Des Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 I'm vaguely aware of satellite internet access and modems containing a sim card using cellphone 3G and suchlike devilment. I've used a thing like a miniature TV aerial here and in Europe to bogey free wifi, but it's very hit and miss, never there when really needed, would like something more serious, is anyone using anything lah-de-dah and fancy? Should I just use a smartphone and get myself clued up about 3G, tethering, bluetooth and all that bollocks or is there a fancy box to fulfil my requirements with +12V, -12V terminals, an aerial and flashing lights that can be stuffed under a seat and wont charge £50 and take half an hour to download a jpeg of some bint with her norks out? Twiggy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pillock Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 I've got an EE Osprey Mini that I got free with something in the car, charges off a microusb so I've got a three way charger with one lead plugged in to it all the time. I leave it in the car overnight, it switches off when nothing is connected for a bit so I just press the button in the morning and it connects both my phones automatically a few seconds later. EE gave me 100GB a month for a tenner (offer lasts two months) so I'm streaming radio all the time in the car and still not really touching the data. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabergé Greggs Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 3G ain't great on the move. 4g is quicker and seems to cope better with 70mph (officer). Bobthebeard and warren t claim 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cort16 Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 A guys at works new 3 series has a 4g sim built into it with unlimited data . The audio system lets him put his Spotify account details on and he can go to this via screen on the dash and stream pretty much any song/album in the world in real time. Once it's downloaded it's cached on a disk in the car. It's pretty impressive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiltox Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 EE do a device that plugs straight into a 12v socket Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cavcraft Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi paul Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 I have the osprey from EE has well. I get 15g a month. I use it in the caravan , but have thrown it in car for long journeys so the kids can take their pads. I think you can buy it from currys and then just get your own internet only sim from whoever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercrocker Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Aston Martin, Tamworthbay, Sloth in a bowl and 21 others 24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twiggy Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 I don`t understand a word of this...................... Junkman and eddyramrod 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr A Lawrence Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 You must understand most of it because your on the internet actively contributing to a forum whilst sat in front of a computer/laptop/tablet or mobile phone. Twiggy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobthebeard Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 3G ain't great on the move. 4g is quicker and seems to cope better with 70mph (officer).Can't comment on the 4g at 70mph, but have had a contract Vodafone 4g phone for over a year now, hardly ever had a 4g signal apart from in city centres. Contract is up soon so I haz bought a cheapy EE payg Rook android phone to try out the network. Pretty impressed with it so far. Get 4g much more readily and in areas that Vodafone struggle to put out a decent 2g signal. Think I will be sacking Vodafone... Edit. Who/what are EE btw? Why are they so much better in terms of delivering a decent signal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HH-R Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 EE are a merger of T-Mobile and Orange. They seem better than Vodafone but are a joke compared to O2 round here, YMMV though. Bobthebeard 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoadworkUK Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 I really, really hate the unnecessary duplication of technology. I have a cutting edge web-enabled device in my pocket, where it's infinitely portable and very easy to upgrade, why would I want one built into my car, stuck there forever, getting old and outmoded? Ditto Sat-Nav really. I belly-laugh whenever I sit in an E39 with "Professional" Nav which, by today's standards, looks like pages from Ceefax. AlabamaShrimp, andrew e, spartacus and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aston Martin Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 Can't comment on the 4g at 70mph, but have had a contract Vodafone 4g phone for over a year now, hardly ever had a 4g signal apart from in city centres. Yep, 4G is fantastic in cities........ Motorways??? 2G if i'm lucky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pillock Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 I get 4G almost everywhere I go - admittedly I don't commute to the Shetland Isles or owt, but motorway and A road networks seems fine. 3G is fast enough to stream music anyway, 4G just copes better with patchy signal on the move - when you get a burst of data it can download more, so your music keeps playing because it cached more in the 30s or so. I really only use the MiFi because I have two phones in the car, and my work one is no data, calls only. With the MiFi I can use it for satnav and leave my phone streaming music, trying to do everything off one makes it go really slow and I miss junctions. Also, I just lobbed it in my pocket, went shopping with the family and everyone can use the internet without having to keep logging into various free wifis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercrocker Posted February 6, 2016 Share Posted February 6, 2016 I don`t understand a word of this...................... You must understand most of it because your on the internet actively contributing to a forum whilst sat in front of a computer/laptop/tablet or mobile phone. Possibly Mr Twig is like myself - where Internet requires a dining table, cup of tea, laptop and a modem...... D Spares & Tyres, Magnificent Rustbucket, eddyramrod and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew e Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Don't forget the wet wipes. Clanger, D Spares & Tyres, Mr A Lawrence and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lacquer Peel Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 Three is pretty good for consistent 3/4G, even in rural areas.The drawback is they don't offer a 2G service at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrew e Posted February 7, 2016 Share Posted February 7, 2016 My car has factory Internet wifi hotspot thingy and colour screen. Which I can tether my phone too. My car screen is the size of my phone screen... Have I ever used it? Only to see if it worked! RoadworkUK 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Des Posted February 8, 2016 Author Share Posted February 8, 2016 Thanks for the info chaps, a quick look and I see EE simcards on Amazon with 6 gig of internet that has to be used within 90 days for about £13, or go to the EE site and it's £15 for 25 gig, I got to halfway through the order, all manner of intrusive questions for which I contrived answers, as you do, then it insisted on a direct debit so I'll look elsewhere. The modems seem to vary a lot in price, but I assume the cheapest, simplest wireless one will be adequate within the confines of a vehicle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangerousdave Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 all this 4g simcard and wifi built into cars gets me confused they seem more like mobile computers than cars these days or am I just showing my age lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghosty Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 The internet in a car: Lacquer Peel and Mr A Lawrence 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twiggy Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Possibly Mr Twigg is like myself - where Internet requires a dining table, cup of tea, laptop and a modem...... Correct ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete-M Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Ze interwebs have been standard issue in a lot of Mercedes and BMW stuff (with nav) for a few years. My brothers BMW 530d definitely had it as he would often Google stuff in the car. Newish Å kodas and other VAG stuff have WiFi built in. Pair your phone with the car and if you've got a decent (android) phone it'll go into 'remote sim' mode where the car uses its own gubbins to make and receive calls, SMS etc. Unfortunately, having no working SIM in your phone can be a bugger if you use Google navigation, so you pair your phone with the car WiFi and use that. It's still using your phone's data package, but the phone signal is rather seriously boosted by the car with its fancy aerials and stuff. Sounds like a complicated, around the houses way of doing it but it works a treat and once your phone is paired with the car everything is done automagically. There's even a little 3g symbol appears on the dash for when the interweb connection is working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Felly Magic Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 What about the Chrysler Cheaps that could be hacked into via the interwebs and have things like brakes and the engine shut down from a rather long way away? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete-M Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 Tis a bit worrying that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garethj Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 There are so many other things that could go wrong with a Chrysler that hacking by a determined teenager is well down the list of risks. Lacquer Peel 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HH-R Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 My car has factory Internet wifi hotspot thingy and colour screen. Which I can tether my phone too. My car screen is the size of my phone screen... Have I ever used it? Only to see if it worked! I was just thinking, why would t'internet be needed in an car, am I missing something (good)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
For Fiats Sake Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 I was just thinking, why would t'internet be needed in an car, am I missing something (good)? Points for using an electronic device in a car in motion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pillock Posted February 8, 2016 Share Posted February 8, 2016 That's a bit vague, it kind of rules out having a satnav, using the radio, having a hearing aid or looking at the Speedo. Internet useful for streaming music, because round shiny easily destroyed musical disks are so last milennium and the radio is full of twerps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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