Online Connectivity

Campground supplied Wi-Fi

More and more campgrounds are offering Wi-Fi Internet service. Most seem to be offering the service for free; however, much of the time the free service is frequently slow as it is being shared by many campers. Some campgrounds charge for the service and I have found that usually the charge service is faster than the free services, but that is not always the case. Most new notebook computers come with a Wi-Fi card and built-in cards tend to be a bit better than USB or PCMCIA cards, but again this depends on the computer and the manufacturer of the card.

A USB plug-in card, may be a better option for campers because you can use a USB extension cord to move the card away from the computer and place it high up in a window for better reception. Some USB cards come with short extension cords, some don't. Many RVs have metal frames that will block Wi-Fi signals, so placing the card in a window can greatly increase your signal strength. Try to determine which direction the campground's closest access point is from your RV and use a window on that side.

It is usually fairly easy to spot a Wi-Fi access point. These antennas come in two varieties. A vertical colum, usually a white pole about 5 to 6 feet long, but they can take on other appearances, or a square, flat device anywhere from 5 inches to 2 feet across. The pole antennas are usually mounted on the roof of a building or top of a pole, and usually will have some sort of small plastic box near the bottom. The square antennas are usually found on the sides of buildings. The pole type antenna is omni-directional which means they work from all directions. The flat antennas have a longer range, but will only pick up signals from in front. So if you see a flat antenna that is pointed 90 degrees or more away from you, then that antenna won't work for you unless it is very close. Some campgrounds have built their own system using standard consumer access points or routers like you might have at home. These are fine, but they don't usually have the range of the commercial antennas mentioned above. The consumer access points without an external antenna are usually only effective up to 300 feet away, where as the commercial systems can work well up to 2,000 feet, depending on how well the system is designed.

Many Wi-Fi cards come with their own connection software which may give you an indication of signal level from different access points. Choose the access point on the campgrounds' network with the strongest signal. It is important to understand that signal strength is not directly related to how fast your Internet connection will be. In most cases, a 3% signal will give you just as fast an Internet connection as a 90% signal. The strong signal will just be a bit more stable as radio conditions change around the campground, such as a big motor home parking between you and the access point.

Cellular service sometimes called "Air Cards"

With this option, you purchase an "air card" from your cellular phone company, which plugs into your computer and connects you to the Internet through a special data account with your cell phone company. (Note: the term "air card" is a registered trademark of Sierra Wireless who manufactures the vast majority of the devices used for this service. There are other manufactures, but most people will know what you are speaking of if you use the term air card.)

This method can give you a lot of options, but can be extremely confusing trying to figure out which service to pick. This is the only option that can allow you to surf the Internet while driving along (with one exception mentioned under Satellite Internet below). The various providers keep the consumer guessing as to what the various packages or services actually do so it is difficult to determine which service you should subscribe to. It is very important to try to understand the packages because, at this writing, you must sign up for a minimum of 2 years of service. Picking the wrong service provider can create massive headaches over the course of your contract. For example, for some carriers, if you aren't in their service area, you get no service. Some providers offer roaming through other areas which can get very expensive very quickly. As of this writing, Verizon has the widest coverage compared to ATT or Sprint.

Another point to consider now, is service version. The current latest technology is called G3 which just means Generation Three of the technology used to transmit data. Those who are not youngsters will remember the "Bag Phones" or heavy bulky cellular phone sets that had to be installed in your truck or car. That was Generation One. The portable, fits in your pocket, phones most of us now carry used G2 service and most will also work through G3 technologies. G4 is on the horizon, but only Sprint claims to have G4 even though it will be several years before G4 standards are agreed upon and set. (I think Sprint is using tricky wording to make it sound like they are ahead of everyone else)

What all this means is G2 service will only work about as fast as a dial up connection. G3, when working at its best, will give you the range of a low end DSL connection.

I currently have accounts with both ATT and Verizon and I have found the Verizon coverage is much better and the connection speeds are generally much better. (This is especially true with Verizon's recent acquisition of Altel) However that may change over the next few years as ATT upgrades their equipment. I don't have experience with Sprint, but their coverage map currently shows most of the US as roaming. Because you are going to have to subscribe to two years of service, make sure you lookup your carrier's current coverage map to see which gives the most coverage for the areas you expect to be traveling in.

Satellite Internet

This is certainly an option for the traveler, but is fairly expensive or complicated to set up. You can also only use it when camped as it won't work while moving (there are a few systems which allow satellite connection while in motion, but they are extreamly expensive). However satellite service is the only service that will work from anywhere in the US as long as you have a clear view of the sky in the direction of the satellite. You have to purchase or lease the equipment and when you set up the dish it must be pointed exactly right to function.

There are currently two satellite Internet providers, that offer service to the average traveler Hughes and Skyblue. There are several companies that offer rather expensive automatic pointing and aiming systems for the RVer. The only one that I have looked at in any depth is Mobil Sat. I've e-mailed them asking for price information but so far have not gotten a useful response from them.

It is important to know that, as I type this, we are on the verge of a whole new revolution in wireless communication. The freeing up of the old analogue TV channel spectrum (old channels 2 through 6, currently scheduled for June 2009) will open up a very wide bandwidth for moble communications, some of which will be used for high speed Internet connectivity. Exactly what form that will take has yet to be disclosed by the people bidding on the frequency leases. We as consumers can only sit back and wait to see what comes along.