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Old 08-03-2013, 06:08 PM   #6
IslandEagle
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City: Toronto & Nanaimo
Vessel Name: Island Eagle
Vessel Model: DeFever
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 232
A few comments. I am in the software business, and I (sadly) have to keep connected when I am out on the boat.

1) WiFi and BBX: I have actually had pretty good luck with BBX in the Gulf Islands. Also, there are a fair number of locations that have other WiFi services. I had a three-year-old TP-Link high-powered wireless card, but next year I think I will get a really good WiFi adapter and mount it up on the mast for maximum range. Probably a Rogue: Rogue Wave | Wave Wifi, the #1 Name in Marine Wifi, Yacht Wifi, Marina Wifi & Wireless Internet

The other thing you should do is to understand how Internet Connection Sharing works. With ICS, you can take your BBX or other WiFi connection and then share it with other users on your boat. What I do is use my dedicated nav computer for the WiFi connection and then share that to a regular WiFi router, then all of the other laptops/iPods/iPads etc. on boat have a connection.

WiFi has the great advantage that in most cases there are no bandwidth charges. In other words, you can upload and download all you want. The big downside is that the range is limited to about a mile at the absolute max, and also all of the users are sharing the same connection at the base station.

2) Cellular: I've been using cellular data connections onboard for about 7 years now. This started with Edge (about 1 megabit/second), then 3G (5 meg) and finally LTE (20 meg). These are really great solutions, because they have a much longer range (10 or 20 miles from the tower). You really have three choices: you can use your phone, you can use a card in your computer, or you can use a simple device that connects to the cell networks and then rebroadcasts on WiFi (this is what the MiFi is). I've used all three. I use a MiFi device now because it's the easiest to use.

The major problem with cell data is cost. First, all of the data plans cost real money, and the bandwidth caps are pretty low. However, here's a hint: most of the data-only plans are pay-as-you-go, and many have a "teaser" rate for the first month or two. A few years ago I signed up with Telus for the summer and got unlimited data for two months, which covered my whole summer.

Now, last but not least, roaming. Leaving the country is EXPENSIVE!!!! Trust me, I travel between the US and Canada for business. If you are doing anything but the shortest of trips, BY FAR the best solution is to buy a device and sign up for a plan in both countries. For you US citizens, buy a Telus wireless stick and sign up for a Telus plan. It's by far the best option.

Scott Welch
Island Eagle
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