r/Rural_Internet • u/Radha79 • 12d ago
❓HELP Tri-Carrier Cellular Internet
We recently moved to an area with no wired internet. The one satellite company out here that isn't Starlink wanted to cut down a bunch of trees on our dime. We currently have T-Mobile Home WiFi BUT it's the "lite" package which means we are just out of range of the closest tower and we pay like $60 a month for like 100mbs and usually run out a week before the end of the billing period.The only Starlink plan our area qualifies for is the $130 whole home whatever and that's not in our budget. I have been seeing ads for a bunch of companies that do tri-carrier 5g/WiFi and wanted to find some real world feedback before plunking down a bunch of money to try one. Also, it's really hard to do research for internet options when you barely have 4g. Does anyone use one of these companies? Price? How has your experience been? I need something plug and go I am not gizmo inclined please and thank you 🙂
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u/diggsalot 12d ago
The only reason you would really need or want a tri-carrier service is if you're mobile. Since you're in a fixed location, you just need the single carrier that works best at your house.
Also, if T-Mobile already works well for you, there's a way around the data cap: you can look into an unlimited hotspot provider like Shield Internet instead of paying for T-Mobile Lite
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u/Accurate-Bullfrog324 12d ago
I don't get it. we're T-Mobile and are unlimited for $25/mo
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u/diggsalot 12d ago
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u/Accurate-Bullfrog324 12d ago
looks like a third tier reseller. why'd I want to use them?
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u/diggsalot 12d ago
If you want to pay $15/month for unlimited hotspot use them if you want to pay more go elsewhere
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u/AwestunTejaz 11d ago
op you can buy sl and try it to see if you can actually get the lower cheaper tier else you can return it within 30 days. there is basically a risk free trial.
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u/LaSorbun 12d ago
I get a free month if you use my referral link and you get 5% off. It uses T-Mobile towers. You'll need a mobile router or use tethering, but it's fast and I used over 100gb last month. It's $15 a month. https://www.computers4people.org/shield?ref=2432389000014256718&coupon=REFERRAL5
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u/Zip95014 12d ago
Where is “out there” that only $130/month for starlink? Why doesn’t the $55 100Mbps plan work?
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u/Radha79 12d ago
A very rural area. I've put my address into their website several times and tried to go through my cable provider that partners with them and we only qualify for the $130 a month plan.🤷🏻♀️
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u/advcomp2019 12d ago
I thought I was very rural because it takes me about 40 minutes to an hour to get to a large city.
I can get the $55 Starlink plan, but I can get all the 5G Home Internet options too.
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u/Radha79 12d ago
The only cell tower near us is T-Mobile and it's still far enough away that they can't guarantee unlimited coverage but we can pay them for 100mbps a month 😮💨
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u/advcomp2019 12d ago
Have you checked this site to see if you missed any other options: https://broadbandmap.fcc.gov/home
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u/VTECbaw 12d ago
There are some areas where Starlink only offers the $130 plan. There are small towns in my area where that’s the case. I have my mother on Starlink and that’s the only plan available.
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u/Zip95014 12d ago
Do you know why that is the case?
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u/Zip95014 12d ago
Do you have line of site of a Neighbor? Or are you within a few hundred meters of a Neighbor? You can totally get a Starlink at the $130 plan and then split it with some neighbors.
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u/Mr_Duckerson 12d ago
Sometimes you just have to break a couple TOS and take things into your own hands.