TOGO internet

**Wicked ace** · 12-12-2019, 03:02 PM

Originally Posted by ramcneal

I've been curious to know if the Roadlink then also acts as a micro-tower for AT&T when connected to WiFi. Years ago, when I had AT&T for my phone service, I lived in a black hole for service. Anywhere within about a 1/2 mile of my house you couldn't get service. This was a fairly common problem caused by certain requirement of the GSM protocol or so I was told. (I was told that GSM dictates a maximum round trip time for packets between the tower and phone). At the time AT&T was giving micro-cell towers to home owners in this situation like mine. The micro-tower connected to your home's internet and provided coverage. So, is AT&T providing these units in the hopes that RVer's like us will in a small way help expand AT&T's service range without them having to go through the major expense of installing towers.

Good point. Before Verizon decided to saturate my area I too was in a black hole but I don't think it was for the reasons you explained. I complained enough that Verizon sent me a signal booster to compensate, problem was and the reason I was complaining so much I was using my phone as my internet source. Xfinity has been promoting cellular service along with TV & internet and they are using customer wifi hotspots to link their network.

**ReefBum** · 12-12-2019, 03:31 PM

Definitely not a micro-cell, no hardware for it that i can tell

**Leons_Bad_Side** · 12-12-2019, 04:32 PM

Has anyone installed their own on the roof? Just wondering if there are issues drilling through the roof and possibly hitting ac ducting to anything like that.

**akgourmet** · 12-12-2019, 05:04 PM

Originally Posted by Leons_Bad_Side

Has anyone installed their own on the roof? Just wondering if there are issues drilling through the roof and possibly hitting ac ducting to anything like that.

yes, I installed mine on a 303 and ran the power cord down next to the plumbing vent. The a/c ducting is on either side of the bathroom fan. I called Grand Design before I drilled any holes and they suggested that I buy a cheap endoscope or boroscope and look for any wires that might be between the ducts because the attic is about 6" deep and there are wires up there. I found a $25 one on Amazon and used that with great success. I also bought a fish wire to get the power wire down to the panel. One other purchase was a 18" 5/8th drill bit to drill through the roof. This is a picture before I drilled any holes. I just ran the wire directly to the battery so I could use it. The final install has the wire about 4" to the left of the dark plumbing vent.

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**akgourmet** · 12-12-2019, 05:14 PM

Originally Posted by Leons_Bad_Side

Does this work with other carriers or just AT&T? I thought I had read that it worked with others as well, specifically Verizon.

the Togo only works with AT&T and their special plan. If you want to use another carrier, Winegard makes other models, such as the Connect 2.0 antenna, where you can insert your own sim card.

**Maximus216** · 12-14-2019, 05:49 AM

I've been looking at the Togo, but i am eyeing the Mofi4500 now. It takes a sim card from all the major ISPs. I recommend youtubing it.

**Wicked ace** · 12-14-2019, 06:17 AM

Originally Posted by Maximus216

I've been looking at the Togo, but i am eyeing the Mofi4500 now. It takes a sim card from all the major ISPs. I recommend youtubing it.

It is a good alternative for anyone looking for a solution to data. Two concerns I see with it are data packages that are affordable are limited. The AT&T @ $360 / yr is a deal but you are limited to the constraints of the network. I haven't looked to see if the AT&T package can be had with this or it is exclusive to TOGO. I know you could get faster downloads and probably better coverage with Verizon (they all play fast and loose with coverage maps) but it becomes cost prohibitive for the traveler / full timer to get a package that has any usable data limit on Verizon. After those two, things drop off quickly.
The wifi is only single band @ 2.4Ghz. For that kind of money and in the interest of today's tech I would expect dual band, 2.4 & 5 Ghz. The ToGO is much the same, lacking up to date tech features.
The claimed download speeds are kind of pie in the sky too. I saw several LTE modems with specs listed, claiming 150 and 300 Mbs download speeds. I doubt you would ever come close to that over an LTE network.

**Maximus216** · 12-14-2019, 08:23 AM

Originally Posted by Wicked ace

It is a good alternative for anyone looking for a solution to data. Two concerns I see with it are data packages that are affordable are limited. The AT&T @ $360 / yr is a deal but you are limited to the constraints of the network. I haven't looked to see if the AT&T package can be had with this or it is exclusive to TOGO. I know you could get faster downloads and probably better coverage with Verizon (they all play fast and loose with coverage maps) but it becomes cost prohibitive for the traveler / full timer to get a package that has any usable data limit on Verizon. After those two, things drop off quickly.
The wifi is only single band @ 2.4Ghz. For that kind of money and in the interest of today's tech I would expect dual band, 2.4 & 5 Ghz. The ToGO is much the same, lacking up to date tech features.
The claimed download speeds are kind of pie in the sky too. I saw several LTE modems with specs listed, claiming 150 and 300 Mbs download speeds. I doubt you would ever come close to that over an LTE network.

supposedly you can buy unlimited packages on ebay. I haven't looked into it yet. I can add a new line with verizon and the yearly cost is a little more than the togo package. what is cool about the mofi is that the ISP doesn't know that you are using it as a hotspot, so the hotspot limits don't apply. there are a lot of customization with the mofi also. I have the weboost RV booster, it works but not good enough to stream and i have to be within a foot of the inside antenna. I ordered a directional antenna for it and gonna test it and see what that does. If i'm not happy, I going to order the Mofi and test it out with my current sim card. I will definitely get faster speeds with the mofi.

**Wicked ace** · 12-14-2019, 08:43 AM

Originally Posted by Maximus216

supposedly you can buy unlimited packages on ebay. I haven't looked into it yet. I can add a new line with verizon and the yearly cost is a little more than the togo package................ .

Just weighing pros and cons here. My phone is on Verizon and I use it tethered as a data link so it doesn't show as hot spot use (which gets throttled at 22Gb). I have been throttled at 50Gb. Any additional lines you have will do the same but on a cumulative basis. Still much less than their device plans but know that will get you about 8 to 10 evenings of streaming. That is why I say the AT&T plan is such a bargain. If the phone went unthrottled I would get rid of my home internet and use it. It would certainly be good to get rid another subscription payment.

**ReefBum** · 12-14-2019, 06:17 PM

Originally Posted by Maximus216

I've been looking at the Togo, but i am eyeing the Mofi4500 now. It takes a sim card from all the major ISPs. I recommend youtubing it.

If your looking for an internet solution that can use other sims then I would also look at the Mikrotik SXT LTE I know it works with ATT and T-Mobile, not sure about Verizon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...4AF8CM2R&psc=1

If you need a more powerful unit that can reach towers further away you can try this one

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...K2DLQ8YY&psc=1

They both have directional antenna so it would need to be roughly pointed at the tower but would provide a much better signal than a device with OMNI antenna. It's antenna has wider beam so the pointing does not have to be dead on but in the correct general direction of the tower. I just got one and am running a T-Mobile sim in it and so far its working good. A quick setting rule in the device also stops all the data from being counted as "hotspot" data.

There is also newer versions coming out in the next month or so, that have LTE6 that has a newer LTE radio that will do carrier aggregation for faster speeds.

These units are not really plug n play like the TOGO and require a bit of setup/config. They also dont have built in WiFi so you would need to run your own router with it.