! Second Edition: August 2014 First Edition: June 2013 ! Copyright © 2014 Two Steps Beyond LLC All rights reserved ! Disclaimer: This is complicated stuff, and there are no easy, one-size-fits-all solutions. In this book, we share what we’ve learned over the years in our own journeys using extensive amounts of mobile internet along the way, as well as what we’ve learned from wide-ranging research and conversations with other mobile internet experts. We have no formal affiliation or financial stake in any of the products or services we mention, except our own mobile apps. Anything you purchase, you are entering into transactions directly with the manufacturers and providers of those services. This book is a sharing of our research and experience as full-time RVers ourselves. We can take no responsibility for the choices you make as a result of reading this book. We will do our best to share the pros and cons of each option as we understand them today, but ultimately you must continue your research and decide for yourself. When issues arise, please seek support and resolution from the provider, vendor, or manufacturer you purchased from – not us! ! ! ! Also by Technomadia: No Excuses: Go Nomadic! www.technomadia.com/excuses A practical guide to the logistics of full-timing – income sources, mail, banking, healthcare, family, pets, safety, relationships, preparing, and much more! !ii The subject of this book is constantly evolving. Check our resource center to see if there’s a new version or new information posted to our our knowledge base and news feeds: www.RVMobileInternet.com And join our free e-mail newsletter for updates at: eepurl.com/0KJG1 ! ! Join our free public Facebook & RVillage groups for discussions with other RVers, ourselves included, interested in this topic: www.facebook.com/groups/rvinternet www.rvillage.com/group/143/rv-mobile-internet-resource-cent ! ! Premium Membership & Private Advising We offer a premium membership service, called Mobile Internet Aficionados, for those who want to keep up to date on this stuff with exclusive content, news analysis, and a private Q&A forums. We also offer advising sessions for those who’d like extra help figuring out their setup. See the last chapter, The Ongoing Conversation, for more information. ! !iii ! Dedicated to Tim VeArd 1944–2013! Technology pioneer, national hero, and location-independent technology entrepreneur who inspired us in ways beyond imagination. We miss you, Dad. ! ! ! And a HUGE Thank You to all of our supporters who crowdfunded the rewrite and massive expansion of this book! !iv Table of Contents Prologue to the 2nd Edition 1 Introduction 4 Who This Book Is and Isn’t For 4 Who Is Technomadia? 5 About Our Guest Author, Jack Mayer 7 More About This Book 7 Laying the Groundwork 9 Basic Differences Between the Common Options 10 Cellular vs. WiFi 10 Byte Sizing – What Exactly Is Data? 11 What Isn’t Considered Data Usage? 13 Benchmarks for Common Internet Tasks 13 Rule #1 – Reset Your Expectations! 16 Assembling Your Arsenal 19 Cellular Data 21 Nationwide Carriers 23 Regional & Local Carriers 27 Knowing Where to Find Signal 27 MVNOs & Prepaid Plans 28 Millenicom Hotspot Plan Notes 31 The Need for Speed 33 Cellular Pitfall: Data Caps 34 Sharing: On-Device Data vs. Hotspot/Tethering Data 34 Unlimited Data Plans 35 Understanding Roaming 37 Cellular Data Gear 39 Cellular Modems 40 Mobile Hotspots & Cellular Routers 40 Smartphone/Tablet Connection Sharing 41 SIM Cards & Migrating Service 42 !v Locked & Unlocked Cellular Devices 43 Simultaneous Voice & Data 43 WiFi Calling 44 Understanding Cellular Frequencies 45 Cellular Frequency Bands 47 Carrier Frequency Reference Guide 48 Frequency Asked Questions 51 WiFi & Hotspots 54 WiFi Connectivity Options 55 Security on Public WiFi Networks 56 VPN Services – Protection, Privacy, and More 58 Watch What You Share 58 Realities of Campground WiFi 59 Free Public Hotspots 60 Paid WiFi Networks 61 Borrowing Bandwidth From Friends 62 Enhancing the Signal 63 Things That Impact Wireless Signals 64 Overview of WiFi & Cellular Options 65 WiFi as WAN & WiFi Repeating 67 Directional CPEs 67 Cellular Boosting 68 Cellular Signal: Bars & Dots vs. dBm 69 Cellular Booster Tips & Tricks 71 The Simple Trick to Expanded Cellular Booster Coverage 74 New FCC Booster Registration Requirements 75 FCC Booster Registration FAQs 76 Boosting Summary: Keep Realistic Expectations 77 Antenna Selection & Installation 78 Antenna Performance & Gain 78 Choosing an Antenna 80 Antenna Cables & Calculating Overall System Gain 85 Measuring Antenna Performance 87 On the Roof – Mounting Methods 87 Cable Routing & Management 93 !vi Satellite Internet 95 Satellite TV and Internet Are Not the Same! 96 The Signal: Spot Beam vs. Broad Area 97 Satellite Broadband – HughesNet 98 Satellite Broadband – StarBand 100 Business-Grade Satellite Broadband 100 BGAN (Broadband Global Area Network) 101 Low Earth Orbit – Globalstar & Iridium 101 Caps, FAPs, and Other Limitations 103 Even Satellites Have Coverage Maps 104 Mobile Satellite: Concluding Thoughts 104 Alternative Connectivity Options 105 Amateur Ham Radio – Email & Internet 105 Cable/ DSL Installation 106 WISP Access (Wireless Internet Service Providers) 107 Co-Working Spaces 107 Concierge Services and Personal Assistants 107 Routers – Bringing It All Together 109 Do You Really Need a Router? 