# Replace home internet with 4G?



## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

Hello
I just moved, and the internet at my new home is driving me mad. The internet here is supposed to be 15 Mb/s, but in reality it is more like 6. It also constantly connects and disconnects. I did a speedtest while connected to 4G on my phone, and I got 15-16 Mb/s. If the internet problem is not resolved, I wish to "cord cut" and replace my home internet with 4G. How do I do this? Is there a "4G Modem"? I need both wired and wireless internet, and I am not sure whether the 4G near my house in LTE or HSPA+. Are there any major disadvantages to using 4G as your home network? Are there any other solutions?

I am not in the US, so Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Sprint do not apply. If I end up getting a 4G modem, I will be using an unlimited plan from a local carrier. Also, SIM locking is illegal in my country.

Thanks


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> Replace home internet with 4G?


I would never do that. Get a wired one if you can, wireless internet is horrible.

But the choice is yours.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

Have you read my post? My wired internet is 6 Mb/s, while my phones wireless 4G is 16 Mb/s.


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## ShiBDiB (Jul 23, 2015)

http://www.dlink.com/uk/en/home-solutions/work/wireless-mobile-broadband/dwr-921-4g-lte-router

Something like that with a sim slot should work.

If it's faster I don't see why not. Obviously the threat for cell network interruption is higher than a cable based system, also stability could potentially be an issue.


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## CAPSLOCKSTUCK (Jul 23, 2015)

Enable wifi hotspot on android then tether your pc to the phone. 
Check your phone contract for 4G restrictions.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

CAPSLOCKSTUCK said:


> Enable wifi hotspot on android then tether your pc to the phone.
> Check your phone contract for 4G restrictions.


I need both wired and wireless internet, and I need to power multiple computers, even without a phone. I've heard of 4g modems or hotspots. What about them?


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> Have you read my post?


Yes.



TeslaK20 said:


> My wired internet is 6 Mb/s, while my phones wireless 4G is 16 Mb/s.


Speed is only 1/10 of the story. There are more things that will affect your happiness greatly.

If your wired internet is so poor then I would suggest you calling to your ISP to get it solved or simply change to an ISP that works.

Where are you from? I live in one of the most incompetent countries in the world and still have a decent internet provider.

If your location does not have competition, then this might be the problem. And I would get a wireless one only if it is the best option (as it was for me some years ago when no cable providers existed here).

Just my opinion.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

Blue-Knight said:


> If your location does not have competition, then this might be the problem.


That is unfortunately the case. Only one ISP here in this particular area. And there's little incentive for others to cover it.


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> That is unfortunately the case. Only one ISP here.


Then in this case I would get the 4G yesterday.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

Blue-Knight said:


> Then in this case I would get the 4G yesterday.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

Unless my ISP suddenly decides to fix it, that is.


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> How do I do this? Is there a "4G Modem"?


The ISP should give you everything you need to get started... Or they should point you to the right directions.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

What else affects your happiness other than speed? Can the router mentioned above work with HSPA+?


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> What else affects your happiness other than speed?


Line quality, uptime, ping/pong, limitations and restrictions... And obviously PRICE.


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## TeslaK20 (Jul 23, 2015)

Blue-Knight said:


> Line quality, uptime, ping/pong, limitations and restrictions...


And how does 4G compare in those areas?

P.S: Once this thread "ends", I might launch a new one comparing 4G routers. Stay tuned for that in the next few days. For now, the thread is still active.


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> And how does 4G compare in those areas?


I think it is (much) more expensive and most will have a ridiculous bandwidth restriction. That is how it is in my country.

I cannot say much about its performance >> speed, latency, uptime as I have never saw it in action. But in my country it should not be much different than 3G was (simply horrible).

I am not surprised they are just targeting mobiles now.


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## OneMoar (Jul 23, 2015)

you can get a 4G modem and plug it into a router running DD-WRT/Advanced Tomato firmware
then it will pretty much act like any-other router
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Unlocked-Hu...797?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d59cc25e5


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## human_error (Jul 23, 2015)

My ASUS router supports using a 4G USB dongle as the access point for the network, so there's an option there. I've used MiFis before which is a 4G wireless setup and they work pretty well. I'd have switched to 4G where I live now as I get 40 down and 21 up compared to 12 down and 0.7 up from my landline provider but there's no unlimited plans I can use for that kind of setup 

The biggest risk is in case the mast you connect to gets too many users then your speed will go down, and bad weather can also impact your speed or break the connection entirely.


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## Pill Monster (Jul 23, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> Hello
> I just moved, and the internet at my new home is driving me mad. The internet here is supposed to be 15 Mb/s, but in reality it is more like 6.s


Is that 6Mb/s or 6MB/s?    If it's 6MB/s you're flying.  What do u have..ADSL? VDSL...?


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## Blue-Knight (Jul 23, 2015)

Pill Monster said:


> Is that 6Mb/s or 6MB/s? If it's 6MB/s you're flying.


6Mb/s.


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## remixedcat (Jul 25, 2015)

My router supports a 3/4G modem dongle.


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## kozad (Aug 10, 2015)

TeslaK20 said:


> Have you read my post? My wired internet is 6 Mb/s, while my phones wireless 4G is 16 Mb/s.



I only tether if I must - even a slow connection with low latency can be better than a HSDPA connection with a lot of latency, sometimes. I'd lag right out of GW2 eventually if I didn't use cable internet and instead relied on the cellular service out here. :3


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## xvi (Aug 10, 2015)

If you can hotspot from a phone, I've used an old WAP54G access point to automatically connect to my hotspot and bridge it down to a LAN port. From there, wire it to a switch and boom! Main issue with phones and hotspots is they might not be able to charge the battery faster than the phone drains it. This was particularly true with my Verizon Galaxy S3.

I'm pretty lucky getting low-ish latency over cell data, but if you're in even a moderately populated area, don't expect to do any gaming or voice/video calls.

Ninja Edit: I tether to my phone to download games and patches, but switch back to my slow DSL to actually play online.


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## RejZoR (Aug 10, 2015)

Be aware that while 4G is fast for downloads it's very bad at P2P and gaming. If you use any of that, avoid 4G (or any long range wireless).


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## Vayra86 (Aug 10, 2015)

4G is a higher latency connection than any wired one that you could have. Bandwidth is the only advantage, so I would keep them both and push big data with time constraints over 4G and do your browsing over the wire.

The only disadvantage then would be the cost.


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## Rhyseh (Aug 11, 2015)

One thing to note with some 4G dongles. Some routers don't have enough juice to power them. In these cases a powered USB hub would solve the issue. Better yet get a router that has a SIM card slot.

If you want to download then go with the 4G service. If you want to game I would stay with the ADSL (provided it's stable).


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