Narrowed question about Travlfi

HeckWithMyBiz

New Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2025
Messages
7
Location
Mishawaka, IN
We are in a nice little RV park in Foley, AL for 3 months. They do not offer wireless, so everyone that doesn't have alternative Internet sources like Starlink are drawing off the local cell tower leaving an average download speed of 0.3 Mbps during peak times.

We were using Verizon's plan with our Winegard/Gateway. We rarely got decent speeds from it here, though it worsened during peak times. Verizon offered us a business solution, essentially a home-based router that works better than the Gateway but the 25 Mbps also degrades based on community demand and it becomes horrible during peak times.

That said... Travlfi draws data from 3 providers, whichever is strongest, to give the best performance. I've seen no one address the scenario where the data draw on the tower is so bad but is overcome by Travlfi's 3-provider setup. We have 30 days to take the Verizon router back, but only if Travlfi overcomes the drought issue. Note: Starlink is not an option due to trees. We have narrowed our interest to Travlfi because of their 3-provider solution. Can anyone address this narrow concern? Your input is much appreciated!

SH
 
Maybe you can ask around the campground what carriers others have and what their experience has been. It hardly makes sense to bet that other providers are any better.

You can also do a site survey of the area to see where the cell towers are. Maybe other providers are closer; maybe not. There is a smartphone app that can locate towers.

And I'll bet there is at least a few folks in that campground with Starlink. You might want to find them and ask about their experience.
 
I tried to make TravelFi work for about 6 months. I was not impressed. 90% of the time, the hotspot off my AT&T phone worked better. It was convenient since it was pre installed in my trailer, but just didn’t perform very well relative to the cost. You’ll still be battling for bandwidth on the same cell tower with everyone else.

The only times I found it to be truly beneficial was maybe twice. In those instances I had no AT&T service and it picked T-Mobile if I remember correctly. In fact, T-Mobile was kind of its go to in most instances.
 
Good suggestions all. Thanks for that. Aside from cost, Starlink is the best option except if trees are around. I've read multiple warnings about how that hinders reception significantly.

Weirdly, the only people I see here are walking their dogs. Everyone else stays inside their rig! I could go knocking on doors...!
 
I tried to make TravelFi work for about 6 months. I was not impressed. 90% of the time, the hotspot off my AT&T phone worked better. It was convenient since it was pre installed in my trailer, but just didn’t perform very well relative to the cost. You’ll still be battling for bandwidth on the same cell tower with everyone else.

The only times I found it to be truly beneficial was maybe twice. In those instances I had no AT&T service and it picked T-Mobile if I remember correctly. In fact, T-Mobile was kind of its go to in most instances.
Your low bandwith experience is the target answer. That right there is enough for us to stay put since our Verizon package only costs us $54 monthly for unlimited 25Mbps and the Gateway was free.

Thanks for your info.
 
We use Travlfi. Though it will automatically pick the "strongest" signal , that signal may not always carry the most data.
If I run a Speedtest and get poor results, I then use the Travlfi portal to re-scan to pick a different provider. Or you can always call the customer service line and they can switch the provider for you to see which provides the best service.
Whenever I believe there's an issue or to see any results of switching, I run the App Speedtest to see the MBPS download/upload. Customer service folks are extremely helpful so feel free to call and ask questions. If you're a first timer using Travlfi, make sure the Router's antennas are hooked up properly and to the correct terminals. Mine and others were incorrect and had to be switched to get good service. Once corrected, the service has been phenomenal. We stream 2 TVs, 5 cell phones, a tablet, and a Wyze Camera on the wifi.
 
Travlfi has worked well for me in a variety of settings. I typically get plenty of bandwidth to stream and/or other typical uses.
 
So the travelfi does use 3 providers… however the logic in their code does not swap providers because you are seeing poor perf on a given carrier. They might say it does but I can tell you it does not. You are better served look at the providers with access there and trying their solution with a money back guarantee so you can get something that works.

I’d look at the t-mobile 5g solution and the Verizon home solution. Also, I’d look at turning down TV resolution to 720p and you can survive on much lower bandwidth. I’m a network engineer so I make a living dealing with this stuff and I would not go the travelfi route if I were you given what I know…

Sorry to not have better news
 
Good suggestions all. Thanks for that. Aside from cost, Starlink is the best option except if trees are around. I've read multiple warnings about how that hinders reception significantly.

Weirdly, the only people I see here are walking their dogs. Everyone else stays inside their rig! I could go knocking on doors...!
I have Starlink, and have been amazed at how well it will do with tree coverage. Heavy coverage, little to none, but with light coverage, I will see at least 20 mbps with some interruptions. Not the greatest, but better than the campsite WiFi, and Verizon.
 
We use Travlfi. Though it will automatically pick the "strongest" signal , that signal may not always carry the most data.
If I run a Speedtest and get poor results, I then use the Travlfi portal to re-scan to pick a different provider. Or you can always call the customer service line and they can switch the provider for you to see which provides the best service.
Whenever I believe there's an issue or to see any results of switching, I run the App Speedtest to see the MBPS download/upload. Customer service folks are extremely helpful so feel free to call and ask questions. If you're a first timer using Travlfi, make sure the Router's antennas are hooked up properly and to the correct terminals. Mine and others were incorrect and had to be switched to get good service. Once corrected, the service has been phenomenal. We stream 2 TVs, 5 cell phones, a tablet, and a Wyze Camera on the wifi.
To narrow your answer a bit - it was very informative - I presumed the carrier switch was done automatically by the device, kinda sounds like not. But the big question - does your service get affected by high demand? That's our singular issue right now with our Verizon (home) Gateway that dwindles to 0.1, 0.2, or 0.3 each night when everyone's watching TV at our current RV campground (that doesn't offer wifi).

We don't want to invest in the equipment and the higher monthly fees if we'll end up in the same low download speed situation.
 
To narrow your answer a bit - it was very informative - I presumed the carrier switch was done automatically by the device, kinda sounds like not. But the big question - does your service get affected by high demand? That's our singular issue right now with our Verizon (home) Gateway that dwindles to 0.1, 0.2, or 0.3 each night when everyone's watching TV at our current RV campground (that doesn't offer wifi).

We don't want to invest in the equipment and the higher monthly fees if we'll end up in the same low download speed situation.
The router can switch automatically for the strongest signal.
But at your option, you can manually switch through the website portal and try one of the other 2 networks for a better performance OR you can Call the help line and one of the representatives will switch for you to find the highest MBPS.
I have NOT had to switch ever from suspected "throttling". I myself had switched by both methods once back when I first got it activated because service was in and out. I had immediately discovered though that the antenna cables were not hooked up on the corresponding port on the router. Since then flawless service. The modem equipment came pre-installed in our new rig at the factory.
Also you can watch out for Travlfi "promo codes" to get discounts each month. The last 3 times I paid $90 for Unlimited Plan.
Hope that helps. Just remember, as long as their is cell service from any 1 of the 3 providers it works. If there's no cell coverage, theres no internet service.
 

New posts

Try RV LIFE Pro Free for 7 Days

  • New Ad-Free experience on this RV LIFE Community.
  • Plan the best RV Safe travel with RV LIFE Trip Wizard.
  • Navigate with our RV Safe GPS mobile app.
  • and much more...
Try RV LIFE Pro Today
Back
Top Bottom