Mobile internet on the road

Telstra/BigPond is the only way to fly in the outback. even then you will not get service at all camp spots along your route. If you have a tablet with 3G capability then consider this.

Hi Greg & Dianne, I use my mobile phone as a modem and link via WiFi to my tablet or laptop. My current mobile plan has 1Gb and if I need more I buy an extra data pack which is much cheaper than going of the plan limit. A few years ago I did use a separate telstra dongle but that was just something extra. No matter what you go you must be within mobile reception. In the fringe areas I have an external antenna attached to a coupler for the phone. All works well, but as I say you must be within mobile reception.

Cheers
Jon

I have a Telstra pre-paid USB dongle modem thing (see below) that I plug into the laptop, I also have a 1m long USB extension lead, so if reception is marginal I can lift it a bit higher, which often makes all the difference.

It is easy to use as you just plug it in and it will tell you if there is sufficient signal strength or if you are waisting your time. I have used it in North Qld to book a camping site whilst standing in the back of the ute and my mate was hanging out of the tree above to try and get reception..... only to find we had 5 bars of signal when we got to the booked site :-S.

I have used the phone as a personal hotspot before, but the data charges for the dongle are a bit less and the dongle seems to be just a bit more stable. When I am home I can just toss it in the draw and then buy a $15 or $30 data block when I go away again.

Greg & Dianne,

I've had a Telstra sim in my iPad for past 2 or 3 years. Originally used a $30/mth card, then changed to $180/12 month - 12gig (now $200/12 mth I see). Has been good for me as I was away from home for 6 days every 8 days, so was able to check emails, and surf this site, and others, like Weatherzone.

Ran out of data a bit before the plan was first due to run out, but now use wi-fi while at home, so that saves the gigs for when I am away.

We also have a dongle similar to one mentioned by Hoyks. Used to use it with a laptop while we were away on holidays, but haven't used it since we got iPads. Ours has an external aerial socket too, so would be able to utilise an external aerial, for greater range. Dongles are just a simplified mobile phone, without the keypad, screen etc, and have their own phone number. If you were wanting access in fringe areas, a dongle with an external aerial socket, might be a better option than a tablet/iPad, that don't have an external socket.

Bob

we have the same Netgear 4G modem as barry 22 and it works well. Be aware of the distances in the West especially up North. There are still lots of km's without mobile reception even with external antennaes ; towns have reception and the communities with up to 30k radius. You'll be driving along say between Meekatharra and Newman and all of a sudden you get a signal. if you want to transfer money etc that's when you do it don't wait another 50 k's you'll lose the signal.
Enjoy your trip
do go into Broome it's not a bad spot.
When you get down South stay in Busselton for a bit.

Regards Rob J

I've got a Telstra 4G prepaid modem and it has been brilliant.
$180 for 12mths and 12Gb as Bob says - and the reception all through the North of W.A. and the Centre has been terrific.

You can also transfer up to $10 credit from the modem to a Telstra mobile if that mobile is running low on credit.
It's simple to use, works without fail, and you can even plug it into your desktop if your landline fails!

I haven't had a smartphone up until about 6mths ago (when I bought a Samsung Note 3), but I can see where a good quality smartphone could be used in place of a modem and laptop.
However, I still haven't been weaned off my Toshiba laptop, I like having the big screen and the large memory capacity, and I still take it nearly everywhere I travel.

Cheers, Ron.

Greg and Dianne
I guess you now have the message that Telstra gives you the best coverage in remote places (Check the different provider’s coverage maps to see the differences)

That said - we use ‘Boost Mobile’.
‘Boost’ use Telstra’s 3G/NextG network, which is the network to be on in the bush.

The phone I use as a modem has an antenna connection, and with a small 6db antenna ($20 on eBay) the range is often improved by up to 50 km’s or more beyond the last tower. The speed is improved as well with the antenna.

‘Boost’ offer a - ‘no strings or contracts’ - $40/30 days with unlimited calls and up to 3gig data per 30 days. (Why not a month - one might ask?)

I only recharge the Boost phone when we are about to travel, and as long as the credit hasn’t expired by more than six months it works fine.

Jim

To get the best signal strength in marginal areas it's worth going for phones that get the 'blue tick' from Telstra. That means they've been tested and found to have better internal antennas. Fitting an external antenna is also an option if the phone is equipped for it or you can try an induction loop but IME that just brings a phone up to blue tick performance.

Going this route means you use the phone as a wifi hotspot. Telstra don't say whether their wireless broadband units have decent antennas.

One trap for the unwary when using exxy connection time is not to turn off background data transfers like auto backups and synchronising. A 'cloud' connection can rapidly deplete your data allowance. If you have to use it, just monitor the electron flow.

The furthest connection distance found with a mobile on its own was c. 46 km acc. to a test done by a farming organisation. Line of sight of course.

If getting more than that is critical there are satellite data devices.

Hi Greg & Dianne

My husband & I are from WA and returned form a trip to Cape York in QLD last year travelling down from Kununurra to Perth. We were advised in 2012 that it wouldn't be long before Highway 1 in northern WA would have Telstra phone coverage all the way and indeed in 2014 with an antenna attached to my Telstra country phone (one with the blue tick) I had continuous coverage.

Also, from the 24hour free camp at De Grey River (just north of Port Hedland) and heading south on Highway 1, if you pull in you will see some new style metal gazebos with concrete picnic tables near the eco toilets. Look up into the roof of these and if you see a metal box approx. 60 cm square you will have free WiFi coverage at the gazebo. That's why there are always people there!

I also have a tiny portable antenna which I can put up on the roof of the caravan (through the 4 season hatch sitting on a steel ruler) and continued to have coverage on my phone and my tablet/laptop. I even had phone & internet coverage at several places across the Nullabor using this method and in remote places in QLD, SA & NT when no-one else did.

I have used Wireless Mobile Broadband for a number of years now - not bothering with the ADSL broadband at home as we travel 3 to 4 months at a time. I do not use Pre Paid but have a regular monthly billing plan and in conversation recently according to a Telstra technical guru this makes a difference. The Wireless Broadband Modems supplied under the monthly billing plan are better than the pre paid dongles and I believe it. We have travelled with friends who use the pre paid dongle and I get coverage when they can't.

Hope this helps. Happy travels