$25/month unlimited internet....interested?

[slabman]

mfredm, We've traveled across several states with TWO Visible phones, none being able to get more than 0.3 to 1.5 mbps download. I finally got to Boone NC and got on a chat with Visible and she ran though a few procedures involving resets with sim card in/out. We finally decided the tech guys would be the next step, so now we wait. While the "extra" android phone works pretty well at connecting, the iPhone 6s will not keep hotspotting OR tethered to either of TWO routers. I suggest you get on a chat with them also, because it's quite apparent they do have some issues.

[Camper25]

This past week, I was about 100-miles from Boone NC and streamed TV for a week on my Visible account. It worked well for me. I didn't check the speed, but then I never do.

[gsgriffin]

Originally Posted by slabman

mfredm, We've traveled across several states with TWO Visible phones, none being able to get more than 0.3 to 1.5 mbps download.

Very sorry to hear that. That stinks.

I'm currently parked in little Socorro, New Mexico...far from anything....I'm getting 42mb down and 44mb up on my free Visible R2 phone tethered to the recommended router. It is possible to get good speeds. The equipment is capable, but all needs to be running well and in good areas.

I hope they figure everything out for you quickly!

[mfredm]

I am currently in the Coastal Bend of Texas, and Visible here is really fast, around 20M. The problem is not Visible, its gotta be the Router. I'm on Park WiFi now, which is fast and I have the same dropping connection problem. I'll try a different power supply, see if that helps. Remember, I was an early adopter, and this set up has been running for 1 year now.

[PbdBlue]

Using a ZTE A7. Speeds are all over the map but I think that's mainly due to prioritizing and not the phone. For example this morning I have 22mb but yesterday afternoon it was around 5mb. Currently in an area that likely has 1 tower feeding many. Most of the time I have at least 2 - 3 mb and typically >5.

[dkperez]

I did a tiny bit of traveling last week too, a couple hours north to a small town in Wisconsin. Had both the A7 Prime and the Moto G7 and the two travel routers in the RV with me.


In Grantsburg, I had VERY strong signal, better than the 2-3 bars I get at home. And lousy speed. Thursday night, in the middle of a zoom meeting I dropped completely. Speed on either cell phone was either zero or a MAXIMUM of around 500K. After a few minutes I was able to reconnect, but even then, my speeds NEVER even hit 1 Mbit. Needless to say, attempting to stay on Zoom was an exercise in extremely poor quality.


In the 4 days, I don't think EITHER phone ever hit 5 Mb/s. I was sort-of able to stream, but I'd get something like 144p rather than the 480p minimum. On the computer, it worked and I could send email, but downloading ANYTHING of size was pointless. It would fail before finishing.


Last year I traveled with a Nighthawk hotspot on AT&T before OTRMobile screwed the pooch and it was awesome. I sure hope Visible isn't this crummy everywhere, but from the reports I'm seeing in here recently, it doesn't sound promising.

[mfredm]

With a few exceptions, I have gotten good d/l speeds from visible everywhere. The operative word here is "download". Usually the upload and ping times are horrible. I wouldn't try video conferencing, or online gaming, as that would suck.

[Goodspike]

Originally Posted by nineback

Were the two phones the same model? I've found a big difference in my cheap Visible phone versus an iPhone. The cheap phones do not receive the same bands not have as good an antenna system as the more expensive phones. Sometimes you get what you pay for. .

I don't think it's based on price, but you're right many phones don't receive the same number of channels as other phones. But the $500 Pixel 4a 5G gets basically the same number of LTE channels as the $850 iPhone 12 (I think each has one channel the other doesn't, which is odd).

Some iPhones actually have a disadvantage as to other phones due to metal construction. Metal is good for heat disbursing, but little else.

BTW, this issue with channels is going to be worse with 5G because of the different types of 5G systems.

Then there's also the issue of the same model phone having sub-models.

If you travel internationally it's probably better to get a phone that works with all three of the major US carriers, because those will likely have more channels available than others, but it's still a good idea to actually check the specs. If you don't travel you can just find out the channels your carrier uses (if you don't mind being locked into a carrier for the life of a phone--I do.)

[wayfarer2021]

I believe the newer iPhones have backs made of glass not metal to support induction charging.

