ghostlymoron
Well-known member
Excuse me but I'm completely iggerant of these things and mifi. Could somebody clever explain in simple terms please?
Tethering, VPN and suchlike
- Thread starter ghostlymoron
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LadyInBed
Well-known member
Best having a read on Wiki as a starter, then you could ask more specific questions.
pvb
Well-known member
Mifi is a little device which connects to the mobile phone network (it has a SIM card in it) and works like your wireless router at home, transmitting an internet connection which you can log on to from a laptop, tablet, etc.
Most smartphones can do a similar thing - you can set them up as a "mobile hotspot", then connect your laptop, tablet, etc to it wirelessly. This is called "tethering". As you already have a SIM card in your phone, you don't need another one (as you would with mifi) although you do need a SIM contract which includes mobile data.
Not all smartphones can operate as a mobile hotspot, and not all SIM contracts allow tethering.
VPN is something too complicated to explain, and I doubt you'd be interested in it anyway.
Most smartphones can do a similar thing - you can set them up as a "mobile hotspot", then connect your laptop, tablet, etc to it wirelessly. This is called "tethering". As you already have a SIM card in your phone, you don't need another one (as you would with mifi) although you do need a SIM contract which includes mobile data.
Not all smartphones can operate as a mobile hotspot, and not all SIM contracts allow tethering.
VPN is something too complicated to explain, and I doubt you'd be interested in it anyway.
peter2407
Active member
+1 re wot Pete said.
If you do need a VPN, chances are it would be for work, in which case the spotty ones with halitosis will take the opportunity to be condescending to you while they set up what actually takes seconds but they will use the ability to absorb daylight for as long as their pasty skin can take it ...
If you do need a VPN, chances are it would be for work, in which case the spotty ones with halitosis will take the opportunity to be condescending to you while they set up what actually takes seconds but they will use the ability to absorb daylight for as long as their pasty skin can take it ...
harstonwood
Member
A vpn (many available at cheap cost) is an app (or program) that allows you to select which country you wish to route your internet connection via
So for example last week we were in Southern Ireland, so we launched the VPN via the UK ....this allowed us to watch BBC iPlayer
It is also a safer way to conduct online banking, due to it's higher level of encryption
HTH
for absolute clarity, I am not spotty or pasty, nor do I condone non-BBC licence payers watching iPlayer
(I do pay)
So for example last week we were in Southern Ireland, so we launched the VPN via the UK ....this allowed us to watch BBC iPlayer
It is also a safer way to conduct online banking, due to it's higher level of encryption
HTH
for absolute clarity, I am not spotty or pasty, nor do I condone non-BBC licence payers watching iPlayer
(I do pay)
nathanlee
New member
Tethering - nobody gives any decent data allowance for tethering now. Three used to do unlimited, but they stopped it last year, just before I stopped subscribing to their service as it happens.
VPN - given the context, I presume you mean to get around the tethering data caps? If so, you can do this, but it'll only be a matter of time before you're "busted." The VPN (along with some other software) means the ISP/Cell network can't sniff (deep packet inspection, oh err) your traffic to detect tethered devices.
Mifi is simply a mobile dongle as per usual, but with a built in wifi router which enables you to share the connection without a direct USB cable to each computer using it. They're typically useless for reliable connections from my experience. I opted to use my existing 3g dongle, and one of these http://www.broadbandbuyer.co.uk/products/18065-edimax-3g-6200nl-v2/
Burnham Bob
Active member
actually its all a lot simpler - or a bit more complicated! most mobile phone contracts come with a data allowance. most mobile phones can act as a mobile wifi hotspot. so, what i do is turn the phone's mobile data on. i have a small screen so i prefer to read emails, check weather forecasts etc on my nexus 7 tablet. so i make the phone transmit a wifi signal that relays the data to the nexus - that's tethering. the phone is tethered to the nexus. you can check your data allowance with your mobile provide. mine is more than adequate to download and use email on the boat if we can't get wifi from a marina. for example when we are at anchor I can check my email that way. the data allowance won't allow me to download eastenders via iplayer or watch netflix like i do on my home wifi but for all intents and purposes, the data allowance is enough for email and casual surfing if i need information.
