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Post by haddock on Jun 27, 2016 6:21:23 GMT
Can anyone help concerning using mobile Wi-Fi abroad. I used my iPhone last year using personal hotspot with Vodafone and it cost me a packet! I have purchased a sim free dongle and want to work from my boat. I estimate I will need 5gb-10gb of data for emails and will be sailing in Spain. I do a lot of contractual work along with lengthy phone calls negotiating said contracts. I do not want to sign up to a annual contract as I am only out there at a month at a time. Tried to research on the web and all very confusing. Can anyone advise i.e. is there a PAYG SIM I can buy in Spain that will do the job at a reasonable cost. Also I will be using the device for providing Wi-Fi to my guests (3 daughters) who will be using it for face book etc. I also use the BoatBeacon AIS app on my tablet when sailing and not sure how greedy this is for data usage.
Thanks in advance. |
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Post by vasko on Jun 27, 2016 22:06:39 GMT
Get pay-as-you-go SIM from Three and will rock and roll... with Home Countries option - I'mextremly happy for France and spain
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Post by sitara on Jun 27, 2016 22:25:54 GMT
Three daughters using facebook will cost a fortune! I have a "sim free dongle" that takes an external antenna which is mounted on the top of the mast. It seems to have extended the reception range for a usable signal significantly but I have not done any tests to check this.
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Post by vasko on Jun 28, 2016 15:43:12 GMT
there is another issue also - when the mobile phones see that the connection is wifi - they think that the internet is unlimited e.g. downloading update checking for status etc. - my calculation is that a iphone is consuming 10 to 20MB per h - just when you leave it connected...
facebook is between 500MB - 1GB per person ( if I remember correctly my latest statistics )
everyone can do the calculations himself - all devices should be with wifi OFF when on board and ON only when something needs actually to be done or else you endup about 2GB per day traffic without watching video in youtube and facebook - with video you can very easy go to 5-8GB per day
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Post by vasko on Jun 28, 2016 15:43:36 GMT
I for teh whole boat not per person
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Post by Don Reaves on Jun 28, 2016 22:17:41 GMT
Your mileage may vary, in fact be very different from Vasko's numbers, but the point is well taken.
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Post by hoppy on Jun 29, 2016 5:56:40 GMT
Your mileage may vary, in fact be very different from Vasko's numbers, but the point is well taken. Agreed, I think he underestimated the usage if the daughters are teens or 20 somethings  |
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Post by haddock on Jul 1, 2016 6:02:47 GMT
Thanks all, Will go to the shop now and make a purchase. Also I have found out that boat beacon (AIS app) uses 4mb for 24 hours use so no worries there.
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Post by hoppy on Jul 1, 2016 6:13:36 GMT
Why use an AIS app when you are sailing?
It will only be useful for finding out the name of the ship that ran you down (assuming you have a waterproof case for your tablet/phone)
AIS over the internet is delayed and unreliable and is less useful than a blindman keeping watch.
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Post by haddock on Jul 1, 2016 6:30:03 GMT
I beg to differ. Boat beacon AIS which is an app and runs off your wifi (or Sim card in my case) provides real time (every 30secs or so) of all big stuff doing more than 20knts and provides collision estimates etc. It also transmits your details in real time.
OK so not as good as a all inclusive AIS transceiver plumbed in to your boat navigation but for £9 it's not bad.
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Post by ianpowolny on Jul 1, 2016 16:00:23 GMT
Haddock,
We have been using a Gymsim SIM for the last two summers for voice. It's supposed to support data but I've not got it to work and haven't pursued this option. Gymsim seems to be relatively cost effective.
For wifi we have an iBoost from Motorhome wifi which isn't bad. If the iBoost can see the marine signal it seems to work very well.
For AIS we have a Raymarine system which works well outside mobile range.
Ian
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Post by alenka on Oct 24, 2016 22:33:58 GMT
Keeping a sim contract going in Greece can be a real pain. If you don't use the sim for 6 months it is closed down and then you have the joy of setting up a new one - in Greece this can take hours if you get a phone store full of indifferent sales people - which is often the norm.
For the last two years we have been buying data sim cards that have been pre-registered from eBay. They cost around $50 dollars for 30gb of data. They are split into 30 different blocks and each block lasts for 24 hours.
Where ever we can we use free wifi, especially for updating apps which eats through data like a hot knife through butter, and only load a 1gb block when wifi is unavailable.
This year network 3 added Greece to their 'feel at home' service so between our phones, the mifi and wifi we were pretty well covered. My phone bill averaged around just £3.50 per month more than using it at home.
One tip. If you are struggling to get a signal on your mifi pop it in a plastic bag and hoist it to the top of the mast on a spare halyard!
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Post by chuckr on Nov 8, 2016 8:40:43 GMT
We went all the way around the Black Sea this summer and free wifi was sometimes there but most times not. In northern Turkey you tie up in fishing harbors so no wifi for the most part. In Georgia nope, in Russia some but hard, in Odessa they had it but we had issues connecting, in Romania some but not always in Bulgaria a bit more ibut not always.
We got sim cards for each country and tried to see what the max was we could get. We want a bit of entertainment at night so watch some hour long tv program each night. It was surprising how inexpensive the internet was. We did not have a phone app only for our computer.
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