Tom

Originally Posted by Goodspike

I don't think it's based on price, but you're right many phones don't receive the same number of channels as other phones. But the $500 Pixel 4a 5G gets basically the same number of LTE channels as the $850 iPhone 12 (I think each has one channel the other doesn't, which is odd).

Some iPhones actually have a disadvantage as to other phones due to metal construction. Metal is good for heat disbursing, but little else.

[mfredm]

Ok. I think I have a problem with the GL-AR450 router. I switched to a 2.4A power supply with no effects. With the Visible R2 Tethered via USB to the router, the Network is stable. If Either the R2, or the Park WiFi(which is stable and fast) is connected wirelessly to the router, the Network becomes unstable, with devices connecting and dropping. Watching the client screen in the router interface, you can see multiple devices trying to connect to the 2.4G, or 5G bands, then dropping. This is No Bueno, as the R2 is my primary Phone and I don't want to plug and unplug.

[GLK]

I’m interested

[2Humans3Dogs]

I had the same problem (noted earlier in this thread) with the GL-AR750S router. It didn't matter if I was connected via USB of wirelessly. It seemed to be a heat issue with the router. I switched back to my old home ASUS router running Merlin firmware. No more issues.

Originally Posted by mfredm

Ok. I think I have a problem with the GL-AR450 router. I switched to a 2.4A power supply with no effects. With the Visible R2 Tethered via USB to the router, the Network is stable. If Either the R2, or the Park WiFi(which is stable and fast) is connected wirelessly to the router, the Network becomes unstable, with devices connecting and dropping. Watching the client screen in the router interface, you can see multiple devices trying to connect to the 2.4G, or 5G bands, then dropping. This is No Bueno, as the R2 is my primary Phone and I don't want to plug and unplug.

[Johnynorthla]

Originally Posted by gsgriffin

For those that spend a lot of time on the road, or those that need the occassional Internet access that is robust. For those that can access cellular towers from Verizon (You don't need to have a cellular service from them). For those that don't want a contract and just pay monthly as needed. For those that can live without having the absolute fastest speeds. Lastly, for those that $40/month with nothing extra fits the budget.....only paying for the months that you actually need it.

I got into something that I can refer and create instructions on how to do, but I don't know if there is interest enough for me to go through the effort. In short, what I was able to put together costs about $190 upfront to buy a few devices. This uses the Verizon cellular network, gives unlimited internet (70Gigs before they adjust for network congestion), no contract, pay monthly as you need it, and can use as many connected devices as you like. In addition, the equipment can be easily modified to extend an existing Wifi, if the signal is weak but there is wifi available (wifi extender), and also connect up directly with a USB modem.

The catch is that this is not for the "noob". If you don't know what that means, you may not want to try this. I'm not trying to become technical support for hundreds as a volunteer. Sorry, I just don't have that kind of spare time on my hands.

If there is enough serious interest, I'll create the equipment list and instruction on setup. I've been using for a month without issue, 9 connected devices, streaming Netflix and Amazon in good rez (locally a Plex server I bring with me), and personally haven't been slowed down (about 5Mbs speed limit).

If you've been in the hunt for something as stated above, please let me know. Enough interest and I'll take the time to create the complete guide. Please don't ask for all of the details on what and how in this thread. It is too much to describe. Just post if you are seriously interested and need this. I'm only offering because I didn't find this option here.

Count me in!

[smiller]

Originally Posted by Goodspike

I don't think it's based on price, but you're right many phones don't receive the same number of channels as other phones. But the $500 Pixel 4a 5G gets basically the same number of LTE channels as the $850 iPhone 12 (I think each has one channel the other doesn't, which is odd).

It's not really the total number of bands since if the phone supports LTE bands 2,4,5, and 13 (and virtually any Verizon-compatible phone will) then you're set for Verizon, and adding 20 additional bands not used by the Verizon won't make any difference (although it would make the phone more usable if you ever decided to use it with another carrier.)

The real weakness of cheap phones with regard to speed lies in the modem chipset, for example the Visible R2 has a CAT4 modem which is several years old and pretty much scrapes the bottom of the line these days whereas even a couple-year-old Pixel 3 has a CAT16 modem with 5xCA and 4x4 MIMO. These features won't always make a difference but where they do the R2 simply isn't able to compete.

So again if one is focused on speed (as so many posts in the thread seem to be) then it probably isn't wise to try to save a few bucks on a cheapo phone and be crippled before you start. This is one area where the most cost-effective price isn't necessarily the lowest price.