Guest Tracker Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 Having had a '3' dongle for a year or so I have found the coverage patchy at best and nothing like as reliable and fast as they would have one believe. I wonder - do any of our similarly nomadic wanderers who often find themselves in remote locations use a different service with better results. Better still - has anyone experience of more than one service provider for comparison purposes please? Thanks - from a cs near Exmouth - for one night only! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clay Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 dont know the answer but will be very interested as i am in the process of cancelling my home broadband and going over to a dongle, my choice was going to be 3 but maybe i am wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J9withdogs Posted June 15, 2009 Share Posted June 15, 2009 I've got a T-mobile dongle and coverage is extremely patchy. So far, I've only managed dial-up speeds when I've been out and about although I did manage 5 minutes of high speed connection when I was at CC Cheltenham at the weekend. It won't work at home at all! I think if you take out a monthly plan, you get better coverage than Pay as you go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Way2Go Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I've been using the Vodaphone £35 dongle and have so far used it in Kent, West Sussex, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire.Whilst the signal strength has varied a bit I've always got a connection and the speeds have varied depending where I was as you'd expect from any mobile provider.I bought it for £35 (which came with 1GB of 'air time' free) and decided to buy another 1GB for £15 making £30 worth of 'air time' available.Having used it quite freely on the last three trips I was staggered to see I still have £27 left which won't expire at the end of the month.I'm more than happy, thank you.W2G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Usinmyknaus Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Like you Tracker, I have the 3 dongle. Also like you I have found the coverage patchy - certainly worse than my t-mobile phone. I have resigned myself to looking at signal reception as a bonus rather than a paid-for right and it is usually slow. In town areas it has been good but of course we holiday in rural areas generally. For the £7.50 a month I pay it is fine when it works, but I certainly won't give up my broadband landline yet. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J9withdogs Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Don't take mobile phone coverage as a guide to mobile broadband coverage - apparently they work on different signals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJH Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 J9withdogs - 2009-06-15 11:44 PM I've got a T-mobile dongle and coverage is extremely patchy. So far, I've only managed dial-up speeds when I've been out and about although I did manage 5 minutes of high speed connection when I was at CC Cheltenham at the weekend. It won't work at home at all! I think if you take out a monthly plan, you get better coverage than Pay as you go. Sorry to see you've had a bad experience Janine. That doesn't match my experience of T-Mobile dongle (which I've had since February last year). There have been one or two places (Newark showground was the worst) where the single has dropped to GPRS on occasion during adverse weather conditions but in general I've achieved full HSDPA. I've used the dongle in various fields as well as in urban areas. J9withdogs - 2009-06-16 8:15 AM Don't take mobile phone coverage as a guide to mobile broadband coverage - apparently they work on different signals. The 2G and 3G coverage areas do differ but (as with all suppliers) they are the same for all devices supplied by T-Mobile, whether contract or PAYG. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aj8one Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 do these dongles work in france & spain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libby Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 My guess at the dongle situation is that given time ALL internet messaging will be via satelite and not landlines, it must surely be a cost effective system, no more plastic phones at home and miles of wiring, no more poles and porcelain dollies to be shot at with a catapult !! No more service charges for just having a BT 'line'. Live in your M/H and order lunch from the net, wonderfull It will be as popular as texting make no mistake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njw Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 i have the o2 pay as you go type which has worked fine at newbury malvern,stratford peterborough shepton mallet and west wales ,did not want a contract has having to still work do not get away to often as we would like Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malc d Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I've always followed these internet access threads with interest because at some time I intend to take a laptop with me, but not until I can use it at reasonable cost anywhere in Europe. I don't believe in signing contracts for using phones or net access from a laptop so it looks like I'll have to wait a bit longer. In Europe, at the moment, I just use internet cafes for occasional net access and phone texts (PAYG) to keep in touch with home. (Hardly costs anything compared with the charges I've seen on here). :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
breakaleg Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I have a vodafone pay as you go, It worked Ravenglass (in a forest) and in the lake district and also in Birmingham, as for speed, at best fast dial up and like judge, came with £15.00 0f credit, used quite a bit, downloaded around 500 emails, sent a good few, browsed the web for around six hours, still got £13.90 pence worth left, also, this is from March this year, i think that some wipe your credit after around 30 days. (but may be wrong on that point)? Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J9withdogs Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 GJH - 2009-06-16 8:41 AM Sorry to see you've had a bad experience Janine. That doesn't match my experience of T-Mobile dongle (which I've had since February last year). There have been one or two places (Newark showground was the worst) where the single has dropped to GPRS on occasion during adverse weather conditions but in general I've achieved full HSDPA. I've used the dongle in various fields as well as in urban areas. Graham Hmmm perhaps I'm doing something wrong! I've only managed those 5 minutes of HSDPA although I was probably within sight of the mast at Cheltenham racecourse. I've also been to Cheshire Oaks and Southport and only ever got GPRS. Is there a knob I should be twiddling? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJH Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 J9withdogs - 2009-06-16 2:42 PM Hmmm perhaps I'm doing something wrong! I've only managed those 5 minutes of HSDPA although I was probably within sight of the mast at Cheltenham racecourse. I've also been to Cheshire Oaks and Southport and only ever got GPRS. Is there a knob I should be twiddling? I wonder if the body of your MH is interfering with the signal in some way? It might be worth sitting outside with the laptop to see if that makes any difference. If it does then hanging the dongle out of the window (on an extension cable if it is one of the newer type which plugs in directly to the USB port) might give you better reception. Graham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 I’ve got the Vodafone one, 3G works fine at broadband speeds if you are near a town I use it a lot when in hotels a fraction of the cost of their wifi rates. On sites never managed anything other than GPRS a bit slow faster than a dialup it’s liveable & as you only pay for the data it doesn’t matter how long it takes to download, can be a problem interpreting the data if the red wine bottle has empted while waiting. I used it recently as passenger in a car on the M4 coming back from Wales that was a bit painful it would log onto a 3G network then a coulple miles down the road would drop to GPRS, then when if found a 3G signal it would disconnect & you had to reconnect etc. No PAYG dongles will work abroad & pay monthly ones are expensive £3/mb, A company I contract to occasionally, their guys use them abroad and run up bills of £1000 - £2000 a month, download a 400meg file that’s 1200 quid in one hit. Cheapest option I found for Germany was a German Vodafone dongle at 50€ then 4.95€ per hour, luckily a lot of sites have free wifi & internet cafes are quite cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Forgot to mention when in the van I use a USB extension lead and place the dongle by a side window or up by the rooflite it helps the speed a bit when on GPRS, & if close to a 3G area can make the difference between GPRS & 3G. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Den Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Hi Tracker I looked into all the possibilities and recommendations. I ended up with the Alden Netmaster and it works perfectly all over Europe. Never once failed and never crashed a little slower than our Wi Fi at home with BT which does crash occasionally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Grumpy Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 Alden Netmaster, if that is the same one that's advertised for about £3k then I'll wait a bit, until the lottery pays out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Den Posted June 16, 2009 Share Posted June 16, 2009 It is, but it works everywhere, perhaps as long as no trees are directly in line like sat' dishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted June 17, 2009 Share Posted June 17, 2009 I've had a '3' dongle since March 2008 - I would consider it is not really a replacement for a good landline broadband connection. We only got it because we don't have a choice where we live of landline broadband providers - its Kingston Communications (an independent telephone company) or mobile! As we were hoping (!) to move we couldn't sign up for a new contract with them (18 months) in case where we moved to was out of their area, so mobile it had to be. I'm very disappointed with it on the whole, it certainly doesn't give the speed which we were led to believe we would get - sometimes I only get 100kpbs!!! It's like watching paint dry. 8-) Most of the time I get 3G but again, the speed can be abysmal, on rare occaions I get HSDPA but it's usually only for about 30 seconds max and then it's gone. When (!) we move I certainly will be looking for a land based broadband provider again. The only good thing is that I can take it with me and use it in the camper in the UK! :-> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MandyAndy Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 We are on a 2 year contract with Vodaphone, took the £25 a month one as we need it for the business when we are away. Never not got a signal, usually get 3G this has dropped to 2 when in fields and forests well away from civilisation . Very happy with it except we have too much, the £15 a month would have been plenty but we just didn't know what we needed till we got it. In Europe we us Mc Donalds and free Wifi sites along with the Tourist Info shops, not struggled most of the time but we only need to check every couple of days as we put holiday settings on when we are on holiday. Mandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanderer Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 We have had a Vodaphone dongle for over a year now and with only one exception have always managed to get a connection dispite using it in very remote parts. In remoter parts usually get 2G but 3G is fairly normal elsewhere and at home I get 3G speeds I am happy to use it as my only connection. I have found that in the van I have a USB extension and this can very much improve reception by placing the dongle in skylight or in windscreen. At the site I am now on I get 2G with dongle in laptop but 3G if I place it in the windscreen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 Thanks everyone for the helpful points of view - it seems that they are all as good or as bad as each other so for the time being it don't seem worth changing mobile ISP for my limited use? I too find that an extension USB lead can help avoid crashes and maintain continuity of connection when I use it to place the dongle on a window ledge instead of it being plugged directly into the back of the laptop. I do wonder whether any signal is lost by having the extra connection and cable much in the same way that a TV signal is lost by cabling and connections? Any thoughts anyone? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 The USB cable has no effect on the radio signal, it is only connecting the power & sending & receiving the digital data between the dongle & the PC. Max recommended length for a USB cable is 5m, if you go over that you are likely to get corrupted data or drop out of the data connection (not the radio signal the dongle connects to the internet by). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Tracker Posted June 18, 2009 Share Posted June 18, 2009 Thanks Lenny - we live and learn! Without wishing to seem pedantic, but my natural curiosity (I've always been a bit curious - even my Mum said so!) makes me wonder that if the maximum length of a USB cable is 5 metres beyond which visible corruption may occur, would it follow that proportionally even a short length of cable could cause some data loss or corruption? Could this apply more so in weak signal areas, in which case could any advantage gained by using a cable to get the dongle into a better location be lost by the very cable itself? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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