109 Router Selection Tips 110 Advanced Configurations 112 WiFi Congestion Issues 113 5Ghz WiFi – An Uncrowded Expressway! 114 Wired vs. Wireless Speeds 115 Managing Mobile Bandwidth 116 Network Speed & Quality Testing 116 How Much Bandwidth Do You Need? 118 Tracking Your Bandwidth Usage 119 Minimizing Data Usage 122 Scoring “Free” Data 124 Entertainment on the Go 126 Streaming Video – Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, Etc. 127 Alternatives to Streaming Video 129 TV Antennas & Satellite TV 130 Gaming on the Road 131 Get Out! 133 !vii Beyond Data – Phones & Plans 134 Choosing a Smartphone: iOS, Android, or Other 134 Shopping for a Cellular Plan 138 Carrier Redundancy 141 Internet Calling Services 141 Crossing International Borders 143 General International Tips 143 Canada 145 Mexico 147 General Recommendations 149 Lite Usage 150 Moderate Usage 151 High and/or Consistent Usage 152 Absolutely Need to Be Online 154 Wrapping Up: Top 10 Tips 155 Appendix A: Your Authors’ Arsenals 158 Technomadia’s Setup 158 Jack Mayer’s Setup 160 Appendix B: Understanding 4G/LTE 161 Appendix C: A Real-World Comparison 165 Glossary of Terms 170 The Ongoing Conversation 184 Introducing: Mobile Internet Aficionados 184 Sample Member Newsletter 185 Private Mobile Internet Advising Sessions 186 !viii ! Prologue to the 2nd Edition In the spring of 2013, we set out to write a comprehensive blog post about all the options for keeping online while being mobile – bringing together in one place the years of content we had written on the topic. By the time we were partway through, we knew this couldn’t be covered in a single post – there was way more than a book’s worth that could be written on the topic! And thus, on the spur of the moment, the first edition of The Mobile Internet Handbook was born. We had never published a book before – and we put together the first edition in under 3 weeks on a shoestring budget, eager to get back to our real jobs. We did not expect the book to take on a life of its own – gathering so many reviews and endorsements as a must read for RVers who need to keep online. Eventually we came to realize just how needed this sort of resource was. Technology marches on, and a year later it is time to update the book. But we didn’t just want to quickly update the book to make it current, we also wanted to expand the content and provide more resources to help more people live vibrant and connected mobile lives. And this would take more than a couple weeks to accomplish. To gauge just how much interest there was in a second and expanded edition, we decided to try a book presale via the crowdfunding site Indiegogo. We hoped to at least cover the costs of professional graphics, illustrations, and editing so that our new book would look more like a book and less like a long blog post. We set several stretch goals for frequently asked-for topics that we could also add to the content. We expected at most to be on the hook for writing only a couple new chapters. We were blown away by the support we received, and in the end every single one of our stretch goals was fully funded! !1 This means that we have researched and written seven entirely new chapters for this 2nd edition of the book, as well as vastly expanded all the rest. The original book was only 87 pages, with wider margins too. The new edition is more than double that size. We’ve expanded the content across the board to better explain the basics and present more options, added a comprehensive glossary and we have taken it many steps deeper in technical detail and implementation information as well. And we hired professionals to handle the editing and graphics, and the creation of our new RVMobileInternet.com website. We not only hired professionals, but fellow mobile professionals who are also dependent on the very topic of this book. We’re pleased as punch to work with Jeanette and Dennis of MotorhomeOfficeOfDesignAndTechnology.com for the style and design (from the cover art to the fun illustrations you’ll see throughout the book, as well as the color and typography), Jason and Kristin of BoondockMarketing.com for the bones of the new website, and Ann of Beardsley Editing for the editing of this book. We asked all of them for fair market bids for their services, but we know each one of them went above and beyond to help us make this an awesome resource for our mobile communities…and we can’t recommend or thank them enough.