OT Anyone got Karma? (wifi)

My laptop says I used 600 GB over the last 57 days. I watch a lot of movies online. Netflix and Hulu rock. Some more than half of that is really not on the WISP. I have a couple, three places where I hang out. But the zeros are right, just needs a divide by two or three.

Wow, nice google-foo! Looking at the sprint coverage map it over laps the one from Karma. (Well except where I live is listed as fair.) The Sprint thing is too bad, I'm guessing that my Karma is going back. Verizon put up a cell tower in the valley and the Verizon signal is pretty good at my house.

Tanks, George H.

I've had zero issues with Hughesnet. Their system was down for a few days a year or so ago. They sent everyone some extra GB's to make up for it.

George H.

Might work, but when I've done it (5GHz in the 802.11a days) it took directional antennae at BOTH ends of the link. So, you need a transceiver near Smokey's, with a nondirectional antenna, and a second transceiver on a dedicated high-gain antenna aimed at your distant location (which also will need a high-gain antenna). A single router, if it has diversity antennae and a 'relay' function, can suffice.

If you can't verify line-of-sight due to trees or foliage, get a good topographic map of the region, and plot the ground height along your line-of-sight. With that plot, find the antenna mast height you need.

No, way too many hills. ~100' towers. It's OK there is something to be said for hughesnet and limited download, my kids get bored and then have to do something else. (Not enough boredom, our downfall :^)

George H.

The trouble with Verizon is they charge an arm and a leg for the service.

I have heard nothing good about them. One friend used them for her business. It was down for over a week and couldn't get them to do anything about it. They had to sign up with another company and still had to pay off the Hughesnet contract too boot.

No kidding. I don't do cellular data, but was a Verizon voice only customer for many years. I bailed when the price for a single handset went up to about $75/month for about 600 minutes ($0.13/min assuming I actually use all the minutes). I've been on PagePlus for the last few years at $0.05/min. I use about 300 mins/month for a total bill of about $15/month. Quite a savings.

I went Googling for WISP's and found nothing. That doesn't mean that there are none, just that they aren't listed in the usual directories.

I was a Net10 user for some time at $0.03 per minute. But they don't work great at my one house even though they were on the Verizon network. Seems by piggy backing on Verizon's towers they get a low bit rate compression which distorts heavily. Something made it really bad quality.

I switched to being a "family" member with a friend for $20 a month. Unlimited text and calls, don't need data on a dumb phone anyway.

By my comment on the Verizon price, I meant the data services. At dollars per GB it is too expensive for real work or play.

And at least round here, they can't find their derrieres with two hands, a map, GPS, radar, etc. Switching to Optimum was a huge win.

Cheers

Phil Hobbs

Thanks Jeff, "The boy" (who will likely be bigger than me in a year.) was on the lead like a dog on the scent of a fox. He came up empty too. But we'll keep our eyes on it... it looks like an expanding market.

OK this is even more OT... My son is buying me a new phone for Xmas. But I need it now, so I've got an early present from him. Here's my first selfie....

Now with a face like that, tell me that man couldn't have made a living as a clown! :^)

George H.

If you have the time, you might try driving around the neighborhood looking at rooftop antennas. What you're looking for is a directional antenna or radome with an antenna inside, that might be used for WISP service. Very popular around here are the various Ubiquiti outdoor products: If you find some, try to determine where they are pointed. That should help identify the WISP. If not, bang on the door and ask.

You might scare the kids. I also like the not so stiff upper lip. I recommend consulting a cosmetician for a men's makeover.

I think you've just discovered the problem with a selfie. It uses the low resolution camera above the screen, instead of the high resolution camera on the back. What you really want is a selfie stick with a mirror, so you can use the high resolution camera.

Lol, that's a great one! :)

My WISP antenna is a Ubiquiti, but it doesn't stand out and in fact, is mounted low rather than high. The main obstructions here are trees and you get under the close ones by mounting it low. I'm trying to get them to move the antenna for me. I found a sweet spot that gets me another 3 dB or so which should boost my bandwidth. It will need a longer cord and holes drilled through the wall to reach it though.

We still use Verizon because of the coverage. Almost everyone has unlimited voice an data, now, and less than $75/line (I pay that for voice, text, and 5GB).

I know there are resellers that use the Verison network (like PagePlus) but I use the data too. My contract is up next month so I've been looking around again. I don't find that much difference between Verizon and the others for data. If all you use is phone and text, sure, you can save some money.

Well, let's see: Various "unlimited" plans depending on much 4G data you want from $30 to $70/month. After you've exhausted your 4G data, it switches you to the slower 2G data rates.

$30 to $100/month with similar bandwidth tiers. The FAQ mumbles something about a monthly access charge of $20/month if you own your own phone, or $40/month if your phone is on a 2 year contract. No clue if that's included or in addition to the "Verizon Plan" charges. Here's what happens when you go over your monthly bandwidth quota:

No matter what size data plan you have, all overages are billed at $15 for each 1 GB, rounded up. For example, if you use 250 MB over your allowance, you'll be charged $15.

So, instead of dropping to a slower speed, you get hit with a rather larger overage charge or if you call Verizon, get inspired to sign up for another two years at a higher bandwidth tier. Another problem is if your situation changes and you use LESS data than your bandwidth tier. The remainder is essentially wasted and you're paying for unused data. Good luck renegotiating for a lower tier.

This discussion really belongs in Howard Forums:

I wrote this in 2011 when I switched from VZW to PagePlus. At the time, things were not exactly simple. Fortunately, they've improved somewhat now that PagePlus is part of TracFone.

...and Verizon is $60 to $100 for 4G ($20 for the second phone). 2G? That's useless.

The family plan and data sharing are big advantages. These are offered by VZW but not by their MVNO's. I thought you were talking about one phone. If you're going to equip the family with phones on the same plan, VZW is probably cheapest.

Sorry. Typo error. 3G, not 2G, and quite usable. I would post a chart, but the numbers are all over the map and vary by vendor and service area. Still, slowing down to 3G speeds is better than paying overage charge or being forced to the next higher tier.

I was talking about comparing for my needs (two people). I'll stay with VZW because of the coverage and the price isn't so far out of line anymore.

With all the adware crap, now, I'd argue that 3G was useless, as well. Whenever I see the 3G symbol on my phone, I just put it away.