vpn is for virtual private network and its main use is to hide your identity and encrypt data between you and anyone else on the wifi network. I use betternet on the tablet in case i want to check bank balances etc but i've never had to use it. in fact, as you are using a tethered connection to the phone and not an open wifi network, its unlikely you will have any 'sniffers' who can intercept your signal and steal your passwords or private information. it is a risk on open and pubic wifi but not as far as i now on a tethered connection. (You can set a password for the mobile hotspot on your phone and its range is limited anyway).
as noted above, the main use of vpns for domestic users is to pretend you are in another country so you can access geographically limited services. my sister in law watches british tv in malta that way. lots of people access netflix america which has a better choice of movies and tv using a vpn and signing in with their UK credentials which netflix seems to tolerate .
for truly mobile internet though you will need unlimited data on your phone contract - or a dongle with its own data allowance - but you might struggle to get the kind of downlaod speeds you get at home. my bog standard contract costs less than £15 a month and gives me far more minutesd of phone calls than i'll ever need, free text messages and mopre than enough data
vpn is for virtual private network and its main use is to hide your identity and encrypt data between you and anyone else on the wifi network. I use betternet on the tablet in case i want to check bank balances etc but i've never had to use it. in fact, as you are using a tethered connection to the phone and not an open wifi network, its unlikely you will have any 'sniffers' who can intercept your signal and steal your passwords or private information. it is a risk on open and pubic wifi but not as far as i now on a tethered connection. (You can set a password for the mobile hotspot on your phone and its range is limited anyway).
as noted above, the main use of vpns for domestic users is to pretend you are in another country so you can access geographically limited services. my sister in law watches british tv in malta that way. lots of people access netflix america which has a better choice of movies and tv using a vpn and signing in with their UK credentials which netflix seems to tolerate .
for truly mobile internet though you will need unlimited data on your phone contract - or a dongle with its own data allowance - but you might struggle to get the kind of downlaod speeds you get at home. my bog standard contract costs less than £15 a month and gives me far more minutesd of phone calls than i'll ever need, free text messages and mopre than enough data
abraxus
New member
For what it''s worth Three moved me off unlimited tethering in Jan, when my contract expired, and onto one with unlimited data and 4gb tethering. In practice though my tethering has remained unlimited, as I regularly use tens of gb's a month without any problems.
I don't think they currently have the ability to differentiate between handset and tethered data, as whenever I check my remaining tethering allowance it's always 4gb, regardless of how much I've used.
nigelmercier
RIP
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That is a specific use of a VPN, for which a proxy server would have sufficed.
nathanlee
New member
That's odd. Mine was regularly cut off due to exceeding the limit. I was also paying some daft amount for a 4g MiFi device with 15gb (their maximum package). If I managed to last two weeks on both of those I'd be very lucky indeed. This meant that despite paying something like £80 per month in phone + data contracts, I still had to end up on PAYG for a couple of weeks at the end of every month, which of course requires an additional SIM card. - £25 for 7gb. Robbery!
Burnham Bob
Active member
my expereince of proxy servers is that american sites such as hulu detect them and won't allow access. a vpn is a better option as it's more comprehensive in hiding actually where you are.
ip485
Well-known member
How I use my data on EE is irrelevant - whether tethered or not.
As to a straight forward guide, tethering enables any device with WiFi to connect to the tethered device and share that devices connection to 3/4G. Think of the tethered device as rebroadcasting its connection to the internet to which it is connected via 3/4G
In the same way their are a host of devices that effectively do the same job of rebroadcasting the signal such as MiFi.
