be best value if staying a while (usually priced per GB or month), but you'll need one for every country if you're touring around and sometimes hard to obtain without a local address, or requiring a compulsory dongle purchase. It is worth researching in advance to see if you can get a SIM, or find which provider is most convenient to buy at a supermarket.

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Kevc

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Really good to read this! (Many thanks for bringing up the subject!) :winky:
(From another very confused wannabe mi-fi owner) :cry:

Sure you have all guessed by now that I have a question?! However, all posted so far has helped a lot.

What I need to know is how easy is it to set up in the 1st place? You do not have to plug anything in the usb, right?? My laptop is not partial to such things :RollEyes:

You don't just buy it, put a sim in and get online, right?!! :RollEyes:

Hi Gypsyrose

To use is simples :winky:

Turn it on and it creates a WiFi hotspot, so then on your PC search for the WiFi that is your MiFi and then enter the password for that wirless network. network name and password on mine are on a sticker under the battery, so make a note of it first :Doh:

et voila connected :thumb:

Then you can do your FUN browsing wherever you are

Kev
 

gypsyrose

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Many thanks!! I may finally just get to buy one!!
There is no software or anything to dowload?!
As you need to enter password etc, am I to presume that you are safe online? Would we be able to carry out financial transactions if necessary for example?
 

Kevc

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No software to download, or installations on your PC.
Security (password) is for the connectivity to the wireless network, and therefore data across that wireless network.
So still need to be careful as you would if working on WiFi at home, from an internet perspective, but I use it for everything including onlone banking etc and have never had issues.

Kev

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gypsyrose

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No software to download, or installations on your PC.
Security (password) is for the connectivity to the wireless network, and therefore data across that wireless network.
So still need to be careful as you would if working on WiFi at home, from an internet perspective, but I use it for everything including onlone banking etc and have never had issues.

Kev

Thank you Kev!! Hope I haven't totally hijacked this thread?
Just one more question, will I need a local sim card to use it abroad? Or will it just work? :RollEyes:
 

Kevc

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Also, you need to decide on the SIM, which will depend on where you are travelling. Some UK providers have terrible European rates (usually priced per MB), others aren't too bad (priced per day). Local SIMs will be best value if staying a while (usually priced per GB or month), but you'll need one for every country if you're touring around and sometimes hard to obtain without a local address, or requiring a compulsory dongle purchase. It is worth researching in advance to see if you can get a SIM, or find which provider is most convenient to buy at a supermarket.


Gypsyrose

See cmcardle75 advice above. normally better to source local SIM card for the country you are in, is normally cheaper

Kev
 

kiwicamper

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Hi

It has a connection point for an external antenna, but it is optional.
It also has internal antenna like a mobile phone, and this is all I have used and not had any issues so far.
Majority of the reviews on amazon seemed to be good except going on about German instructions, but this must of also been rectified as mine are in English, though very simple to set up. One piece of advice would be get the wireless WEP key from under the battery before you need to use it, otherwise you have to power it back down to find it after :Smile:

Kev

I take it mifi can be used with an ipad?

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