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WIFI CONNECTIVITY FOR YOUR VINTAGE TRAILER or RV.

1/22/2021

By Alyssa Padgett
RV Entrepreneur Podcast

If you want to work on the road, you need RV internet. Which unfortunately isn’t as simple as setting up internet in a house.

Inside of the high-tech Mobile Incubator (a 1950's Shasta) from https://www.culturehustlers.com/

Chris and Cherie are OG full-time digital nomads and have been traveling for nearly 15 years. They both work on the road and knew that this lifestyle couldn’t work long-term without solid internet.
After years of testing and experience, they’ve become the gold standard for understanding and finding gear for internet for RVers

I recommend listening to our full interview with Chris and Cherie on episode 212 of the RV Entrepreneur Podcast, but if you're short on time, I'll highlight a few of the major things I learned listening to their expertise.
Here are a few of the best tips Chris and Cherie shared:

Create Redundancies
If you're working on the road, knowing where you will have internet signal tends to dictate your travel plans. If you have backup options for staying connected, you can (almost) always stay connected.
For example, we use an unlimited AT&T data plan for our hot spot and main internet connection.
But we also have unlimited Verizon data on our phones that we can tether to our computers as a backup.
And we also use a wifi extender in case we need to use RV park wifi. (RV park wifi has improved leaps and bounds in the past few years! Chris and Cherie share a few reasons why in the podcast episode.)
Redundancies will improve your chances of staying connected.
This is also something employers love to hear you have in place if you're working remotely. Being able to say "Don't worry boss, if this doesn't work, here's my backup plan, and my backup backup plan" goes a long way!
This does NOT have to be hugely expensive to set up either.
We pay $105/month for unlimited AT&T, our unlimited data plans on our phones costs the same as 10 GB of data would cost us, so that was a no brainer upgrade, and the wifi extender we use is built into newer RVs. (And I'll cover more internet gear you’ll need in a sec!)

Lucas Spivey of the Culture Hustlers. https://www.culturehustlers.com/

Unlimited Data is...Gone?
When we started RVing in 2014, you had basically one internet option: unlimited data.
Now, carriers don't offer truly unlimited data plans anymore. (You'll have to search for a grandfathered plan from a third party vendor.)
Most "unlimited” data plans have hidden caps, ones that even the sales people probably don't know about. So before you buy an unlimited data plan from a carrier, read the fine print.
Do they throttle after 35 GBs? Because throttling in our experience means your internet goes from speedy to won't-load-anything in a snap.
(Chris and Cherie do recommend an AT&T plan by Cricket in the episode!)
Despite the limitations of data, cellular data is still the best option for staying connected (other options would be relying on RV park wifi or lugging around a satellite with your RV).
If you can find a grandfathered unlimited data plan, it can be the best way to stay connected on the road. However, because carriers are cracking down on data plans that use lots of data every month (think 250+ GB), these data plans are becoming more scarce.

Internet Gear You (Probably) Need
In addition to a hotspot (sometimes called nighthawk, jetpack, velocity, unite, and other random names depending on where you buy it), you may consider a few pieces of gear to boost and extend your internet signal.
So to make it overly simple, here's a quick reference list of some of the types of gear Chris and Cherie mention in their interview:

weBoost cell booster This boosts your cell signal from your carrier and can be installed on your RV.
Netgear MIMO antenna This is not a cell booster, but works similarly. You plug in into your hotspot and can move it around your RV to the location with the best cell signal. It works better than a cell booster about 70% of the time according to Chris and Cherie.
Pepwave Max Router This is one of the newer internet developments in the past few years. A router can help you stay connected to the strongest internet option in your arsenal, but it’s on the more expensive side when it comes to RV internet gear.
Winegard Wifi Extender For connecting to RV park or public wifi, this is going to extend signal into your RV if you’re far away from a router. This doesn’t boost your internet speeds like a cell booster does, but can be most helpful in RV parks where you’re likely far away from the internet source.
King WifiMax Extender Same function as above, but this extender is slightly cheaper and was built into our last RV, the Winnebago Forza. More and more RV manufacturers are starting to build wifi extenders into their new rigs.

The Mobile Incubator. https://www.culturehustlers.com/

So what should your internet setup look like? It depends.
I know, not what you want to hear, right?
But everyone has different needs!

Someone doing Youtube needs amazing upload speeds.
Someone doing Zoom calls with customers five hours a day needs more redundancies.
Someone who blogs like me and doesn't have tight deadlines, doesn't need a complicated internet setup.

Chris and Cherie lay out a ton of options in the podcast episode, which is why if you're trying to figure out the best internet set up for you in 2021, I recommend listening to the full episode for their expert advice.

Four days after their wedding, Heath and Alyssa jumped into an RV and started traveling full-time.

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TCT 2021 Winter Convention

1/4/2021

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Tin Can Tourists' may be a vintage trailer based group but we do not discriminate membership based on the year of your rig.....ALL trailers are welcome to attend, even brand new rigs, motorhomes, tents, etc... Come Join the fun!

Registration is OFFICIALLY OPEN for the TCT 2021 Winter Convention. This year will be packed full of fun and safe events. We will do everything we can to remain safe and healthy. We have a professional caterer that will prepare meals safely and served in to-go containers allowing members to eat at socially distanced tables or take their meals back to their trailer. This year event T-Shirts are included in the rally packet. There will be a socially distanced outdoor movie night (Every trailer gets Jiffy Pop and other movie treats in their welcome packet.) Custom TCT Mask will be provided for all members. New this year is a shuffle board tournament (Mask required for participates) and we are sure to have some strong competition as other Rallies have had Shuffle Board and we are finding out that teams have now officially been formed and some already have their own team uniforms!

There will not be a Public open house this year but we will have Friday Night Lights were members are encouraged to decorate the exteriors with lights and open all their curtains with interior lights turned on so we can all 'tour' and 'view' the trailers outside safely from the windows. Saturday will also include a Swap meet as usual and the Ladies Exchange that we had last year. Sanitation will be a top priority for this event! More information and official schedule will be posted soon! If you have any questions or concerns please send an email to [email protected]

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WIFI CONNECTIVITY FOR YOUR VINTAGE TRAILER or RV.

TCT 2021 Winter Convention

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