The connection is pretty much always going to be password protected so as to prevent anyone accessing the service. Usually the range from the tethered device will be up to 100 metres (ish) and the tethered device will support numerous connections.
All this means that if you have an iPad or a computer or a Kindle that doesnt have a 3/4 G sim or cant even take a sim this device can connect to the internet via the tethered device just as if it did.
It is possible to do the same job with a Mac or a PC which if connect to 3/4 G can do the same job.
The "problem" with any tethered device is it is only as good at connecting to 3/4G as its built in aerial so for use on a boat this can severly limit its range from the mast.
Most smart phones and MiFi devices have poor aerials - hence as we know the frequency with which you cannot get a signal.
Some of these devices enable you to attach an external aerial, others dont.
In an effort to achieve a far more reliable service I thought I would experiment with MiFi type router with a good external aerial. I opted for a Zoom router, because it is easy to change sims, and will take a sim from any provider. It also enables you to connect via cable and to plug in a standard 'phone for voice calls over the internet. I think it works really well on board.
The challenge of the external aerial was much greater. There are lots on the market but I am far from convinced many produce a worthwhile improvement. However It think with some aerials suggesting a proven gain of better than 15Db (omnidirectional) with really low loss cable it should be possible to achieve a significant improvement.
As to a straight forward guide, tethering enables any device with WiFi to connect to the tethered device and share that devices connection to 3/4G. Think of the tethered device as rebroadcasting its connection to the internet to which it is connected via 3/4G
In the same way their are a host of devices that effectively do the same job of rebroadcasting the signal such as MiFi.
The connection is pretty much always going to be password protected so as to prevent anyone accessing the service. Usually the range from the tethered device will be up to 100 metres (ish) and the tethered device will support numerous connections.
All this means that if you have an iPad or a computer or a Kindle that doesnt have a 3/4 G sim or cant even take a sim this device can connect to the internet via the tethered device just as if it did.
It is possible to do the same job with a Mac or a PC which if connect to 3/4 G can do the same job.
The "problem" with any tethered device is it is only as good at connecting to 3/4G as its built in aerial so for use on a boat this can severly limit its range from the mast.
Most smart phones and MiFi devices have poor aerials - hence as we know the frequency with which you cannot get a signal.
Some of these devices enable you to attach an external aerial, others dont.
In an effort to achieve a far more reliable service I thought I would experiment with MiFi type router with a good external aerial. I opted for a Zoom router, because it is easy to change sims, and will take a sim from any provider. It also enables you to connect via cable and to plug in a standard 'phone for voice calls over the internet. I think it works really well on board.
The challenge of the external aerial was much greater. There are lots on the market but I am far from convinced many produce a worthwhile improvement. However It think with some aerials suggesting a proven gain of better than 15Db (omnidirectional) with really low loss cable it should be possible to achieve a significant improvement.
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Hadenough
Well-known member
I am looking at this forum via an EE, formerly T mobile, MiFi device up the ria about 2 miles from Salcombe. I get 10G/month for £12. You can't get that now but I am limited to 3G. Point is that I have used it from the East coast round to the West coast as far as Salcombe. The only time I list connectivity was crossing Lyme Bay and then for only about an hour.
ghostlymoron
Well-known member
Would there be any advantage in hoisting the phone used as a tethering device to the masthead? (It would make using it as a phone rather difficult of course)
LadyInBed
Well-known member
It can give better reception in a cluttered area, but won't help in an area with NO reception!If you do hoist it, put a down haul on, as its weight alone may not be enough to drop it
ghostlymoron
Well-known member
Very good point.
Burnham Bob
Active member
Just an observation, but my smart phone is quite slow when it comes to surfing and emails. But the wifi tethered output works much more quickly on the nexus 7 so it's not the speed of the connection, it's the speed of the device that seems to make the difference. Web site on phone slow and clunky. Same website through tethered connection on nexus, smooth and quicker.
