MiFi for a month

April 11, 2011 4:56 PM

Short-term MiFi strategy. Will this work?

This summer I'm headed on a month long trip through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. I'll be in a tent a lot. I still need my internet.

I'm thinking I could buy a MiFi Mobile hotspot 3G box on eBay and get a contract with Verison, or Sprint, use it a month, cancel it and sell the MiFi. Is this a workable plan? Is there a better way?

posted by cccorlew to Computers & Internet (9 answers total)

I'm not sure if they cover where you will be going, but I have had good luck using the Virgin Mobile contract-free MIFI. You could also investigate if you can tether your phone to a laptop.
posted by 4ster at 5:02 PM on April 11, 2011

First, you seem to be forgetting about the "contract" part. Virgin Mobile is the only carrier of which I'm aware that will give you wireless broadband without a contract. These contracts aren't transferable, so selling the hardware to someone else won't transfer the contract into their name, and canceling the contract before the term is going to subject you to a cancellation fee, which could be up to $200 depending on your plan and carrier.

Second, you're talking about five states with some of the worst wireless coverage in the country. Verizon and AT&T are going to be spotty, and Sprint has almost nothing. The latter is significant, because Virgin uses the Sprint network.

I think your best bet might be to just stick your head in a Starbucks every couple of days. Actually using WiFi in your tent is going to be pretty tough in that part of the country, particularly if you just want to do it for a month or so and not spend a few hundred bucks.
posted by valkyryn at 5:09 PM on April 11, 2011 [1 favorite]

If you're running around in the woods, a cell phone is pretty handy emergency equipment. (although, obviously, not your only emergency equipment) Maybe spring for a smart phone that does hotspot / tethering instead? I believe you can discontinue the tethering on att's plan at will if you need to.
posted by jenkinsEar at 5:24 PM on April 11, 2011

like 4ster, I too have good luck with the Virgin Mobile contract free MIFI.
posted by garlic at 6:09 PM on April 11, 2011

My family had a terrible time with Sprint coverage in Wyoming, Idaho, and Nebraska, and I wouldn't bet on Washington or Oregon being any better, at least in the wilderness. valkyryn is right, I'm afraid.
posted by SMPA at 6:38 PM on April 11, 2011

Just to put the betting on coverage to rest - Virgin Mobile's coverage map. As you can see, outside of western WA/OR, coverage is pretty terrible in the states you're traveling through. I like the idea of Virgin's pay-as-you-go MiFi, but I doubt it's a workable plan in this case.
posted by asciident at 7:13 PM on April 11, 2011

We did a drive-around-Oregon vacation a couple of years ago (A+++ would drive again!); I have a Verizon phone, and when we were in the more rural parts of the state (which is most of it) - John Day Fossil Beds, Painted Hills, Crater Lake - I almost never had cell coverage, or not for more than a couple of miles at a stretch. It was better on the coast.
posted by rtha at 7:57 PM on April 11, 2011

I own an off-contract ATT USB 3G modem and can use it to activate a plan as a second line without a contract. Turn it on for a month or three of travel, go in and shut it off in a store.
posted by clango at 6:49 AM on April 12, 2011

Response by poster: Thanks for the useful info. Even though I will be near cities, the coverage map looks like I'd not have enough coverage to make it worthwhile. If I do jump, it looks like the contract free may work.
posted by cccorlew at 9:53 AM on April 12, 2011