what data & hotspot plan for 2 to 4 GB/month?

[Kaylee]

#2 on my pre-launch critical list is reliable internet.

As I've mentioned elsewhere, I'll be doing pure boondocking for a few months this summer (proof of concept trip), in cooler areas (Colorado/etc).

I'll be in my car, so won't be streaming, so am looking for something fairly minimalist.
My usual "work" usage is 2 to 3 GB per month.
I hate phones, so am mainly looking for a pure data plan.

I've heard Walmart has some sort of plan that's close to that and costs about $40 for two months.

I'm a boondocking 100% noob.
I have used hotspot devices.

Thanks in advance.

[Queen]

Reading about techy stuff is always gobbledygook to me, but I'm pretty sure there are a couple of threads here about cheap hotspots. Check threads by JustJim, I think he's the one who posted it.

[Everyroadleadshome]

Here is the thread you want to read

https://vandwellerforum.com/showthread.p...light=mifi


I have the one talked about here and it's working very well in an area known for it's bad cell coverage.

[Kaylee]

Thanks a ton!
Yeah, I'd seen Jim's awesome posts here and on CRVL.

I should have mentioned that I'm looking for something with low admin overhead. The $5 refill thing sounds fiddly/stressful. Does anyone know if it works with javascript and other crud turned off?

[justjim]

You set up with Callingmart to do a auto pay of $5 a month. Totally stress free.

[rvpopeye]

You're talking about the Straighttalk Hotspot at Wallyworld.
The 4G LTE hotspot I have costs about $50 now..(I paid $100 when they first came out)
The last time I was there they only had the $25 2GB/30 day and the $50 5GB/60 day data cards.
They couldn't tell me if there would be more $40 4GB/60 day data cards. Maybe available online though...

[Kaylee]

Thanks Jim & rvpopeye!
I hit a couple of Walmarts and also had difficulty finding 60-day cards, plus Walmarts are Hellishly noisy, so brain crash for me. :\

Having read a bunch more (including lots of Jim-wisdom at CRVL), it sounds like best practice is to have at least two plans on different networks.
I'm leaning towards getting the $5 Verizon 4G, once it has stabilized (thanks to everyone who has posted in that thread, on this board!).

Until then, I'm considering a cheap T-Mobile plan, to start with.
How is T-Mobile in the West (i.e. cooler higher elevations of the Rockies/etc)?

While trying to research "Straight Talk", I stumbled upon "Mint Mobile" (aka "Mint Sim"), which has a 2 GB plan for $15/month and 5 GB for $20 (sounds like they go up, unless one switches to a year prepaid, but 3 months is enough to give me a feel for it).
They use T-Mobile's network.
Big advantage: no Walmart!
It's prepay only (3, 6, or 12 months), but that's fine for me.

Appears to only work with Android smartphones-as-tether, but it's probably time for me to join this century. =sigh=